2022 Creative Recap
It’s been quite a year!
After going through a period of tremendous personal and proffesional growth, I’ve changed industries and am focused as a 3D Graphic Designer. It has presented a tremendous opportunity for me to hone my skills in a specific area, and develop my weaknesses through rigorous practice.
I had left the corporate environment quite some time ago, so being back in an office has been quite interesting. Here are some observations which I think could be valuable to anyone working in a shared space:
1. Check yourself weekly, if not daily.
Everyone has an opinion, and no one wants to keep it to themselves. Attitudes and behaviors are contagious. Although it’s important to listen actively and engage with your team, be sure to shut out negative or toxic statements. People love complaining, it takes away the responsibility of being accountable for problems or obstacles in your career. Be sure to respond to this in a positive and healthy way which either transforms the issue or empowers others. Not everyone is looking for a solution, but attempting to reframe an issue as an opportunity is a great practice to have for your future. If the other person doesn’t appreciate that, perhaps it’s best to limit your interaction with said person to a minimum.
This episode of the Tim Ferris podcast contains invaluable tools to achieve an inner coach:
2. Have a plan for your growth
When no one is assigning you work, things slow down for the holidays, or your project is delayed beyond your control, it can be tempting to waste time on social media or socialize around the office. After a couple of weeks in which my workload slowed and I found myself “keeping busy” at the office, I felt myself stagnating. So I made a mind-map of all the crucial skills that a graphic designer should have some understanding of. Yes, it can be useful to specialize. However, in order to be prepared for incoming opportunities, being a generalist helps you serve more clients. Having a wide range of understanding will ultimate broaden your career horizon.
Here’s a great discussion hosted by Chris Do which goes deeper into this. It’s specific to graphic designers, however most of this video can be applied to anyone in a creative profession:
3. Make your health your #1 priority
Some love bragging about how little sleep they got, especially when it’s sacrificng for a big deadline. I cannot stress this enough: YOU ARE LESS PRODUCTIVE when you do not take care of yourself. You are literally shaving time away from your life in favor of something which most of the time, does not hold life or death consequences.
Get your rest, somewhere between 7 and 9 hours of sleep each night. Make good choices with your food, either hire a meal service or meal prep at home. Your wallet will also thank you. Exercise every day. Yes, every day. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy. You can fit 3 decent workouts a week, and stretch 10 to 20 minutes every morning or night.
Your brain will thank you.