advice from a young designer to younger designers
TRANSCRIPT
@_LILCHEN
Advice from a young designer to younger designers
BEYOND TELLERRAND
LILIAN CHEN
@_LILCHEN
A bit about meFormerly at TED Talks for 3.5 years
First design job at 21 years old
Currently 26 years old
Interaction Designer at YouTube
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DisclaimerThe concepts I discuss are higher level. Mold them into what is applicable to your job. Make what you will of it.
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Learn how to talk about design to non-designers.
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It is not only a designer’s job to create good design, it’s also our responsibility to try and ensure that good design gets implemented.
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Talk to your friends.
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A W E S O M E R E S T A U R A N TM E N U
Chicken Caesar Salad . . . . . . . . . $14.30(Lettuce, tomato, grilled chicken, croutons, parmesan, topped with caesar
dressing)
Vegetarian Burger . . . . . . . . . $23.30(Tofu based patty, lettuce, tomato, blue cheese, other things that are not
meat)
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Hold yourself accountable for ensuring that your skill set is known to others.
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Nobody is going to know every quirk about you at the start of a new job. It’s your job to inform them.
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Find ways to show your skillsSeek opportunities
Help others out
Be proactive in creating opportunities
Kickstart your own side projects
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Avoid being soft-spoken when you start your job.
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If you fail to speak up, people will do the only logical thing remaining and assume that you don’t have any opinions to contribute.
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Find the sweet spot.
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Define the future of your role through your actions.
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Every design job listing everMust have strong design sense
Good eye for detail, typography, layouts
Able to take project from beginning to end
Collaborate with neighboring teams
Communicate ideas well
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CommunicateShort/long term personal goals
Career goals + growth path
Weekly check-ins
Align with manager
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Speak your needs otherwise you will not be heard.
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Celebrate and highlight your design process.
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Explaining your thinking process to others cultivates trust and understanding for your methodologies.
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Kill the idea of pixel-perfection when exploring.
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Five roughly designed, unique directions is better than one perfectly designed idea.
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Do your part in understanding your colleagues’ processes.
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Align your workflow with those of your coworkers’.
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Advocate for your designs.
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Getting people invested in your work promotes collaboration.
@_LILCHENINSTAGRAM: @HOLIDAYHAUS
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Spice your design life up with personal projects!
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With personal projects, you are your own boss. You have total creative control.
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Be receptive of feedback, but also stand your ground.
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So in conclusion…
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Learn how to talk about design to non-designers.1
Hold yourself accountable for ensuring that your skill set is known to others.
Avoid being soft-spoken when you start your job.
Define the future of your role through your actions.
Celebrate and highlight your design process.
Kill the idea of pixel-perfection when exploring.
Do your part in understanding your colleagues’ processes.
Advocate for your designs.
Spice your design life up with personal projects!
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Be receptive of feedback, but also stand your ground.10
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Just kidding. Don’t do that.
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Produce good work.
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Use your voice.
Thanks for listening. :)
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