May 2020 Q&A (ft. student questions)
2020 has been pretty hectic so far, but I still always appreciate the opportunity to give back to the local community. One of my favorite ways is by speaking with and mentoring students who are interested in pursuing graphic design as a career. It’s been tricky because of the shelter-in-place in California, but we’re figuring out ways to connect via Zoom and video conferencing.
Last week I (virtually) spoke with some students at a local high school to answer some questions about my background, experience, and career path. These were some of the questions asked, which I wanted to share with my responses. Hopefully you can learn something new! 💡
What makes you passionate about your work, day after day?
I love the type of design that I focus on (as multi-disciplinary as that is!) because it’s all about problem solving and bettering the world a little bit, in that way. Those are the things I’m ultimately super-passionate about, and my design work has proved, time and time again, to be a good vehicle to fulfill those passions. Plus, design is just so interesting — I feel like I could be endlessly fascinated by it, in all of its different forms, for the rest of my life.
…That being said, it’s not like I wake up each morning and think “wow! I can’t wait to spend 14 hours in Figma.” Even though that’s usually what I end up doing, my work would get pretty stale if I just resigned to the fact that “this is what I’m going to be doing for the rest of my life now.” What helps keep my passion going is keeping a variety of tangible goals, both long-term and short-term, that I can aspire to accomplish. These goals are everything from skills I want to learn, to projects I want to take on, to ways I want to grow. A lot of them are design-related, but there’s also a lot of them that are not at all. For example, I want to grow my work and career in the area of mentorship, so I like to take on opportunities like this (of speaking with and coaching students). It’s a way of challenging myself and making sure I continue to grow out of my comfort zone. Having those goals, whether they are complementary to design or completely outside of it, helps to keep things interesting and to stoke my passion for my work.
What do you recommend when choosing a college or area of study?
I didn’t go to an art school nor did I study design or an arts-related major, so I can’t speak too much about that experience. But from my own experience (I went to University of California, Davis and studied Communication) I can attest to the fact that college and higher education is largely what you make of it. My experience at university afforded me opportunities to get exposure to so many different fields — namely, sustainability and social justice, which I still enjoy exploring through my work today. I was also able to meet and connect with so many people from different backgrounds who had their own interests and paths. I think it’s because of that dynamic and multifaceted experience at university that I have so many different interests — and as a result, a very rich and rewarding career. So while it’s good to aim for an institution that has strong academics and a robust student community, you’ll also have lots of opportunities to explore your interests regardless of your school or area of study (or you can make your own opportunities, as I often did at those times).
How can I start exploring this career path now, regardless of age or experience?
My main advice is divided into two categories: practicing (a lot!) and exploration.
A successful creative career takes a lot of practice — years and years. And a lot of the time, it’s not easy. I’ve had much, much more work that I disliked compared to the amount of work that I feel really proud of - and that’s the nature of improving at something over time. It takes a lot of grit, perseverance, and self-discipline. So if you’re looking to get started right now, that can be your most immediate task: establishing a good habit of practicing your skills in whatever area of graphic design you’re interested in pursuing.
On the topic of exploration, I always advise folks to explore different areas — within graphic design and outside thereof. There are so many benefits to this: having a variety of interests and passions will enrich your work and make it more interesting, for others and for yourself. And there are so many fields that need graphic design! It’s only because of my varied interests that I’ve been able to use my work in “unconventional fields” for graphic designers like public services, government, and education.
And as a last note on this topic, it’s important to find people you can look up to. That leads to the last question:
How has your experience been, being a woman of color in this field?
I appreciate whenever I get asked this question even though it’s still a bit challenging for me to answer. There are a lot of different pieces of my experience that come to mind. For one, it was difficult for a long time when I was evaluating what career I wanted to explore — in high school, in university, and even for a short time after graduating — because I just didn’t know anyone in this career path who seemed similar to me in any regard. Naturally, that makes things difficult: it’s hard to aspire to become something when you don’t see any examples whom you can relate to. As I discussed with the students and teacher in this session, there are cultural barriers as well. It can be harder for your family or community to understand and support your work when your work is in the arts.
I think it’s also worth noting that there are still plenty of challenges women and women of color face in the workplace. In the past, I’ve personally had all types of experiences — from the cringe-worthy to the straight up toxic. But I’m lucky and/or privileged in that with where I am now, I’ve had to deal with that a lot less. I feel grateful that after plenty of bad experiences, I’m at a point in my life where I’m able to work with a lot of people whom I respect deeply and who reciprocate that for me.
Ultimately, I’ve overcome a lot of these obstacles by leaning into positive experiences with my network of people who were open to teaching me, mentoring me, and supporting me. A vibrant career is characterized by people who have supported that person, largely behind the scenes. There have been so many people and experiences (positive and negative) that have shaped me and taught me lessons along the way. I’ve been able to use those lessons to fuel my goals — and it’s made me a more resilient person, which I think is one of the best rewards of all.
Thanks for reading! If you have things you’re wondering about, send me an email and I can tackle it in an upcoming Q&A.