Transitions, December 2002
Issue 4 December 2002
Contents
Articles:
Getting Started As a Freelancer
In a challenging job market, consider the opportunities of working freelance and the best ways to market yourself. The experience of working in a number of environments may compensate for lack of security.
Graduates on the First Job Experience
Claire Kerby of Portfolio Center offers observations from recent graduates on what you can expect to discover in your first job.
Book Tips from the Top
Board members Terry Irwin and John Maeda describe their favorite and most influential volumes.
Executive director’s letter
The design profession recognizes the energy, enthusiasm and basic skills that infuse their practice as students enter the workforce each year. For students, it can still be a difficult transition.
While creativity was respected in school, disciplined and efficient work was often not judged. The skills that professors may have lauded will not gain the same recognition in a practice where judgment and experience add the greatest value to a client's project.
Students should consider carefully the options available to them at graduation and should look for situations in which they can learn as much as possible in the early years of their career. To benefit most from the experience, it is important also to gain the respect of your colleagues in the studio. Our tips for first jobs are a good place to start.
Richard Grefé, executive director, AIGA
GETTING STARTED AS A FREELANCER
You just finished school and you’re ready to start your career in design. Do you run out and take the first job you can get? Or do you shop around a bit?
While you might assume you should take a permanent position at a traditional design firm, it’s worth considering the freelancing route. Contracting with various companies gives you a great opportunity to experience how different firms function, where you can fit in best and what you really want to do.
You might assume that the economic downturn makes freelancing an unstable career option. Quite the contrary. Many companies would rather contract with a freelancer on a per-project or temporary basis than deal with the responsibilities that come with hiring a full-time employee.
Tips to help you freelance successfully
Build a portfolio. Collect your best projects from school and any work you’ve done outside of class. Show the breadth of your work—from web to corporate identity to print collateral to packaging. Seek honest feedback from your professors and other students about which projects you should include.
Research. Scour Communication Arts and other design publications for work that feels aligned with your personal design philosophy and approach, as well as suggestions for potential focus areas (e.g., packaging, web, strategic communications, production). Use the search capacity on AIGA’s member directory to find firms in the locations and practice areas that interest you; check out their websites. Talk to professors and working designers, research online and network with friends. You can’t get too much insight or too many suggestions.
Show you care. Always send a customized letter with your resume and include a sample promo piece if possible. Receiving something tangible will make a more significant impression than an e-mail.
Keep your chin up. Go on lots of interviews to keep your momentum, energy and enthusiasm in high gear. Once you’ve scheduled appointments, it’s helpful—for you and the interviewer—to call and confirm. Use the interview as an opportunity to learn and network. Be up-front about whether you’re primarily interested in freelancing or a permanent position. Don’t take it personally if you’re not contracted for a project. Ask for honest feedback about your work and referrals to other companies—they might even arrange an appointment for you.
Stay in touch. After each interview, follow up with a thank-you note. Send periodic mailings and moving announcements to stay current with the people with whom you’ve interviewed. However, be thoughtful about ongoing communications—your tone and frequency should be polite, not pesky.
Be honest with yourself. Research the latest hourly and daily rates. Be realistic about your level of work experience when calculating your fees and don’t oversell yourself. See AIGA’s Survey of Design Salaries for information. Once you’ve learned more about a specific project, you can negotiate your fees based on the duration of the engagement and intensity of the job. If you’re fresh out of school, be open to doing a mix of production and design work—learning the fundamentals of production is an integral part of becoming a skilled designer.
Work onsite. It’s helpful to have a home workstation, but when you’re beginning your career, try to work in the firm’s office. Interacting with other people is invaluable and will help you grow as a designer.
Stay connected. Get involved in local design organizations (e.g., AIGA, Art Directors Club). This is especially important if you’re working from home so you avoid designing in a vacuum. It will also give you a chance to meet potential collaborators and employers.
