Unraveling the Myths About Graphic Designers

Picture this: a trendy, chic apartment with gentle sunlight filtering through the curtains. A girl, let’s call her Maya, wakes up at noon, eager to take on the creative world with her natural graphic designing skill. Armed with a latte infused with oat milk, she sits at her sleek workstation, clicking away on her design software to effortlessly produce masterpieces that leave us in awe. Isn’t this the classic image of a graphic designer? Well, if that kinda stereotypical image runs through your mind, I should say it might be not quite correct.

According to a Picktochart survey, in 2022, 81% of organizations use at least some form of graphic design. However, despite such great demand and involvement of design in our daily lives, the industry is still mostly a mystery. Whatever the reason for that is, let’s dig a bit deeper and look into some common misconceptions about graphic design. Maybe we’ll see what more we are overlooking when talking about the image of a graphic designer. 

Born This Way

Firstly, it is important to understand that designers are not necessarily people born with artistic talent. Software is not the only thing that has to be mastered on the way to becoming a successful graphic designer. Of course, we cannot deny that having some creative flair is important. However, a true professional is a person that continually works, does tons of online proofing, and learns to understand principles of color, design, user experience, and even psychology. 

To achieve that, one should either pursue education at a higher level or enroll in one of the many available online courses. Well, everyone is aware of what a university degree is and how challenging it is to get one. However, contrary to popular belief, self-taught artists and designers may not necessarily have an easier road than those who have an art school major. In both cases, the path to becoming a graphic designer is a long one filled with obstacles. Despite the temptation of creating stunning graphics only using “the feeling”, it is necessary to accept challenges and push through the learning curve in order to succeed in this creative field.

Throughout this tedious journey, aspiring graphic designers may face moments of doubt and frustration. It takes time and practice to become an expert in design software and principles. There will be projects that don’t go as planned, critiques that sting, and periods when inspiration seems elusive. But it’s these challenges that ultimately mold designers into true experts in their field, not their innate talent.

Actually, Maya (I mentioned her at the very beginning) earned an art degree at Vienna University. She also spends her evenings looking through Instagram and learning platforms, where there are adverts for webinars on color theory, new design trends, and software. She also memorized the text of “Lorem ipsum” by heart. These are a few of the many things she does to stay on board.

Eureka

Now what is the most common stereotype about any artist, including graphic designers? You have probably thought about the infamous strike of inspiration that makes creatives work like crazy and design masterpieces. While creative bursts can happen, they are not a common solution to the project among experienced graphic designers.

In reality, Maya puts in a lot of hours to polish her designs. Of course, she finds working easier at times, just like the rest of us. The sun sometimes shines brighter than normal, and her latte tastes much better than usual. The work process just moves along more quickly and smoothly because none of the software she uses lags. On other days, though, she struggles to come up with even a heading font that she likes, let alone some decent ideas for sketches. 

And she is not alone.  The reality for most designers is a systematic and disciplined creative workflow involving brainstorming, sketching, ideation, revisions, and a great deal of effort to fulfill deadlines. 

When a designer finds themselves in the “200 ordered sketches for yesterday” scenario, things do not get better. In these circumstances, relying only on strikes of inspiration is dumb and can result in a hasty and unsustainable approach. Designers have to use a variety of software and tools that help with task management in order to keep track of their workload and maintain discipline. These digital assistants aid designers in efficiently organizing their tasks, setting priorities, and meeting deadlines. They range from project and team management software to scheduling applications to tools that can speed up the workflow. 

By the way, about speeding up your workflow. Approval Studio is the exact app that can help you do so, be that on the client’s or your design team’s side. We have developed a professional design proofing solution that contains all instruments that you need for streamlining your workflow. That includes limitless review invitations, markup tools, version comparison modes, and much more! We’ll gladly guide you every step of the way and can offer a free personal demo session. So, if you feel that it’s something your business could benefit from — sign up now!

That is not new, of course, that graphic designers, like everyone else, can procrastinate and put off jobs until the deadline is uncomfortably close. However, project management for creatives is the cane that keeps all the things in sight. More than anyone, graphic designers have to be organized and deliver tangible results in a short period of time. Furthermore, designing a piece usually requires an artist to be involved in every step of the process. That includes control over the budget, deadlines, and communications with the client.

Moreover, just like a programmer, a mathematician, or an engineer a graphic designer simply cannot know everything. Work gets more difficult in this particular area, however, because there are no definitive answers to all of the problems. Since “beauty” is a highly subjective concept, graphic designers should continually learn and not rely too heavily on their inner artists. Especially when another design review is due soon and all previous versions were rejected. So, what can a graphic designer do? Let me explain by debunking yet another graphic design myth.

Me, Myself, and I

Let’s go back to Maya, who has been working nonstop since the morning. She began working on a new project that her client had provided for her. She found the concept to be extremely fascinating and unusual. However, albeit three online proofing iterations, the client is still dissatisfied even with the initial sketches. Why, you may ask? Well, Maya cannot truly grasp what the client wants. In light of this, they decide to get together and go through the project specifics once more.

During brainstorming, they identify the colors, shapes, and fonts that best meet customer needs. Maya gains an understanding of project objectives and restrictions that were not clearly defined at first. After the meeting, something clicks in her head, and she realizes that she was making something for herself rather than for her client. In order to help him get the greatest result in the shortest amount of time, they agree upon hiring one of Maya’s coworkers who is much more familiar with the client’s style. And guess what? The project moves forward like a knife through butter!

This is an excellent example of how taking a “Me, myself, and I” approach may be detrimental to a graphic designer’s job growth. Design collaboration is the key to unlocking innovation and diversity in design. When minds collaborate, ideas grow, and designers can produce truly unique things that satisfy buyers. Now that there are so many ways of remote collaboration designers may broaden their horizons and learn from the variety of people they connect with.

You can dismiss the idea of collaboration, as it is commonplace to believe that all artists are extremely self-centered and cannot take either ideas or criticism. However, this is a personal preference rather than an essential artist feature. Mostly, collaboration is the most productive way to work on a piece. Let’s consider all the companies that invested in any type of partnership with “Barbie,” one of the two biggest movie hits from the summer of 2023.

According to the Highsnobiety post, over 30 businesses, including Airbnb and several clothes and makeup brands like NYX, Crocs, Hot Topic, etc., had a “Barbie” collaboration before the release of the film itself. The designers hired by those companies put a lot of effort in order to create something original and fresh together. And not only was it a pleasant method for them to challenge their limits, but it also delivered a result (in terms of both aesthetics and profitability) that went above and beyond all expectations.

So, What Now?

Ultimately, what people don’t understand about graphic design is that it is an ordinary job like any other. Behind every gorgeous design is a person dealing with their own set of challenges and deadlines. It is a career that demands passion, dedication, and a relentless pursuit of improvement.

Always keep in mind that a huge amount of labor went into designing a stunning poster, logo, or even coffee cup. The graphic designer (or designers) responsible for this work put in a lot of effort to produce the greatest outcome. Each one of them needs to work vigorously to master the tools, some stamina to keep on working during rainy days, at least a little understanding of the process on the client’s side, and, of course, copious amounts of caffeine. The clients and designers can supply some of them themselves, but Approval Studio will unquestionably assist with the technical aspect!