Recently I was meeting with potential clients and showing them some samples of my work. They were pretty surprised that my materials “looked good” and were designed within the same style, that I had a logo, my own business cards, portfolio, website etc. I was surprised that they were surprised, because I always believed that to be the most normal thing and always felt like I’m not even doing enough in that depaartament. They told me that others they have talked to did not seem to put much effort in the materials they were presenting, which of course was an instant turn off.
Around the same time I received an email, advertising some kind of web services or maybe it was just plain spam, but what I noticed was that a company that claimed to be a leading mobile app company had a gmail. Even spam shouldn’t be that lazy! So all of this made me think that one must be first of all his or her own client. It’s the most obvious thing, but apparently not to everyone.
When I decided to switch careers and went back to school to study graphic design I told myself that from now on I am going to be a “designer” and what I do, the way I look, the things I make should show it. My home can’t be mess and clutter; my clothes can’t show poor sense of style and color. It’s not about buying expensive brands, but making the best of what I have or can afford, being creative, not just claiming to be. I’m not very strict about it, but try to be aware of it, because design is not just a job for me, it’s who I am!
A fun story that comes to mind when thinking about “living your profession” is that of a game developer friend who was recently quitting one job to start another. He had forgotten to give back the key to the office, so he decided to “play a little game” and made a treasure hunt type thing for it around the office. I hear the person who ended up looking for the key had fun!
So if you make websites, make a great website for yourself, if you make logos, make a great logo for yourself, if you knit cool scarves, wear a really nice scarf you made yourself , etc…