Stay on top of your invoicing. Get yourself on a regular invoicing schedule and stick to it. If you don’t, you won’t get paid. Be aware that companies have different billing cycles—make sure you know the schedule so you don’t struggle with cash flow.
Making the most of your position
Once you’ve found a great freelance job—whether for a short stint or a long-term contract—how do you make yourself an integral part of the studio?
Understand the bigger context. Gather as much information as possible before you begin working on a project. Asking thoughtful questions is far more effective than making incorrect assumptions. Be sure to take notes so you can capture important details and review them later.
Build relationships. Get to know people in the studio—from the creative director and designers to the production artists and the administrative staff. Good relationships will allow you to work more effectively and efficiently, and will help you become an integrated, valuable part of the team.
Strive for accuracy and speed. Figure out what’s needed for the specific project you’re starting—its deadline, review cycle and contingencies—so you can make the appropriate trade-offs between precision and time. If you’re under a tight deadline, don’t save all of your work for a final review. Check in with your manager or creative director to get feedback while you’re working so you can adjust as necessary. Your ability to work under pressure and stay focused will make you a great asset.
Jules Ellingson is a designer at Stone Yamashita Partners, a strategy and communications firm based in San Francisco.
GRADUATES ON THE FIRST JOB EXPERIENCE
A report from Claire Kerby, Portfolio Center
The graduation parties are a sweet and hazy memory, your parents are having your diploma framed and you’ve finished arranging the African violet and the photos of your dog on your new desk. Now what? I asked several recent graduates, from less than a year to a couple of years out of school, about their first jobs. I wanted them to tell me what you should know (what they wish they’d known) as you begin this next, exciting phase of your life.
The folks I consulted were working in firms with as few as two or as many as hundreds of fellow designers, and the focuses of their firms were varied. Their answers, however, were remarkably similar, so I trust this advice. And lest anything they said scare you, keep this in mind: Everyone I talked to was excited about his or her job; they all love designing and take even the not-so-lovable aspects of their workdays in stride. And they responded to my e-mails and phone messages with alarming speed and enthusiasm, eager to share what they thought might help prepare you for what’s ahead. So read and heed.
All seemed to agree that the transition from school to industry is huge emotionally. One designer described it this way: “It’s like leaving junior high feeling like the queen (or king) of the universe and stepping into the foreign hallways of high school as an unworthy freshman. There is a great deal of new learning, just when I thought I’d closed that chapter with my freshly printed design degree. It is an extremely humbling and hopeful period of trying to bring together the idealistic lessons of design school and the realistic world of design work.”
They also spoke unanimously about the speed in which everything is done on the job. Playtime is over, they admonished, because everything is due yesterday. You don’t have the luxury of conceptualizing for extended periods, the way you did in school. One designer told me she had to create a logo for a big company in four hours because the firm who’d originally been hired for the project hadn’t taken into account some copyright issues. Their mistake, though, became her challenge (however accelerated) and opportunity, so she rose to the occasion.
Which brings me to another point: Today’s junior designers put in an average of 40 to 60 hours per week and are expected to be able to do everything—all kinds of design—and to see the work through all of its stages. One young designer lamented her initial lack of production skills. As the only print designer in a company of 300, she had no one to turn to for guidance. She said, “My first six months were filled with many lessons, all learned the hard way. This was a good thing, though, because I will not soon forget these experiences.”
As for the variety of skills and tasks, another explained, “In my two years here, I’ve worked in packaging, identities, new product launch, websites, annual reports, advertising, brand positioning, systems manuals, company restructure, PowerPoint presentations, wine labels, logos (for all kinds of businesses, big and small), stationery, events, television spots and radio. Only God knows what else at this point. I’ve done pro bono projects and multi-million-dollar projects and have dealt with single, individual clients as well as conference calls with 27 people nationwide, all focused on the same thing.”
While all of these designers say that their salaries are in the $35,000 to $45,000 range, they want to remind you that the first job is not about money. “First job to learn; second job to earn” definitely applies here. And be patient with yourself, they advise, it’s a long journey to your name on the front door.
