As I’ve voiced my opin­ion over and over (and over), applied my own twist to things, and finally catch­ing the ear of the designer at my cur­rent job, I’ve finally got my foot in the door for doing some graphic design work. Together, the designer and I were really going to blow away the old designs with a fresh look, new design rules to apply, and a good appli­ca­tion of experience.

I was going to finally get my chance to do what I’ve been asking to do for almost two years! So why did I give it up?

The Paper

First and fore­most, unless you’re a prodigy of design, the mes­siah of the layout, and the master of typog­ra­phy, people aren’t going to pay much atten­tion to your opin­ion unless you’ve got some doc­u­men­ta­tion back­ing you. It’s the sad truth, and it’s one of the dri­ving forces behind my deci­sion. You can be as good as you pos­si­bly can, but with­out that little “G.D” title under your list of can-​dos, you have to work that much harder just to prove that your the designer for the job.

Once I com­plete my stint at Mohawk Col­lege, I’ll prob­a­bly upgrade via a dis­tance course so that I can work in the field and gain expe­ri­ence while upgrad­ing my edu­ca­tional status. That part’s going to suck socially, eco­nom­i­cally, phys­i­cally, and men­tally but I’ll manage. I just remind myself that per­pet­ual learn­ing is the most impor­tant thing in life you can do for your­self and your community.

The Experience

I want to learn about design in a struc­tured envi­ron­ment. I know I’ve been read­ing like a fiend since I started on this road, but read­ing books only gets you so far with­out proper appli­ca­tion of knowl­edge. I’m hoping and some­what expect­ing to get this foun­da­tion from school. I don’t want to be just another designer; I want to be a bloody-​good designer. I want people to look at my work and say some­thing akin to “Fuck. Yes.”

I know I won’t be able to do that with­out a strong foun­da­tion and under­stand­ing of the rules of design. School can help me with this.

The Direction

My work’s been reward­ing. Sure I’ve worked 40 hour-​per-​day shifts, been sat behind the eight ball more times than I’m will­ing to count, and I’m sure I’ve lost hair from the whole ordeal. I’ve also been taught some rather good habits about how to work under pres­sure, know just what my abil­i­ties are and how to push them, and I know just how much I enjoy my work.

Having said that, being a code-​jockey for the rest of my life is not what I have planned. I enjoy coding, and I like it being a part of what I do. I do not want it to be the main focus of my work because over the last two years I’ve come to the con­clu­sion that I like design work more. It appeals to me, and I appeal to it. I would be short-​changing myself if I waited too long before get­ting my formal edu­ca­tion in the field.

As it turns out, my place of employ­ment have actu­ally offered me a part time job where I set my hours weekly. If I can’t work, it’s no big deal. They’re also will­ing to pay me my cur­rent rate of pay in an hourly format. That’s.. roughly 30 dol­lars an hour in a part time job. I admit that it’s tempt­ing, and I’ve got to give that some thought.

The Drive

I want to do this. I want to become a designer and there’s noth­ing anyone can really say to dis­suade me. I know becom­ing a designer will require a pay cut, at least at the begin­ning. I know that it’s a flooded field at the moment since every­one and their mother thinks that they can design. I know that it’ll be hard for me to stand out, but I will.

I will do this.

I will com­plete my schooling.

I will dis­tin­guish myself.

I will be a designer.

I will be proud of my work.