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I was at a networking event in Brighton, Michigan this week and was asked what I like about what I do. And I didn’t even have to think about it. As a solopreneur graphic designer I love my job.
What do I like about what I do?
- I get to work with different companies and different people all the time. There are actually 5 companies I’m working with this week. Can you say variety?
- When I make a client happy, I get to continue working with them and help them build their brand and business.
- I love to sit at the computer and spend hours fixing photos and tweaking layouts. And when it’s quiet, I can do this and not even realize how many hours have gone by (thus a lot of late nights).
- Here’s one I wouldn’t have ever imagined enjoying even a year ago, but now I really do like it. I get to network with other business people and build relationships, and then I get to watch as it pays off.
- I get to strategize about how to market my company, and when I want to change directions, I can do so quickly because it’s my call.
- I get the opportunity to teach other people about graphics. I’ve recently done a lunch and learn for the Brighton Chamber of Commerce and will be doing another one next month on my own as well as one for the Howell Michigan Chamber of Commerce. I’m also going to be teaching a Photoshop class at Lansing Community College’s Howell campus. Teaching keeps me fresh on my own knowledge and skills and I love to see other people learn something… from me!
- And number one (most enjoyable and most challenging) By working from home, I get to spend so much more time with my two beautiful little boys.
I do love this job. I hope most of you can say the same.
What do you love about what you do?
Sending that file to the professional printer always has that little bit of stress… That little thought of “What if I missed something?” Hitting that send button feels so final, and whatever typos or little errors in your formatting that you missed are there once it’s been printed. Even worse though than the possibility of missing a typo, is the possibility that your finished product will come back completely different from what you had expected.
I was recently working on a multiple page project for a Brighton, Michigan hospital client, who was very concerned before the project started that I speak with the printer to ensure that the pages would be collated correctly. Apparently, they had a problem with the last designer they worked with and when the job went to the printer at the last minute (which of course never happens for any of the rest of us) it came out with all of the pages in the wrong order. Regardless of past issues, she had a good point. You should always contact your printer before you start designing your printed piece.
There are a couple of reasons for this.
- If you have a specific budget, a good printer or even print sales rep might be able to give you ideas on what sort of piece to put together.
- You want to make sure that the sizes and specs of your piece match what the printer needs. Things like page collation, bleed and even the actual size can vary from printer to printer – even on supposedly “standard” printed pieces.
- You definitely want to contact your printer before designing any sort of specialty piece. Anything with unique shapes, sizes, folds, closures or collation will need to be designed and formatted in the way in which the printer will need it.
- While all graphic designers should contact printers prior to design, it’s even more important for non graphics people who may not have as much experience with professional printing needs and lingo to take this initial step.
One of the benefits of using a reputable local printer is there is usually an actual person who you will be working with, and who can often (though not always) catch issues before hundreds of copies have been run. Even if they don’t have set templates, they may offer you the ability to send them a blank mock up prior to starting your design (with nothing more than page numbers or direction cues) so that they can check to be sure that the final folded, trimmed and collated piece will work right.
But even if you are using an online print house, make sure to find any templates the site offers – and use them. These should make it clear as to the format and exact size your artwork needs to be, as well as any bleeds and areas that need to be kept “empty” because of trimming needs.
Basically, know what you’re aiming at before you start your design, and you can help eliminate a lot of the anxiety of working with a printer.
What are problems you’ve had when sending your stuff out to be printed?
I’ve been letting my three year old use our old digital camera. And man is it fun to watch him go to town with it. He runs through the room snapping pictures of everything, and I do mean everything. My personal favorite is the series of pictures he took just pointing the camera at the floor while running. The carpet turned out surprisingly in focus and each one has a little bit more or less of just his feet. True, these are not masterpieces of photography. They will not end up on display in any gallery and no one would hire him based on them. But, he had fun doing them.
Too often, we as adults fail to do new things, fail to really loosen up and get freely creative. We’re conditioned to be worried about the results. Most adults, if they were to want to photograph their feet while walking, would spend too much time worrying about the details, and would probably not do anything. We’re too self-conscious about the possibility of it not turning out right to even try and in the process, we don’t come up with very much that is new or truly creative.
My goal is to try to harness some of my son’s unselfconscious creativity. Sure, I might end up with some really bad results, but at least I’m going to have fun trying, and you never know I might happen upon something great.
Do you find yourself too self-conscious to truly be creative? What do you do to try to move beyond it?
