Ever worried about what others think of your creative work? Ever felt the social media tumbleweed, when it feels like no one is paying attention to what you’re putting out there? Ever compared yourself to others in your field? Welcome to the world of self doubt as a designer! The good news is, you’re not alone, and there are some actionable steps you can take to improve your level of self doubt in your creative projects.
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Meet Your Hosts
The Honest Designers Show started when our founder Tom found he was regularly chatting and sharing tips with top designers; Ian Barnard, Lisa Glanz and Dustin Lee. We soon organised a weekly call where we would help each other with areas we were struggling with and try to give each other actionable feedback. Soon we realised that the collective experience of the group was proving so valuable for each of us, that we thought ‘why not share these conversations with the world?’.
And so, The Honest Designers Show was born! This podcast is an insight into how to succeed in the creative industry, as well as giving you a totally transparent, under the hood look at some of the tougher, less glamorous hurdles to overcome! We also tend to get a little goofy along the way, so this is a chance to get to know each of us a little better :). We’ve loved recording this show for you, and we hope that you find value and enjoyment in listening to it.
SHOW NOTES
In this episode we talk all about self doubt, something that all designers seem to experience at some stage! Learn how to manage this self doubt and instead focus on enjoying the creative process.
[1.00] How all creatives experience self doubt
[1.50] Why there is no A to B straight line for designers
[2.30] Why creating is like making cookies!
[3.00] Why you feel like you ARE what you create
[4.00] Lisa’s potential for a children’s book
[4.55] Why creatives are insecure, but not psychos!
[5.30] Creatives are intense and passionate people (the perfect storm for self doubt!)
[6.20] Confirming your lack of success
[7.05] Social media leading to self doubt
[8.00] Why comments matter most
[8.45] The dreaded tumbleweed!
[9.30] Why to expect tumbleweeds early on (and why this is ok)
[10.10] Audit yourself in terms of what you engage with
[11.20] Why you should engage with other’s work
[12.40] Why social media is ego driven
[13.00] Client feedback leading to self doubt
[14.15] You won’t please everyone
[15.00] Why the client is usually right
[16.20] Staying motivated if your work is mediocre
[17.45] Why we are aware that our work isn’t great yet
[18.45] The important of a higher purpose
[19.40] Getting out of your head, and being less ‘me, me, me!’
[21.00] What is the work we do that doesn’t feel like work?
[22.45] Ian loving the idea stage
[24.45] Ideas can take a while to come to fruition
[25.20] Why challenging yourself results in self doubt
[26.00] How passion can reduce self doubt
[27.00] When people struggle with hitting their stride
[28.00] Why collaborations can fall into the same trap
[29.10] Lisa’s experience of self-doubt making a Design Cuts product
[29.50] Self doubt can make or break a project
[30.30] Why you shouldn’t compare yourself to others
[31.20] Dustin’s shedding of self doubt
[32.05] Forget what everyone else thinks!
[32.20] Look at the long-term trends to feel better about your journey
[34.00] Why social media can drive you to distraction
[34.40] Feeling really stressed looking at others in your space
[35.30] Why comparing to others wastes your time
[36.35] Why it’s wise to be a tortoise
[37.50] Focusing, without as many distractions
[39.00] The importance of switching off
How you can help
As this is a new show, we’d really appreciate your help spreading the word. If you enjoyed listening and found value in this first episode, you can do these two things to help us:
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Let Us Know What You Think
We would absolutely love to know how you enjoyed this second episode. We’ll be releasing a new episode each Wednesday, and look forward to hopefully answering many of your questions on the show.
Thank you so much for doing this podcast. I’m always stressing with self-doubt and trying to find my style etc. You guys have made me see that it’s not just me. I’m not a fake after all. It’s just part of the process of who we are and how we’re growing as artists.
You have made me feel sooooo much better.
Thank you, a million times, thank you!
Thanks so much for feedback Brenda, and I hope it helped to show that you’re definitely not alone. You’re definitely not a fake, and I’m thrilled we could help with your creative confidence :).
Nice work guys, I find myself thinking about this soo much. It’s nice to hear people talking about it and putting a spot-light on self-doubt. I know I’m not the best Designer or Illustrator in the world but I love seeing where I came from and where I am now.
I agree you have to find time for everyone in your life and find your way to switch off but it would be soo hard if your day job isn’t your full passion. Just find what make you happy :) ..
Cheers for this ep!
It’s a very common issue faced by creatives, so you’re definitely not alone Stuart. Progression is a huge motivation for us all, and can help you to escape the daily struggles, and look at the bigger picture.
I hope you enjoy the next episode and find it equally relatable :).
Definitely agree with the struggle to not check on progress too often. It’s so hard to let things be once you’ve put something out there.
Loving this Podcast. The first 2 episodes have been great. Thanks to all of you for speaking candidly the things that we all think as designers/creatives.
It certainly can be tough Melissa! I’m the biggest culprit of obsessively checking stats/comments. On the upside you run into lovely comments like yours, so outside of the fruitless feed-refreshing and self doubt, you get amazing moments like this one :). I really hope you continue to enjoy the show, and thank you for your feedback.
With 15+ years of professional experience I can honestly say that from time to time self doubt still rears its head. In the beginning the doubt was blocking my creativity. I set my personal bar so high, my personal work output decreased simply because nothing was good enough. Each creation was under my immense scrutiny.
That realisation that each work is not and doesn’t need to be my pièce de résistance, the pinnacle of my carreer but simply one humble step in evolving myself, honing my craft and getting better in what i love to do… that was an eye opener. It allowed me to accept that also ‘failures’ are valuable experiences and therefore useful. So now I embrace the occassional self doubt (that all creatives.. even the worldclass ones have from time to time) as a means to push me to keep producing the best of my ability at that moment, not perfection itself.
I totally know what you mean Eric. I don’t think it matters how much experience you have, the doubt will continue to manifest in one way or another. I think the key is to recognise it, and then combat it in the right ways.
Love your outlook on ‘humble steps’ and that’s such a great way of looking at it. Everything about this comment is spot on in fact!
Hi Guys, an interesting idea, this chat room.
I run a Facebook textile page so have some observations to share.
Firstly, social media is like a big iceberg – you only see the bit above water. You are reaching more people than you know.
Secondly, the textile artists who are most popular are usually the most consistent (this goes against the grain for many artists – myself included – but it’s worth noting) Those who develop a style and stick with it seem to find favour with those who are perhaps less imaginative and like things they can recognise. I know this is a generalisation but take a look at some popular artists – eg Moy Mackay, felt maker, Maggie Tuite, doll maker, Maggie Grey, experimental textile artist.
Thirdly, love what you do, do what you love.
Hope this encourages you.
Thanks Suzannah, this show is really a passion project for the 4 of us, so it’s great to hear it resonating with our community.
I’m totally with you that social media is like an iceberg, people always project an image of perfection, whether that’s their personal life, or their creative careers, but it’s just not showing the full picture.
Consistency is a huge part of creation, and something we discussed a lot in episode 1. Essentially ‘showing up’ each day tends to lead to better and more interesting results every time.
And 100%, always do what you love. That’s something the 4 of us have worked hard to live daily now :).