Is Design for Me?
Designers have certain traits that may be different than those you would find in other professions. If you see these in yourself, you may be interested in a degree in Design.
- You See Design in Everything. Do you look at everyday things and wonder what font was used or think you could have communicated that message better? Designers know that they are surrounded by design and can't stop their minds from instinctively seeing ideas and solutions in everything they see and experience.
- The Details That Matter, Matter to You. As a designer, the details really matter. They affect the user's experiences and usability. The ability to understand what is important and what isn't can make or break a design.
- You Care About Solving Problems. A design is judged successful when is provides a real solution to a problem, and so a designer is a problem solver. Basically, designing something should make things better than if you had left it alone. A great designer will look to the needs of others first and will create something that may not fall within the designer's preferred style.
- You Aren't Happy with the Status Quo. Are you the type of person that isn't happy with "good enough"? Great designer are innovators that strive to make things better than they are. Designers spend a lot of time learning new things as well because they know that complacency leads to bad designs.
- You Communicate Well. Designers need to be able to communicate their ideas to others and be able to understand or ask the right questions to be able to get at the goal of a project. Design is a communication of information and ideas through a visual medium so it makes sense that it would be very had to be good designer if you are not a good communication. Good news! Your communication skills can be learned and improved if you want to work on it.
- You Can Manage Your Time. Because designers are very passionate about their craft, they have a tendency to be extremely focused in their work and may not realize that a good portion of their day has been spent on one task. Productive designers are able to control their time by only focusing on the details that matter, and solving the problems that matter. Being results-driven and purposeful in your work will allow you to focus what needs to be done now.
- You Are Creative. Obviously, you have to be creative to be a good designer. You have to be able to look at something and see it in ways that may not be apparent to others.