As the AI continues to grow and influence the job market, design skills will become increasingly important as we will continue to need people to come up with and execute creative ideas. If you are thinking of transitioning to becoming a designer, I can tell you that it is possible - I've done it!

What does a career in design involve?

A career in design is a rewarding discipline that is great for someone with a strong work ethic, lots of curiosity, and an endless capacity for learning. Unlike other careers, a design career must be nurtured and cared for constantly, like your houseplant plant or your pandemic-era sourdough starter. You have to keep your portfolio updated consistently and you need to stay up to date on design trends and skills. With new software and features coming out every year - especially new A.I. based ones - it is important to be skilled in using them or you risk falling behind with the job market. While this may sound daunting, it is worth the effort as there is no other career that is more fun and allows such exponential growth.

What type of designer can I become?

There are many different types of designer. I tend to think of design as a spectrum: graphic design on the left and product on the right. Graphic design encompasses branding/identity, marketing, print, signage, etc. Product design relates to more technical designs like websites, landing pages, apps, dashboards, etc. Graphic design tends to be more concerned with aesthetics and communicating a specific message (i.e. does this ad look on brand and communicate our pitch?) while product is more functional and service-oriented (i.e. how do I make it easy for the user to submit something here?).

There are overlapping disciplines like visual design, web design, and UI/UX. Visual is a mix of graphic design and user interface (UI) design. Web designers can sometimes be considered visual designers in that both can make beautiful UI but the difference is that web designers typically know how to code HTML, CSS, and Javascript. UI/UX is essentially interchangeable with product designers but generally a product designer is more of a generalist and a UI/UX designer is a specialist.

It's best to start out as a traditional graphic designer so you can learn the basics and if you are interested in transitioning to product design or something in between, you'll already have the foundational skills you need like layout, hierarchy, color, etc.

How do I get there?

The design industry is competitive and difficult to break into but there is always space for everyone. It just takes some elbow grease to get there. Many people say they are designers but don't have the level of expertise that most companies are looking for so employers need enough evidence that you are legitimate. Many job applications these days really only want to two things: a solid resume and a killer portfolio. If you don't have any design experience, you either need to make great designs or get some form of education like a certificate or Masters in design. However, avoid bootcamps as they aren't thorough enough and most employers are wary of bootcamps trainees.

Even if you do get certificates like I did, I still needed to do some self study as higher education is usually more high-level and you will need to practice, practice, practice. When you're on the job, it's the nitty gritty skills that you need. I would recommend watching a beginners video on YouTube on Figma, Adobe Creative Suite, Sketch, or whatever software you want to learn. This will help you be prepared for your first gig. Getting an internship or starting freelance can help you get that starting experience you need. Whatever first experience you find, remember to be kind to everyone you meet and stay connected. You never know who will help you along your journey. After working at startup Stream, a former coworker connected me to Catalog where I got my first design agency role. Keep an open mind about types of design roles. You can always start in one, like a marketing designer role, and move on to product or branding designer if you want to specialize.

How do I build a portfolio?

Your portfolio is not only a reflection of your best work but it should contain what you want to get hired for. If you want to be a product designer but you have branding work in your portfolio, remove it as it is confusing to employers as to what type of work you want to do.

It's better to have less than more. There are free design prompt generators like Sharpen.design or Designercize you can use or just make your own! If you see a sad website or brand that needs your keen eye, make it happen! You don't necessarily need to send it their way - you can keep it on your portfolio. However, I recommend sending it - you never know what they could say!