The newbie designer trap goes something like this: You go to graphic design school. You study all the “famous” designers that your teachers tell you are great. Then you head straight into the workforce designing to please your boss and your clients. And through it all, you somehow forget yourself in the process. You forget to ask yourself, “What do I think? What kind of designs do I like? What kind of designer do I want to become?”
And that’s exactly what happened to me. By the time I left my first graphic design job, I had lost all sense of myself as a designer. I had been so completely in the mindset of working to please others that I had left myself entirely out of the equation. Unsure of my next steps or how to proceed with my future career, I decided to attend the AIGA SF Portfolio Day (a.k.a. one-on-one feedback with experienced, talented designers, creative directors and principles of some of the best design firms in the country) held at California College of the Arts (CCA) in San Francisco. I was hoping their feedback would help bring some clarity to my situation (I also secretly fantasized I would score interviews with my dream design agencies, they would love my work, and hire me right there and then).
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