[Chad A Wright]

I could be the only one who ever experienced this (possible) but here goes.

Why can't I design anything for myself? I have done great work designing websites and identities for many companies. So why the heck can't I do anything for my own agency. I sit here, dumbfounded, like a guy who has never designed anything in his life. I have a logo I'm happy with. Now what? I was about to order some t-shirts. Well, what do I put on them? No one wants to wear a t-shirt with nothing buy my logo on it.

Does anyone else have this same problem?

This is making me nuts.

[brokenjago]

Yeah, I expereince this quite often. I think it has something to do with my insane desire for perfection. I don't care as much about other peoples' stuff, but when it comes to something I will see and use every day, it has to be both INCREDIBLY AWESOME and PERFECT.

As such I tend to throw ideas out the window without considering them more thuroughly. It sucks.

Oh well.

[CaptainHaddock]

Believe me, nearly every designer has difficulty designing his own things. I still don't have my own portfolio website after 8 design revisions.

[loki74]

heh, my big problem is sticking with something. As soon as I'm done making something I vaguely like, I either realize how much it sucks or I think of something cooler. brokenjago is totally correct--it must be incredibly awesome and perfect. A lot of the stuff I make is "good" mainly because of the low expectation of my audience. (I am in High School. High schoolers seldom see other high schoolers doing 3D modeling/animation...) But MY expectations of ME are much higher... in many cases, literally unattainable. (Well, unattainable to a novice such as myself)

I guess it just comes down to making something and sticking with it no matter what.

And whats wrong with a shirt that just has your logo? Maybe I'm not seeing the right thing in my head. I'm thinking of a polo with the logo embroidered fairly small on the front right hand side. I guess for a tee shirt you'd want more than just a logo... not sure what though. What are they for?

[Westbo]

Originally Posted by Chad A Wright

I could be the only one who ever experienced this (possible) but here goes.

Why can't I design anything for myself? I have done great work designing websites and identities for many companies. So why the heck can't I do anything for my own agency. I sit here, dumbfounded, like a guy who has never designed anything in his life. I have a logo I'm happy with. Now what? I was about to order some t-shirts. Well, what do I put on them? No one wants to wear a t-shirt with nothing buy my logo on it.

Does anyone else have this same problem?

This is making me nuts.

"The shoemaker's children have no shoes"

It's all a mind set. Once I determined that doing my identity was really a branding project, things started to flow. It may work for you as well.

Save your $ on the t-shirts... Presuming you would give the shirts as gifts to clients etc., why not think of gifts unique to a client/colleague or for a special occasion (promotion, birth announcement, engagement etc.). They will remember and appreciate your thoughtfulness far longer than getting a freebie shirt no matter how cool the logo is.

W2

[Chad A Wright]

The t-shirts are actually just for my family and friends. I wear t-shirts all the time when I'm not working so I figured I might as well promote myself while doing it. I design t-shirts all the time for clients, and have never been dissappointed. Now though, nothing good comes to mind.

You are correct, clients get the good gifts.

I may sit downt this weekend and approach the entire thing as a branding project and and see what I can come up with.

[Westbo]

Originally Posted by Chad A Wright

The t-shirts are actually just for my family and friends. I wear t-shirts all the time when I'm not working so I figured I might as well promote myself while doing it. I design t-shirts all the time for clients, and have never been dissappointed. Now though, nothing good comes to mind.

You are correct, clients get the good gifts.

I may sit downt this weekend and approach the entire thing as a branding project and and see what I can come up with.

There ya go... Take a break, walk away from it. Come back later when your mind is clear and I'm sure great ideas will happen. Good luck!

W2

[andi*pandi]

I'm glad it's not me. Every time I sit down and think about my own logo, website, etc, it gets very overwhelming.

[production_coordinator]

Because it locks you into one design. One cool thing about being a designer is some days you get to be classic, others retro, and then modern... ever changing. When you go to design a website, you are forced to brand yourself... which is very difficult.

[Chad A Wright]

That is exactly the problem. It will lock me in. I've already had the printer order the paper for my business cards, and now I'm thinking that's not the way I want to go. How frustrating.

[Oisín]

Originally Posted by production_coordinator

Because it locks you into one design. One cool thing about being a designer is some days you get to be classic, others retro, and then modern... ever changing. When you go to design a website, you are forced to brand yourself... which is very difficult.

