Talent
I remember embarking on my design career sixteen years ago banking on raw talent to make me irresistible to potential employers. Ever since elementary school my ability to draw, create, etc. had been noted by fellow students, teachers and parents. And now, with my well-crafted portfolio in hand, I was set to change the world. After all, I was talented. Everyone (including my grandmother) told me so.
Since then I’ve learned (sometimes the hard way) that my level of “raw” talent would never have gotten me very far. That romanticized idealism has been replaced with a pragmatic realism: we work in the real world with people, problems, and limits.
Talent only gets you so far. But how far? What percentage of success as a designer comes from talent and how much do you attribute to other factors: business sense, people skills, networking, marketing, etc? Specifically, how heavily do you rely on talent for your success?
Note: This post was originally posted on my personal blog, Books Covered. Since Typepad has no way of exporting the excellent comments posted there, you should go and read the comments posted. New comments should be posted here.
Image courtesy of Flickr.
2 Responses
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As business sense, people skills, and self-marketing aren’t exactly my strong points, I think I probably rely more on talent then I should. It is always something I struggle with in this field, and hopefully always something I am working on improving.
It sometimes feels the people who can “shmooz” well can make up for any lack of talent or work ethic in the minds of some clients.
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I would have to say that business sense, people skills, networking, marketing, etc are gonna always define your success if they are done right. And then if you suck at all those, you better have some talent. Unfortunately what one client or person will consider great talent will fall on blind eyes with another. But business sense, people skills, networking, marketing—these things create (or should) a preferential difference between you and the rest of the folks out there. This is the constant factor. “He was so kind, he made things so simple, he explained things to me, he provided me well worth my money, I love his newsletter and look forward to it, I look forward to seeing him at events”. These are the things that produce real success. The talent part can get you in a design magazine, but it will not get you work.
I would say that if it was not for my forming a business with 2 other cats that really make the business end of things happen, i would not have a company or much success.
My definition of success changes daily, but I’m a Gemini. In a few words, success to me is what makes me happy. So it’s more about a mental positioning and way to choose to feel (even in dire times). You can be poor as shit, but feel successful. For some people it’s not about the money, it’s about the recognition, the fame. Rarely can you have both and maintain both. You can have one at one time in your life and the other at another time. And then there is the realization that you need to balance it all—as you get older. You need to have equal part success as family person, as talented designer and as someone who has learned a thing or two about business and people in general.
I guess success today, as I feel it, can be defined by a great project opportunity with an exciting client who has ideas, respect for my talent, trust in my vision and is happy with the final result which is printing near perfect. Oh, and they are paying me a fair sum.
I do not care about the recognition right now (aside form word of mouth form client to client). If it comes, I will take it, but I will not go and try to get that by means of awards and such. Not now. Maybe when I am more situated and confident in my abilities. Right now I’m just winging that part;) So success to me is in essence one job opening the doors to another, and another and another… 90% of those will simply be OK jobs. That’s OK.