Why do we do this?
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- sputnik20
i do it because i love it. 10 years FT and branching out, then a break, now freelance. i don't necessarily need it as much as i want it.
- scrap_paper0
I got into design on a whim. I had been studying Biology in University. Dropped out after three years because I wasn't happy. Worked in a paint store for a year and was ready to shoot myself in the head and decided to look into school again. I was leaving through a course calendar, found graphic design, thought it looked interesting and dove in.
Fast forward about 12 years. Been working for myself for six years now. The work has been a mix of rewarding and mundane. It pays the bills but the first few years were really tight. I think I like what I do but I've been going at it for so long now a lot of my daily tasks feel kinda boring. I've thought about changing careers plenty of times.
I do what I do because, at this stage, its what I do. I get satisfaction from the gig on a professional level but if I was to win some cashish I'd walk away in heartbeat and never talk to another client again.
- plash0
I do it because i love it and i can't imagine doing anything else. it pays my bills and it allows me to keep mind sharp.
there are plenty of other scenarios where things would have ended up worse. plenty of other jobs where all they need is a drone. so i thank my lucky ass and put up with my bitchy clients and deal with the am meetings and late nights. my needs are compensated, my time is valuable and i am a listened voice in my organisation.
if the job doesn't fulfill your most basic needs.. gtfo
- Projectile0
I do it cos it's at least interesting. I could never do a job where I'm just pushing paperwork. I've done design.. sorry, artworking.. that was almost there.. months of mindless processing, not even choosing the odd image or layout, literally just amends. Atm i'm a bit aof a screwdriver at times but get to decide on most of what I do. And I like it.
I'd rather be ariver guide or a kiitesurf instructor, but yeah.. no money. I would have actually studied industrial design not graphic design, but didn't even know the damn field existed until I saw people doing it at my college. Glad I stuck with graphics though.. it's the best industry to freelance in. ...if you can code. Which I can't. But im working on it :P
- jamble0
It pays the bills. If I didn't have bills, I wouldn't do this.
- necromation0
Thanks, for all the good replies... I i've been doing this seen '98 and turning 36 this month, it just makes you wonder.
It's good to see what drives my fellow creatives, and what keeps them going. Ultimately i LOVE what i do and has given me a good income and helped me travel and meet amazing people. I think at my age it seems that everbody moves into a directors position and become less hands on and that for me isn't cool... I have worked at so agencies and it true i have yet to meet a designer in there late 30's or early 40's.
I suppose i'll just keep plodding along till they put me out to pasture.
- ftravieso0
I never questioned it. Computers and art were in the mix and it was my mission to go for it. Moved to Barcelona and although the market pool seemed very very deep there seems to be a way to flow with this profession through quite a few other disciplines, if you invest in learning.
- svenreed0
because if i was in soviet russia the government would be designing me
- studderine0
so i can be more sophisticated than everyone else.
- d_rek0
I was raised by a pretty traditional roman catholic family. We're talking a generations of relatives whose highest ambitions were to get a factory job, work it for the next 20-30 years of their life and then retire. Fuck that.
I have always had latent artistic ability but it was never exactly encouraged by most of my immediate family that I should pursue a career as an artist/designer. And the area I was raised in was so culturally devoid and unaware that when I took that stupid test in high school about "Choosing a Career" I ended up not being able to complete it and having to talk to a counsellor about it. Most people from that area still think of artists/designers as someone who exclusively oil pants.
After I graduated I still didn't understand that I could make a living making art commercially. It wasn't until I attended community college that I really started to understand what graphic design was as a profession and through some excellent mentoring was set upon that path.
Now I've had more jobs than I can probably remember: bus boy, waiter/server, bartender, short-order cook, frycook, furniture mover, delivery boy, counting inventory for retail stores, lawn care... and those are the ones that I can remember. The only thing that I ever really loved doing as much as I do now is when I worked in a greenhouse (and someday hope to do this again, either personally or as a business) but none of them have ever been something that I can say I aw myself having a career in.
That being said there is no other career that I could have chosen that allows me to express myself artistically while generating a sense of reward and pride for creating something. Not only that I get paid to draw/sketch for hours on end and then to fuck around on the computer and make sweet shit! It's the cats-ass!
- jtb260
I'm not that good of a designer, and i don't even have that cool a job, BUT I don't think i could ever do any thing else. Being a designer is great. The only thing that came close to being as rewarding is writing and playing music live, and try doing that for a living. If i won the lottery i would donate most of my time to design work for social change.
- studderine0
its the only thing i am kind of good at.
- ukit0
- sherm0
i pretty much love being a web developer. i don't like paying taxes though.
- egosmoke0
Everything scarabin said was dead on, but I'll add a few more.
I work in interactive / web, and I love my job and this industry. It's allowed me to travel, not only to other states, but also other countries to work and live. I don't need a lengthy resume, I am hired and judged by the quality of my work. I don't answer a phone and I don't sit in a cubicle with fluorescent lights beaming down. When there was a recession, I was busier than ever. I am constantly challenged daily and inspired by the people I work with. I don't need to stay at one job for 20 years to work my way up some ladder, rather I can work at different shops and gain more experience. The list goes on.....
- previous0
I do it for the glory of god
- utopian0
I do it for my fans.
- monospaced0
I do it for the massive heaps of cash.
- capn_ron0
I do this because it's the only thing I can do as a full time job, come home and do as freelance and then when I have a free moment continue doing in some fashion.
I consider it a passion rather than a job or career. Yeah, i have to go to work and I have to make money to pay bills, but who else do you know comes home from work and does more of the same because they like it?
Being creative is a good outlet. You may not get to do it to the fullest potential on every project, but that's why we make some up for ourselves and go full throttle with them.
- < this is true for me, 8 hours at work, then 6 hours of free time, lolsteven_segal