“Do you have any parting words for our students on their last day?” the lead instructor asked me.
“Yes, I do actually…” I reply to her.
What was initially supposed to only be a few scribbles of cheesy notes, turned into a full on Keynote presentation deck. Because after recently graduating from General Assembly’s 10-week design program myself, being a TA for the next design class, and fiercely job hunting at the same time….I have a lot to say:
CELEBRATE
You just graduated from an intensive design course. CELEBRATE. This is a big step towards your career as a designer. Even though there’s still a huge road ahead of you, it’s important to celebrate the big and small things. Each phone screen is a celebration. Each onsite interview is a celebration. Each time you connect with a designer is a celebration. Revel in these victories for they are yours that you have earned.
THE WORLD BELONGS TO THOSE WHO ARE HUNGRY
Celebrations aside, it’s also important to never let your guard down. The sharks are always swimming. This is an incredibly competitive space, things move fast, and there is no room for complacency. You will be one of the many bootcamp graduates from your school, other bootcamp schools, and university programs. Landing that first job is going to be a hustle.
DON’T CONTROL WHAT YOU CAN’T CONTROL
Finding a job is an emotional coaster. And one important thing to remember is not to linger in despair for the things you can’t control:
- Not having 5 to 10 years of experience. You’ll get there one day. As of now it’s nothing to lament over. It’s all about learning as much as possible, leveraging your strengths, and challenging your weaknesses.
- Culture fit. Like any relationship, if a company doesn’t feel like it’s going to be compatible, it’s out of your hands.
- Your lack of love for poodles. It’s a reality. The candidate next door might get the job because they were able to connect with the CEO about their shared profound love for poodles. It just takes that small random factor that teeters between two equally qualified candidates.
- Sudden budget cuts. Sometimes things just happen on the company’s side whether it’s not getting the funding or pivoting to a different role they need to hire ASAP over the role you’re applying for.
In the end, these are things that are out of your control. It’s going to suck. And that’s okay. Allow yourself to feel the feels and pick up where you left off in the job hunt. Because guess what?
CONTROL WHAT YOU CAN CONTROL
- Portfolio design/feedback
- Resume design/feedback
- Developing new/improving skills (e.g. Sketch, Principle, Framer, etc)
- Getting mentorship
- Networking
- Participating in hackathons
- Going to design events
- Having side projects
- Getting design feedback on those side projects
- Non-profit work
- Coffee chats with designers
- Going to conferences (volunteer so you get a discounted price or better yet get in for free)
- Doing small freelance gigs
- Participating in Daily UI challenges/design contests (keep those design skills sharp while you’re job searching!)
- Community leadership (start your own meetup or organize a workshop)
There are so many things that you do have control over versus what you can not control. Focus on those things. You’ve probably heard more often than not that job hunting is a full time job. It truly is. The list above can seem incredibly daunting, so don’t forget to make a schedule for yourself and prioritize which of these things you’ll tackle every day.
NETWORKING — DESIGN EVENTS
There is no doubt about how awkward it can be to strike up a small conversation with a stranger. Networking is difficult because for someone who doesn’t have as much experience, what can you possibly add to the conversation? How can you not come off as “Please give me a job” stamped across your face? Here are some tips:
Step 1 Go to an awesome design event.
Step 2 Listen. Hear what the speakers are saying. Write down notes. Absorb what these subject matter experts are saying. Be interested in learning from other designers too, not just the guest speakers. Think about how it affects your design process or how you would implement it in your next project.
Step 3 Use what you learned from that design event and bring it up (at appropriate times) to the next designer you talk to. How do they tackle that topic in their own workplace? How is it applied in a small startup versus a larger company?
Keep in mind when you do ask questions, be prepared to answer some of them yourself. Nothing is more awkward than asking a designer about accessibility practices and when they ask you about your thoughts you go “Uh…right. Yeah, that’s super important. I agree. With everything you just said.”
NETWORKING — SELF-REFLECTIVE QUESTIONS
Speaking of frequently asked questions, as a young designer the most common questions I’ve encountered when reaching out to people were:
“How did you get into design?”
