When thinking about the future, everybody is unique. Personal circumstances, ethics and ambitions play a large part. Being clear about these things will help you plan better. So what’s your perfect future? Write (and if necessary) illustrate this.
I'd like to think that in a few years I will have a small design studio with a beautiful office space in or near Bath (some of the spaces over at Paintworks in Bristol look really nice). Anyway, something really modern and inspiring with lovely views would be ideal. I would like the studio to consist of no more than four designers, each operating in both a creative and account management role and each responsible for handling a number of clients.
A studio like this would be rather nice:
Or perhaps this:
I would like the studio to be a place where I am happy to spend a lot of my time and can bounce ideas off the other designers. I would not like this to be a competitive environment, where each designer is trying to get ahead; it will be about doing what's best for the studio. It would be good to maintain strong links with Bath Spa University, offering paid placements and mentoring to graphics students, and putting freelance work their way after they graduate. I also intend to stay in touch with some of my friends from uni, as loads of them are incredibly talented and might be open to some form of collaborative projects in the future.
For me it is important to do work that matters, and not just stuff that looks nice. I understand that it is also essential to make money and that worthy well-paid jobs probably don't come along very often. As such I plan on spending some time each week doing pro-bono work that is about the stuff I care about, things that actually can make a difference or raise awareness of important issues. However, I am not naive enough to think that design can really change the world and I have enough business savvy to realise that such work can also serve to enhance my profile and reputation.
Design is important to me and it is something I am passionate about but I do not live and breathe it. Life is too short and there are other far more important things to worry about. Making good money would of course be lovely, and it would be great to get a nice house, new car and more than one ski holiday per year. Indeed, if we are talking about my perfect future then I would like a lovely Georgian townhouse in Bath, a Porsche 911 Turbo S (plus something more family-friendly for weekends, say a BMW 5-series estate) and my own ski chalet in the Dolomites. But money really isn't everything and I am happy so long as I can pay the bills without too much worry at the end of each month. And ski at least once a year.
Although I would ideally like to be self-employed, I can certainly see the benefits of working for an established design company in the short term, as it is surely the best way to see how the industry really works. As such, I wouldn't rule out taking a junior role if one were to present itself. At the very least I would like to get a few placements lined up for when I have graduated. I know that most of these opportunities are in London but at the end of the day that is where the majority of the 15,000 new graduates will be headed, so hopefully by staying in the South-West I will be able to find plenty of work.
I think perhaps a week or two working under James Victore in Brooklyn would be an inspirational start to my career as a designer. Or how about Dieter Rams?
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