This is so true. I fear there is no easy solution for this problem. The shoemaker's children have indeed no shoes.


Somewhat off-topic, but Chad, your signature exceeds the maximum space allowed in signatures, which is only four lines of text. You can find the precise rules in this announcement.

[production_coordinator]

My 2¢ here... I would go for something simple and clean where your various projects are highlighted.

ALSO: KEEP IT SIMPLE ENOUGH TO EASILY UPDATE! I see so many designers obviously spend a large amount of time creating a wonderful website... only to let it become stagnant weeks after launch. I would go as far as to say... I would rather see a nicely created blog of thumbnail projects you have worked on... as compared to some elaborate site. As a production coordinator (that guy that hires designers) I just want to know if you are in the ballpark.

[art_director]

It's very difficult to be the client and the designer at the same time. This is partly due to the challenge of stepping outside your perceptions of yourself and your work and seeing it from the prospective clients' point of view. Hang in there, you'll get it. And let me add you're not alone – even the best have trouble doing their own identities.

On the matter of portfolio websites I have a very strong opinion (surprise). Personally, I don't put any of my work on a website. That's because I've never seen it done well – that includes the world's best agencies / design firms. Unless print samples are designed to be viewed online they can be unreadable. Also, a TV spot that was produced to run on a television set (yeah, a revolutionary idea, I know) can look like cow dung when reduced to a postcard sized, compressed MPEG file.

When people ask for my URL I give it but explain that they will see no work there – I simply believe that my work deserves to be viewed in the best possible way, not the most convenient. I always offer to send a book and a reel to those requesting to see samples. My rationale is that if a client is interested in good work they won't mind the effort but they will hold it against me if they can't properly view my samples (like if the type treatment is too small to be read on screen). Yes, I know, I can give them big PDFs to download but I didn't create a poster / ad /etc. to be viewed a few inches at a time while scrolling around the page.

This approach has cost me some work. In my mind the prospective clients that didn't understand the difference weren't worth my time. I'd rather work with people / companies that get it.

Is my attitude snooty? Yes, absolutely. But it's served me well and I work with a number of clients I share a mutual respect with. I am not a vendor, I'm a partner.

[production_coordinator]

Originally Posted by art_director

On the matter of portfolio websites I have a very strong opinion (surprise). Personally, I don't put any of my work on a website. That's because I've never seen it done well – that includes the world's best agencies / design firms. Unless print samples are designed to be viewed online they can be unreadable. Also, a TV spot that was produced to run on a television set (yeah, a revolutionary idea, I know) can look like cow dung when reduced to a postcard sized, compressed MPEG file.

When people ask for my URL I give it but explain that they will see no work there – I simply believe that my work deserves to be viewed in the best possible way, not the most convenient.

All of which drives production_coordinators like myself crazy I'm tired of talking to someone on the phone only to find out that the "magazine" they designed was a trifold... and the corporate identity is their business card.

I don't want to see all of your work, most of the time, I just want one piece to understand what you are capable of. I've just been in too many meetings where the designer wasn't qualified.

I don't put much stock in a website... I also don't put much stock in sample pieces. There is SO much more to a good designer... consistency, accuracy, deliverables, etc. etc. Great design gets your foot in the door.

[art_director]

Originally Posted by production_coordinator

All of which drives production_coordinators like myself crazy I'm tired of talking to someone on the phone only to find out that the "magazine" they designed was a trifold... and the corporate identity is their business card.

I don't want to see all of your work, most of the time, I just want one piece to understand what you are capable of. I've just been in too many meetings where the designer wasn't qualified.

I don't put much stock in a website... I also don't put much stock in sample pieces. There is SO much more to a good designer... consistency, accuracy, deliverables, etc. etc. Great design gets your foot in the door.

With all due respect, a creative director, not a production coordinator, should be making creative hiring decisions. After all, creative directors are responsible for the work. Additionally, they're the people with the proper training and experience to access creative capabilities.

(( If I've mistaken your screen name for your occupation I apologize. ))

[nayr x]

Ditto.

I have gone through literally dozens of revisons, scratch that, from-scratch designs for my portfolio website. I currently don't have one up and running. I have several trade names registered, a few domain names, and I am always designing new names and logos for myself. At this point in my carrier i suppose I still have that luxury, as I deal primarily with a small (yet well paying) client base. I know that in the very near future I will have to commit to something!

Yeah, perfectionism can be a gift or a bullet in the leg...