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.
[smart_podcast_player]
Other Ways to Listen: Soundcloud | iTunes | Stitcher
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:
1. Subscribe to The Honest Designers Show in iTunes
2. Leave us an honest rating/review in iTunes
Early reviews can make the world of difference for new podcasts being discovered, and it would mean the world to us if you were able to help.
Click to listen to The Honest Designers Show on iTunes
Here is a quick guide for how to leave a review on iTunes
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.
Another great episode. Thank you;)
Thanks a lot Sara, I’m so glad you’re enjoying the show!
Another great episode. Thanks for doing this! Very relatable.
Thank you Manon, we really appreciate the awesome feedback :).
Another great podcast! It was just lovely to hear about the constant self-doubt that my favourite designers deal with – no matter what stage of their career. Thanks for the honesty guys.
You guys rock!
Looking forward to your next podcast.xox
Thanks so much Rosa, as always I really appreciate your support. We really want this podcast to be completely transparent, dealing with the struggles, as well as the fantastic aspects of being a designer. I’m so glad that you enjoyed this episode :).
This is great, thank you, thank you.
I am actually experiencing this at the moment, I think I have achieved creative burnout and I forget that when I am enjoying a project and passionate about it, the work flow comes naturally to me and I love it. And I agree, when you are in your flow with work, it really does show :)
It’s great to hear other designers point of view and know that I am not alone.
Can’t wait to hear the next show. x
Thank YOU Liz, amazing feedback there. We’re actually discussing creative burn out in episode 3, so I hope that’s something that resonates with you. ‘Finding your Flow’ is everything, and I’d definitely recommend checking out this video featuring Lisa Glanz: https://www.facebook.com/designcuts/videos/1033842369984313/
Listening to this is a bit like having colleagues in my work room who are going through the same things as me – a bit like a designer support group! A great podcast!
Ah thanks mate, that’s really appreciated, especially coming from you :). Hopefully we can have you on the show some time.
I’ll have to work on my radio voice!