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
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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.
TUMBLEWEEDS! I have them! Yep! Lots of silence on the work I do.
MAKES YOU DOUBT YOURSELF and makes you wonder what you should be doing to get out of that ghost town. Unfortunately, the questions can send you scrambling in all sorts of directions… and that can be bad, as well. I liken design to being an actor in the movies. You get a role in a movie and you think GREAAAATTT ! I’m going to be in the movies! And then, no one comes to see your movie, or worse, they see it but walk away scratching their heads. They don’t get you, or get where your work fits in. That makes you ( the actor/designer ) wonder if you should be doing different kinds of movies or designs to be more successful. But all people have for reference, is that “movie” that they can’t remember you being in. haha. This could be an idea for another show: What kind of movies, design, illustration, typography, etc. do you want to do and how to get recognition for it.
Hey Matt,
Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts on this with us!
This is a fantastic analogy and I will definitely let the team know that you’d like to hear their opinions on a similar subject to this :)
Right in the feels guys! Thanks for making me feel like I’m not entirely crazy. :D
Aww thanks so much Stephanie- that’s what we like to hear :D
Thank you for tuning in!
See … I’m doing my part by leaving a comment! ;) Thanks for this encouraging episode. I think part of the challenge stems from the fact that as creators we spend most of our time working alone. It helps so much to hear that others face the same struggles that I do. And I loved the part about being a tortoise … I need to take that approach this month to finish my book. Looking forward to the next episode!
Hey Marlys,
Thanks so much for the comment, it’s lovely to hear from you.
Oh we are really happy that you feel encouraged and don’t worry, we’ve all been there at some point! It’s nice to work away now with 4 other voices in your ears though :)
Excellent show.
I’ve been a designer since 1991 (yikes!) and have run my own business for the same length of time. To double up on the agony, I’m a writer as well, and there are plenty of parallels between the two activities.
Trust me, the self-doubt never goes away.
BUT you learn strategies to cope.
First of all, there’s nothing quite like a deadline to concentrate the mind.
Secondly, what you learn from deadlines is that you can only reasonably expect yourself to produce the best work you can do in the time allotted. We all know that given an extra day, hour, even minute, we could carry on tweaking almost endlessly – but the fact is, there has to be a finishing line, and once it’s crossed, that’s it.
Thirdly, deadlines also make us realise that our quest for perfection MUST be compromised, or we’d never finish anything. When the deadline hits, it’s as good as we can make it – and that’s good enough. In fact, it often – usually, if we’re lucky – exceeds our client’s expectations.
Fourthly, practice gets us closer to that elusive perfection in a shorter time. Practice, practice, practice. I taught myself calligraphy and my first efforts were slow and dreadful. But after writing out the alphabet in 17th century italic style and 14th century Gothic script several hundred times, I got better and faster. The same happened when I first started using software like Quark, InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop – all those complicated key commands and dozens of tools seemed baffling, but now they’re second nature. I dumped a load of self-doubt once other designers who were looking over my shoulder started saying “Wow, what was that you did there?” and I thought “Surely everyone knows that? Hmm, apparently not…”
Fifthly, as you mentioned in the podcast, avoid comparisonitis. It’s deadly. Focus on pursuing your own passion.By all means be inspired by the work of others – in fact, acknowledging and applauding the achievements of others is a Good Thing. Because once day, it might just be us receiving the plaudits, and it’s always good to understand what the other guy has been through to get to that point.
And finally, if you’re really in a dark place, have faith. All things pass, and often just being professional, turning up and doing the work and will bring you out the other side. Read Steven Pressfield’s “Turning Pro”.
Hey Henry,
Thank you so much for taking the time to leave us a comment!
This is some awesome advice and it is really lovely for you to share your experience with us too and we’re super glad that you are able to relate to the team :)