Tell your story about why design interests you. What is keeping your candle burning for design even after weeks of bootcamp and unemployment? This is your moment (keep in mind it’s your 90 second moment, not your 90 minute moment).
“What kind of designer do you want to be?”
This one is tough, and I always equated this to feeling like a freshman in college. There’s so many possibilities, so many choices, how can I make a lifetime commitment at this very moment when I have barely scratched the surface?
But the point is, it’s never to early to reflect on where you want to take yourself in your design career. Be a leader in your journey. It’s okay if you can’t exactly say, “I TO-TAL-LY know I want to be a researcher.” Be more aware and honest with yourself of where your interests lie.
“How can I help you?”
The design community is an incredibly positive and encouraging environment. There are people who want to help you, but at the same time those people can be very busy. Do you want feedback on your portfolio? Do you need ideas on a side project? Do you need someone to help facilitate your design workshop that you are low-key frantically trying to organize? Be specific. Essentially, help them so they can help you.
NETWORKING — COFFEE CHATS
Coffee chats are a great way to meet designers one on one. If you’re shy at first, reach out to the alumni of your bootcamp/grad school via LinkedIn or email. They’ve gone through exactly what you’ve gone through and can empathize with the harrowing experiences of job hunting.
If you met an awesome designer at an event, LinkedIn connect with them so you can reach out to later. Don’t hesitate to shoot a message to take them out to coffee (or tea) and have a chat about design. Do offer to pay for their first beverage though, since they’re already taking time out of their busy day to meet with you.
Coffee chats are a wonderful way to foster a relationship with someone in the design community. And here’s how you do it:
Coffee Chat №1 Talk about design, get to know the designer you’re talking to, their hopes and dreams, their triumphs and woes in design. Don’t forget to share a little bit about yourself as well.
Coffee Chat №2 If things felt pretty good from the last coffee chat, ask for a portfolio review! Especially if the designer you are connecting with has a similar design style as you or does design in a way that you aspire to move closer towards. This is also a chance for someone to really get to know you rather than a 3 minute glance at your portfolio behind a computer screen.
Coffee Chat №3 Now if things really went well between the first two coffee chats, you’ll be able to develop a sustainable rapport. At this stage they may turn into boba chats, drinks after work chats, a design event both of you are going together chats.
Sometimes when you really hit it off, it might even lead to….
MENTORSHIP
Mentors act as guiding beacons during your journey as a designer. They’re also usually someone you have good rapport with. It’s good to have one that has about three to five years of experience above you because they are able to empathize more with where you are at your current stage of your career and give you advice on your immediate goals. On the other side of the spectrum, it’s good to have someone who has ten years experience above you because they are at a place you continually strive to work towards.
With that said, getting mentorship is serious business. Your mentor is not supposed to be poking you with a stick to remember to apply to X amount of jobs a day. A mentor is already taking a lot of time out of their busy lives to guide you, so be a proactive mentee.
There should be regularly scheduled meetings. There should be objectives and goals. As a mentee what do you want to work on? By the next time you meet your mentor, what should you have accomplished or get feedback on?
Don’t ask your mentor something you can easily Google on your own. Rather, ask your mentor the problems you’ve tried but can’t solve on your own. It’s the difference between:
“Can you teach me how to use Photoshop?”
vs
“I’m trying to learn this function on photoshop to achieve this effect. I’ve tried this, this, and this but it’s not working. How else would you suggest I go about this?”
When it comes down to kicking off that design career and going through the job hunt, I’ve mostly written about reaching out to people, and interacting with people, and basically being around people. Because you shouldn’t be doing it alone.
This is not a one person army type of situation. You have your fellow classmates, your upperclassmen, your instructors, your friends, and your family. Surround yourself with a positive support network that will catch you during the rough times of job searching or those tough days at your first job. Share your victories with that network so that they can continue to encourage and elevate you in this crazy-amazing-scary-but-awesome-weirdly fantastical journey.
Those are my parting words for any new bootcamp graduate coming into the design world.