In light of that particular goal, they offered 10 rules for long-term success:
- Be prepared to lower your head and work for the first three years.
- Know your client. Learn to gratify him/her on your own terms.
- Don’t underestimate the importance of communication skills. Creating the best design is only half the battle—the other half is selling it to your client.
- On the other hand, be a good listener. You don’t know everything yet, so don’t pretend you do. You’ll learn more by using your ears than you will by flapping your jaw.
- Have a positive attitude. Be upbeat, someone with whom others want to work.
- Take initiative. Always be helpful. If you have finished with a project (or your part of it), do whatever is necessary to aid those around you, even if it means getting their coffee.
- Mind your manners.
- Don’t get caught at the water cooler. Time wasted on personal or company gossip is time and energy taken away from your work. It can also affect that positive attitude. MYOB.
- Don’t expect everyone you work for/with to be warm and fuzzy. Don’t take things personally.
- Never relax into complacency. Maintain the same spirit and drive you interviewed with. A lot of folks would love to have your job.
Claire Kerby is assistant to the president of Portfolio Center, which is the business-card-sized way of saying she maintains relationships between Portfolio Center and hundreds of design firms and advertising agencies. In her “spare time,” she serves on the board of AIGA Atlanta and as a board member of the Creative Club of Atlanta.
BOOK TIPS FROM THE TOP: BOARD MEMBERS TERRY IRWIN AND JOHN MAEDA
More books from AIGA national board members.
Leben und Werk Des Typographen Jan Tschichold
By Jan Tschichold
My favorite book in my own library. Even though it’s in German, this is the most valuable typography book I’ve seen. It has full-color, letterpressed examples of Tschichold’s work throughout his career and is a typographic marvel.
The Power of Limits: Proportional Harmonies in Nature, Art & Architecture
By Gyorgy Doczi
This slim, paper-bound volume is an excellent introduction to the underlying proportions and harmonies that run throughout the organic world and whose principles have been embodied in some of the most enduring and beautiful man-made structures throughout history. It’s the best introduction to the idea of design frameworks that I can think of.
Compendium for Literates: A System of Writing
By Karl Gerstner
Gerstner’s analysis of writing, language, semantic meaning and the basics of typography is unsurpassed. Divided into five sections—writing and language, craft, picture, function and expression—it does an excellent job of examining typography and meaning.
The Nature of Design: Ecology, Culture, and Human Intention
By David W. Orr
Orr is the chair of environmental studies at Oberlin College in Ohio and is an eloquent spokesman for the larger role that design has to play in contributing to the health of society and the planet. The principles of intelligent design outlined for ecological designers in this book have tremendous relevance for traditionally trained designers as well.
Theory and Design in the First Machine Age
By Reyner Banham
Entertaining historical backdrop to our present day of design.
Technics and Civilization
By Lewis Mumford
An explanation of the reasons why technology and art always collide.
Compendium for Literates: A System of Writing
By Karl Gerstner
Brilliantly designed and meticulous in pedagogy.
Paul Rand: A Designer’s Art
By Paul Rand
A designer and his work, designed by himself, written by himself, honestly presented.
Publisher
AIGA Transitions is published once a month, September through May, nine times a year by AIGA (American Institute of Graphic Arts), 164 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010, www.aiga.org. The executive editors are AIGA national board members Terry Irwin and Petrula Vrontikis. AIGA Transitions is a benefit of student membership and is not available to nonmembers. AIGA seeks articles for this publication from knowledgeable, respected and experienced authors whose opinions are deemed relevant to the student and educator community. The opinions expressed by the authors are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or judgment of AIGA; further, they represent only one point of view and are not intended to be an exhaustive treatment. For further discussion of the issues with your colleagues and peers, please visit the AIGA Design Forum at www.aiga.org.
© 2008 AIGA | 164 Fifth Avenue New York NY 10010 | 212 807 1990