01 7 / 2011
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Avoid Spec work like the plague, it produces superficial design, wastes your time, and cheapens your work. You wouldn’t tell a hairdresser that you would only pay if the haircut was good, why design for a client who is not committed to paying.
Don’t work for free under the guise of ‘good exposure’. It is bad exposure. If you don’t value your own work, neither will anyone else.
The proof is in the pudding. If you work on what you love, people will love your work, and you will get noticed. Clients should pick you based on your previous body of work; you do not need to prove yourself every time you negotiate a job.
Don’t be mysterious. Transparency is key to trust and understanding. As a designer you provide a unique skill set and point of view, the better you can explain this to a client, the more they will trust you. The more they trust you, the more innovative you can be.
Design and designerly thinking are a powerful and effective cultural force and business practice. As designers it is important that we treat ourselves and our industry with the respect each deserves.
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