Women in Creative— Karo’s Story
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In honor of Women’s History Month, we’re launching a new content series dedicated to storytelling, telling the stories of some of the brightest minds in design. Stories of the women behind-the-scenes, who are often forgotten, but whose stories must be told. Stories of courage, of strength, and of what if. Stories full of imagination and of daring to lead. Stories of brave women who had the audacity to dream bigger, the courage to choose the unconventional, and often harder career paths, and the ambition to reach for the stars. These are the stories of the women who call Gallardo Labs, home.
Join us all month as we get to know these women and learn more about who they are, what they do, and what led them to take the ultimate risk — betting it all on themselves.
These are the women we are proud to call our #dreamteam.
Meet Carolina Muñoz, aka Karo.
Born and raised in Colombia, Karo is a passionate product designer and creative extraordinaire who’s dedicated her career to visual communications, helping advance web and mobile experiences, bringing several iconic brands to life and telling stories through digital design. Karo combines curiosity with user research, data, typography, visual design, and illustration to create unique and memorable digital solutions and experiences. She’s led projects for LATAM Airlines, Motorola, Cisco, Carnival, KEMET Electronics, Norwegian Cruise Line, and GE.
What did you want to be when you were a child?
I always felt this urge to create, my hands itched to throw paint everywhere and make arts & crafts. I knew I wanted to be “an Artist” or something related to the arts, I just wasn’t sure what kind of artist…
What characteristics do you admire most in other creative women?
I admire women that aren’t afraid of expressing themselves, the ones that have a voice. Those that have the ability to sell an idea and answer really quickly with another great idea, because they already spent a lot of time filling their minds with knowledge and new trends, or just because they have a special talent. But on the other hand, I also admire the ones that shine without many words, that can express themselves with their creations, those who have other great talents and abilities.
Women who are not afraid of sharing their ideas and knowledge with others, because they want you to succeed as well.
I admire women who I can learn from, and that live creatively every day.
What was the best piece of advice you were given when you were first starting out? What would you tell other women who are doing the same now?
- Attention to details is key, that’s what marks the difference between a beginner and an experienced designer.
- Don’t lose curiosity, focus on the why’s, how’s, and the what’s. That always helps when finding new inspiration and a reason to design a project.
- Live design every day: it’s more than a job, it’s a lifestyle.
What does success mean to you?
When you achieve little by little a goal that you had in mind years ago when you feel proud of yourself but you are still interested in growing even more. Success means doing what you love with passion every day. It means feeling great with what you do and inspiring others with your talents and skills.
What is your favorite thing about your workspace?
That it feels like me. It’s a space where I can be fully in the zone, immersed in inspiration. A place where I can express myself.
If you were given $100 million, what would you do with it?
Travel around the world, collect the best memories on those trips, meet other cultures, and interchange artistic knowledge with people… Then I would buy a house in my Pereira, Colombia, up in the mountains, close to my family, and continue honing my craft as a creative and artist.
I’d also love to fund a tech academy in my city — empowering more people to do what I love and teach them about the great opportunities that exist.
Which of your traits are you most proud of?
Self-motivated, passionate, not afraid of taking a new step, open to hearing ideas and learning from others, resourceful, organized, and patient.
What’s the hardest part of doing what you do?
Finding inspiration is always a challenge, sometimes you get stuck with one thing, but the important part is to keep going, look somewhere else (maybe offline), or ask other’s opinions, that’s always helpful.
Also, making decisions!! Sometimes people ask you a lot of questions that depend on you, but that also affects the whole project. So it gets overwhelming, the responsibility and the challenge are on you. But again, it’s always good to count on a team that can support you and gives you another perspective if the answer is not clear.
In moments of self-doubt or adversity, how do you build yourself back up?
I know that challenges are part of the process; those always appear no matter the circumstances. It’s a matter of doing your best and just embracing things as they come along.
Also when I feel insecure about something, I research what is causing me the trouble, so that way I can feel more confident.
I also remember that this is what I love to do and that I shouldn’t be afraid of what I know and my skills, that improvement takes time as well and we are all on the same boat working through our own insecurities!!
What does the world need more of?
- Passionate designers who work from the heart, want to challenge themselves, and are always pushing themselves out of their comfort zone.
- More people interested in making a social impact with their projects, that want to create for social and environmental causes.
- Designers that think about accessibility and create for everyone, not just for the default. This way everyone can feel welcomed and have a great experience.
Want to learn more about Karo? Follow her on the gram @karokt & stay tuned for more stories on the badass women who call @gallardolabs home.
