This post is all about my situation. Some of you might know me, some maybe not. I am writing this out of frustration so don’t pick apart my grammer or spelling, if I take the time to spell check it, I will think better of the whole thing and delete it. SO…
I finished a degree in Music Business around six years ago. I had a great job, knew the right people and went to the right parties. However, I was miserable. So, I started looking for a career that would give me a chance to live out my dreams of art and invention. Then I found Core (no really) and my whole life changed. For the first time in my life I saw other people who thought like me. Soon after I moved my wife down to Savannah, Ga from Nashville. She left behind a great job and all of her friends but she supported me the whole way.
For the next three years I attended SCAD. (GO BEES) I met some amazing people and learned what I could. (Note, I am a terrible student but even if I didn’t finish the homework, I learned the lesson.) When I finished school, I decided to come back to Nashville.
Why did I do this you ask? 1. My wife has been such a loving and faithful partner through all of my bull sh*t so it seemed like the responsible thing to do. (She has family in town)
I have never lived anywhere better. Nashville is full of incredible people, music, ect…
I was dumb enough to think I could go it alone.
ON July 10 of this year, I had my first child. The last thing I want to do is disrupt her and mama, but I am reaching the end of my rope. I NEED TO WORK. Its not about the money, that would be nice, but I need to be creating.
So, thats my sad story. I would love to hear your comments suggestions, and stories.
If you want to make comments on my writing skills, please note that this is a letter of passion, not a planed out thing. If you still feel it nessessary to dis me, make sure to leave your address and when your home.
congrats to you and your fam on the bringing a child into this world, that is a beautiful thing…
i am definitely not qualified to be giving anyone career advice but i guess i would say, honestly ask yourself what you want to do and if you can do that successfully (by your definition of success) where you are currently? if the answer is no you likely have a difficult decision ahead of you, if yes why can you do to make that reality happen?
Have you worked yet, have experience enough to go it alone. If so, consult, then you’ll travel for meetings, etc but get to stay home. If no experience, things will be tougher. If your software skills are good you could still do some kind of freelance work remotely.
A little clarification on the kinds of comments, suggestions, and stories you’re interested in would be helpful…
That said, if you have no work prospects, you need to reach out to everyone you know, make new contacts, get on the phone, and send out emails. This forum is a start, but hopefully SCAD taught you something about portfolios, job placement, etc. My gut feeling is that you’ll need to be resourceful given your geographical location and level of experience.
This is not a time to feel sorry for yourself, but rather a time of action. And that signature of yours, “Death to all designers who do good work and make lots of money,” hints at the former, rather than the latter.
As to experience… I don’t have any. I did work in a graphic design firm for a short time. (They were great guys but they couldn’t pay me… at all.) I have a portfolio and I do have solid software skills, alias, rhino, and the adobe family, but I could be doing more to promote myself.
As to feeling sorry for myself… I have to admit to that. It can be hard to be positive. Your comments and support go along way toward boosting my spirits.
My signature line is a just a joke, a little sarcasm.
As a fellow SCAD grad I will tell you that it is hard to find work down south. There are very few firms and the ones that are there are very small. I am from NJ and when I graduated all I wanted to do was stay in GA. The people were wonderful and the city was beautiful but I had no choice I had to come back to the NJ/NY area. And even with all the design firms in the area it was still hard to find a job. I took a lot of shity freelance jobs here and there a just kept building my portfolio. I also started making a lot of connection. I now work for M&M/Mars as a Pkg Designer.
This is key. This buisness is all about what you have done and who you know. You can be the most talented person in the world but you don’t start knocking on doors and trying to get peoples attention they aren’t going to hire you.
I guess what I am trying to say is don’t get discouraged. Try to figure out what it is that makes you different than everyone else and start showing it off. Look up in the IDSA directory and see who is in you area, give them a call and set up a meeting. ( there a couple of SCAD grads at Hunter Fans in Memphis). Be agressive and post your portfolio for us to see!!!
Well, I dont’ have a wife, but I can definately say that enjoying the town you live in is WAY up there in priority. Keep her happy, and remain in Nashville/surrounding areas if that is the area you like. Remember to work to live, not live to work. It makes things much easier if you are content with your surroundings.
Now, take a look at what you already know. That’s the direction you need to go. You know the music business. You know what those people use. You’ve seen products work and not work so well in the music industry. could be sound-tables, could be microphones. I don’t know, but there is definately a music-related product that desperately needs the educated hands of an industrial designer to make it better!! This is where you fit in. Do it as a side project. Start developing it and showing it to prospective manufacturing companies. This would be really exciting and besides, you already know people in the industry. You already have the required connections.
Don’t try to go freelance/consultant yet. You don’t have experience. Designers with no experience do little to increase the worth of industrial designers as a whole, so try to get a staff position if at all possible. Many of these positions, heck most of them, wont’ ever be on coroflot. Gotta use your music industry connections for those.
I understand how you feel. Before I could step foot in the art world of creating something useful, I got married, but I’m going back to what i’ve always wanted to do. Keep up the hard work. Just realize that you have no limits.
Hey you! Stop feeling sorry for yourself. Stop! This is depressing.
The more you feel sorry for yourself, the worst it becomes
You have chosen this path of career. Design is never easy in life as compared to other smashing careers like Doc, Lawyers, Engineers, etc With great pay etc.
Pick up the phone start "COLD CALLING’ to design companies and ask if they have any vacancies in internship or jobs in design. Start any position in design firm. WORK HARD!
Nobody in Design firm or companies don’t work hard. They work long hrs eg. 9, 12 and sometimes 16hrs!
When I look at this thread, mama man… you have to work on your attitude to LIFE. Man, you have a kid to feed man. You are a family man. Which means you have great responsibility to feed them.
KILL off those lazy attitudes of yours. Cos it will start to eat your life away!
I know its hard in your case in America, I come from Asia, Its even harder to have a design career there! But still I managed to get a job in a small design firm!
Dude, lighten up ya? Start establishing friends and networking contacts, cos thats where you might find a design job somehow one way the other.
One thing is, I admire your guts to change career to go into design. Not many ppl can do that.
Its been a long while since i started this post, and I thought I would let yall know how its going.
My daughter is amazing. If you don’t have one, get one. My wife is amazing, she keeps up the support and I try to what ever I can to make her life as good as shes made mine.
As far as ID in Nashvegas, my hopes are high. Instead of whining and feeling sorry for my self, I have been using this time to work on my skills, and hustle for the odd design job. I am working with a graphic designer who shares my love of town and a similar willingness to stick it out.
Presently, I am rebuilding my portfolio (again) and should be available for you all to see in the next month.
Thanks for your support. Now, lets go change the world.
