DESIGNER #2 Layne Halvorsen

2. Are you still as passionate with your work as you were when you started?

I still enjoy being creative with my work, however it can still be draining. Not fun with ads as well as they are harder to manipulate with your vision.

11. What is the most challenging thing about your job?

I would say the most challenging thing in my job are deadlines. We have many projects at once usually, and though I have ways of planning, projects can get close to the deadlines or need some adjusting with the client. For example one time we needed to get done 3 new logos.

6. How did you network with people when you first started? How do you continue to network?

Within the industry, it’s SO important to know someone. They can help you reach where you want to be through their own connections. At my seinor show, Space 150 saw my artwork, and my professor recommened them to me. It has also helped and coninues to help with being part of AIGA. As of now, my main one are LinkedIn, Behance, and Dribble.

10. What’s the most challenging aspect about design?

I would say the most challenging thing in the design world is being original. It’s hard to keep doing things in a new way, like logo making. Things can get to a point where it will look similar to something else, so its VERY important to make sure your not copying.

12. What’s the most rewarding thing about your job?

I would say that it’s the most rewarding when I can see my work being printed. I feel proud and happy when my work is put out there, and is sucsessful in geting consumers to view the products.

13. What is your design process like?

Design precess is a big thing in the work life. When starting a project I like to create a mindmap. After that I start getting research ready, most of it comes from pintrest, it’s easy and has so much for inspiration. I also like to do refrernceing on what a client wants and what their intended audience likes. I’ll also create sketches, I mostly use illustrator for this part as it’s where I’m most comfortable in and know most if not all the tools.

14. How do you deal with the prioritizing of multiple projects/workload?

One of the ways I keep tracked with what my workload is, is with using a calender. I also will ask my boss what projects need the most Prioritization. I’ll also be able to baseed on what I know what will take me a while or what ewill be quick based on my skills.

16. What skill sets are valued most in the job you have?

During my time working, Iv’e seen that the mojor things companies value in a Graphic Designer are creativity, versatility, and being able to do alot, especially in a small firm.

18. What’s your work-life balance like?

My experience with work balence has changed depending on where you are working. At my current job, I get to work from home, and go into the office twice a week for check ups and meetings with clients. I work four days within a week and around 9-10 hours a day. However my days are flexable, it depends on the projects if they require more time from our usual set hours.

19. What advice would you give to someone starting out?

When someone is first starting out in their career, there is one big thing that alot of people can get stuck doing. It’s tgat the very first thing that you create, is probably not your best work. I would suggust keeping it for references and as a backup, but I would coninue to think and create other work.

22. What are some beginner mistakes that should be avoided?

I would say the most common mistake I see when someone is just starting is just turning in a project right when they believe they finished it. Always double check your work. Make sure there’s no random dots, everything’s aligned, all that jazz. It’s also extremely important to learn how to print and the process. When you learn that it makes printing easier and faster for you and the vendor, always use CMYK when printing!

23. What’s a skill set you wish you learned earlier in your career?

I know that even now I still struggle with typography, experimenting, and using motion graphics, specifically adobe after effects. There is a lot to fidget with in type amd motion graphics has been another.

36. How much freedom do you get in projects to add your own style/ creativity?

I can be really creative with the work I do, especially in the social media aspect.

34. Why did you want to go work for a company/ go freelance?

I looked into freelance actually, and it seems fun. However, it also sounded really hard with trying to do your own market prices for you, for your work, and figuring out the taxes. I decided a company would be more suited to what I want to do, and let others have those usually already sorted out.

Summary:

Overall, Layne is a very energetic, straightforward and eager person. Though she is relatively recently out of college, she has been producing experienced level work for the companies she’s been and continues to work for. With her education gearing towards communication, she has gained more experience than those in software on how to gear products design to an audience. As she continues in her job, she hopes to continue learning software that’s not as familiar with like InDesign, and grow better with understanding typography. In the future she hopes to be at a higher position, gaining more experience and leading others, while increasing her pay that better reflects her skills.