Intro.
This is a list of hopefully helpful tips and ideas in no particular order. This is what has worked for me and is therefor subjective and anecdotal.
This is for anyone, but mainly younger and less experienced people getting into the industry.
01.
Study your favorite designers.
02.
Travel.
03.
Move to another country and live there for at least a while.
Can be a very effective way to grow as a person.
04.
Shoot. Photo and video.
What camera or lens you use isn’t important until later on. You’ll know when.
05.
Read books on design, photography, and film making.
But more importantly, read books that have little or nothing to do with those subjects.
06
Don’t focus too much on trying to be be humble. Instead, be respectful, but curious, driven, and pay attention.
‘Be humble’ is a term that gets tossed around a lot but is pretty vague in my opinion and in many cases gets
interpreted as ‘just keep your head down’. This is not helpful for anyone and will not develop you as an artist or human.
The best take on humility I’ve personally heard is:
‘Knowing exactly what you are. Nothing more, nothing less. You don’t minimize yourself, and you don’t put yourself
above others. You are what you’ve become. Otherwise you lie to people.’
I wish I had realized the above sooner, but better late than never I guess, and it’s something I’m still wrapping my head around.
To further break this down:
Often, especially a student or junior person in the industry you’re told to be, or hear you should be, humble, but with no real further explanation on how to be humble.
I would say that ‘be humble’ is one of those phrases you hear in life that sound nice, and is of course desirable, but when put into practice without any guidance morphs into its own shadow side. That’s what I mean by people just keeping their heads down, being too shy, overtly idolizing their peers and especially their perceived or actual mentors.
Telling someone to be curious, which I myself am guilty of just a few sentences earlier as I laid out the alternatives to being humble, is the same thing. It’s very hard to know how to move forward and be curious if you’re not already naturally curious. A remedy to this, and one way to become more curious, is to read more books, and learn more in general. Once you start learning more you realize how little you know; a direct path to humility. The same way, not learning anything creates arrogance. There’s a reason why certain books have survived the test of time. It’s because they hold timeless information and wisdom, many of them being more relevant today than ever, and they’re a great starting point. From personal experience I’ve found that the more you read the more curious you become, and the more humble you become because you realize more and more how little you know. Moreover, while expanding your curiosity, pay attention to what you’re curious in and follow that. Pay attention to what you pay attention to and let that be your guide. And you can pay attention to several things at the same time, and maybe you should. You don’t need to read one book at a time, cover to cover. I certainly always don’t. Sometimes I read a book cover to cover (usually when a book really captivates me), but it’s very common that I jump between books, only read the parts I find the most interesting, skim and so on. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t read entire books; obviously you should, but in a world where our attention is highly divided finding an entry point to a book can be helpful, and that entry point doesn’t have to be the very beginning of the book.
07.
Do personal projects.
I wouldn’t recommend ‘daily renders’. That train has passed and if you’re looking to attract the attention of studios, clients, or people in general you’ll be a
drop in the ocean.
08.
Try to only take on client work that stimulates you.
This is harder in the beginning but will pay off in the long run. If it’s not possible refer to previous tip.
09.
Be a nerd.
Don’t be afraid to deep dive into things you’re interested in.
10.
Get off social media.
11.
Be mindful of your sitting posture and take breaks. This one is easier said than done.
12.
Try to find your innate talent.
I don’t believe in the idea that we are blank slates and that with enough work everyone can become equally good at a certain skill. This is naive and
devalues the gifts we all actually have.
Even though our talents and interests are shaped during childhood I think we are also born with some of them, and you could maybe even argue that the ones
that are shaped and stick are the ones that we were born with, almost as if we were meant to channel them, being a vessel for a higher purpose. This might be
why it’s so painful being forced to do something you’re not interested in.
Either way, the next tip might be a good way to find it.
13.
Whatever gives you goosebumps, do that.
Recommended reading / book I’ve found interesting, helpful, insightful etc.
‘Breath’ - James Nestor
‘Why I Write’ - George Orwell
‘The Culture or Narcissism’ - Christopher Lasch
‘Depth Psychology and a New Ethic’ - Erich Neumann
‘The War of Art’ - Steven Pressfield
‘King, Warrior, Magician, Lover’ - Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette
‘A New Program for Graphic Design’ - David Reinfurt
‘A Primer of Visual Literacy’ - Donis A. Dondis
‘The Vignelli Canon’ - Massimo Vignelli
‘The Courage to be Disliked’ - Ichiro Kishim and Fumitake Koga
‘The Drama of the Gifted Child’ - Alice Miller
‘The Propet’ - Kahlil Gibran
‘Crime and Punishment’ - Fyodor Dostoevsky
‘The Stranger’ - Albert Camus