Isolation is something a lot of creatives go through, particularly if they’re working from home. How important is human contact as a designer? Is there a happy medium between a full-time office job or working from home alone? What are some effective ways to connect with like-minded people? How should your personality type dictate your work life? We cover all this and more in today’s episode of The Honest Designer’s Show.

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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 about isolation as a designer. We compare working from home to working with a team, and look at some ways you can find a happy middle ground, that suits your personality type.

[1.00] We’re all isolated
[2.00] Why your personality type dictates your level of isolation when working
[2.50] Ian’s experience working with a team
[3.15] Our collective desperation for human-connection
[4.00] Ian’s coffee breaks and Dustin’s loneliness!
[6.00] How Skype calls can help
[6.50] Adapting your situation around your mindset
[7.45] Ian escaping to London to get people time in
[9.15] Why face to face interaction matters
[10.30] Lisa’s tips for outside activities reducing isolation
[12.00] Lisa finding mental balance (talking to her pets!)
[13.20] The importance of making a non-work schedule
[14.15] Why you shouldn’t be one dimension with your interests
[15.20] Design conferences and communities
[17.20] Ian and Dustin meeting in real life at a conference
[18.30] How the average person has no idea what creatives do
[21.20] The importance of ‘doing you’
[22.20] There are options, and there can be a middle-ground
[23.30] Ian’s friend’s dad who was living the designer dream!
[24.40] The freedom of being a freelancer
[25.50] The benefits of working in an office
[29.30] How offices can also be bad for your mindset
[30.30] Why the atmosphere where you work is everything
[31.30] Dustin paying attention to his ‘biological rhythms’
[32.30] Dustin having the freedom to nap every day
[34.00] Lisa needing more balance and less isolation
[36.15] Lisa being a machine!
[38.20] How Lisa’s personality type is so determined and dedicated (dictating her work life set up)
[40.00] Being grateful for your work-life balance
[43.00] The importance of surrounding yourself with the right people
[45.30] Escaping from the daily routine

The Honest Designers Show Podcast

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Let Us Know What You Think

We would absolutely love to know how you enjoyed this episode. We’ll be releasing a new episode each Wednesday, and look forward to hopefully answering many of your questions on the show.