- What would I say to a new designer?
I would say, relationships are everything.
Do not underestimate a relationship.
So, as much work as your putting into your portfolio
and everything, remember that 50% of that
is actually the relationship too.
That's what gets work.
It's not just your pixels and your visuals,
or UX, UI, whatever it is, it's who you know,
it's how you treat people, and that goes a long ways.
And they'll always remember that.
I'm Dann Petty, and I'm a freelance designer.
- [Charli] And you have a YouTube channel.
- Oh, and I have a YouTube channel.
Youtube.com/Dann Petty.
- So, design schools or if you're a self-taught designer,
either way, you're learning a lot
about the design processes, how to do things,
and a lot of times you're so focused on that,
you forget about actually being on the journey.
That's the most important thing,
not the ends deliverable,
not whether you're following the process,
or what you've been taught.
The journey's what the most important,
because it's always going to be changing.
Especially when you go into the industry,
and all the elements and criteria you're working with
are constantly changing and they're vastly different
from what you learn as a young designer.
So, focus on the journey, enjoy it, keep discovering things
and exploring things and you'll be good to go.
My name is Lakshmi.
I live in San Francisco right now.
I've been here for four years.
I'm originally from India and I manage a small design team
that is start-up, we were just acquired.
I'm super stoked.
- [Ran] Are you shooting?
- [Charli] Mm-hmm.
- Is it one, two, three, action?
- [Charli] No, you can just talk.
- I think the best thing to do
when you're just getting started
is to work on real projects.
It's all fun and games doing personal projects,
but once you get real client, with real problems
that you're helping to solve,
that's the only way to really learn.
My name is Ran Segall and I'm a designer,
freelance designer, yeah, I guess.
(laughing)
- [Charli] You're not gonna say your YouTube channel?
- And I have a YouTube channel (laughing).
- Find something that you're really passionate about,
like a non-profit, or a friend's company,
or something like that,
that you can do some pro bono work for.
That's real, they're really relying on it.
Somebody can benefit from that work
and you'll cover so many different problems
that you don't know that you need to practice
when you're doing some just practice work.
But when you're working for a real person,
on a real project, and something
that you really care about....
I'm Vlad Magdalin,
I'm one of the co-founders of Webflow.
- My biggest piece of advice for someone
who wants to become a designer is
don't let people tell you that you can't do it,
regardless of your background.
You don't need to go to design school.
You just need to work hard.
Find other people to give you inspiration and advice.
And just make things and get them out there.
Post them on Dribbble, ask for feedback,
you'll get that feedback and you'll get better.
My name is Sarah Kuehnle,
and I'm the Head of Product at Dribbble.
- Hi, new designer, I know you're feeling like
you're not good enough, and don't worry, it's gonna go away.
You just need to practice and keep believing in yourself.
And you're gonna get there (laughing).
I'm Asli, and I'm a product designer at Twitter.
And when I first started my job,
I thought I didn't know what I was doing,
but I'm doing the exact same things today
and today I feel like, you know, I know what I'm doing.
And I'm sure you will get there too.
- I would say that you have niche down.
You gotta find the type of people you want to work with,
the people that you like, and then you just aim for that.
That's what I do, I work with online entrepreneurs,
because I am an online entrepreneur,
that's how I get the best clients.
Hi, I'm Sergio Sala, I'm a web designer.
I work with online entrepreneurs and I also run a blog.
I help people travel and work.
- A piece of advice I'd give a new designer.
[sighs]
Just keep designing.
Don't stop.
There's a whole taste versus skill gap.
Just keep at it.
I've been doing this for 13 years,
and I still struggle with creating a new design.
And I go through like, oh, this sucks.
Oh, this is awesome.
I'm the worst designer ever.
What am I doin'?
You will go through that,
but if you can just keep pressing ahead
and keep practicing your skill,
it's gonna keep working out.
My name is Matt.
The internet knows me as MDS.
I'm a designer, I live in Athens, Georgia.
- If you're a new designer and you have the opportunity
to attend a conference or a gathering
with other designers, developers, totally do it.
I'm Alex Nicolai.
I'm a freelance designer in Atlanta.
Hit me up if you're ever in Atlanta, I'll give you some Ritz crackers.
(laughing)
- What am I gonna think of?
Let me know when you're rolling.
- [Charli] I'm rolling.
- [Ran] Always use flexbox.