Why am I a Designer?

What makes a person choose a path, and what makes them enjoy it? This is my personal writing of where I am on my Path, where I’ve been, and where I think I’m going.

• Choosing the Path
• Walking the Path
• Looking into the Horizon

Choosing the Path

I come from a small town in southern Illinois. As a child, I was always invested in my own world. I was playing with trains, dolls, and surrounded by pencils and markers. During high school, it was always hard for me not only to talk about but even think about my future career. It felt like and even still feels like an overarching shadow I can’t get past. One thing I have always remained certain of is I want my career to be in art. There's nothing that has remained a constant hobby and interest of mine like art has, and it's clear to me and everyone around me that I belong in that field.

At the moment in which I am writing this, I am 21 years old as a junior in college. I have three semesters left of college and can still feel as stuck as I did in high school.

I've come to find that this is a very natural feeling, and I try to accept it as it comes.

Walking the Path

Design can be a hard thing to pursue. Dealing with artists' block can be really hard as an artist. Your job is literally to come up with ideas and execute them, but if you don't have ideas where do you even start? It's one of the things I have to work through on a daily basis, and whenever I do have an idea that motivates me, I like to think of ways that I would design it and bring it into the real world. Even little things like re-designs of big brands can be fun to think about.

But why am I passionate about it? I don't know. It's just something that has always felt right to me. It comes naturally and easy whereas for some people it doesn't. I think that's reason enough to trust your gut. I want to do something that I enjoy and don’t find to be a burden in my life, and art fits that mold for me.

I read this book in my second year of college called The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I didn't fully grasp the gold of this book until I read it a second time. The book goes through a series of events following a young man during his journey to find his personal legend. It's a classic book that I found to resonate with a lot in my life, as I myself am finding my own personal legend too.

Another favorite quote of mine is this: “Everyone, when they are young, knows what their Personal Legend is. At that point in their lives, everything is clear and everything is possible. They are not afraid to dream, and to yearn for everything they would like to see happen to them in their lives.” — The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.

Looking into the Horizon

Now, back to the main question. Why do I want to be a designer? Because I want to be. I try to be a person of an easy-going nature, preserving my energy for things that really matter. I am interested to see where my future takes me, even if I may be scared of it. The way I see it, I can’t tell myself where I want to end up because I will probably end up somewhere completely different. I enjoy making things come to life or making designs for people and having them enjoy it. It’s a magical experience to have an idea literally come to life, and for other people to love it as much as you do.

Thanks for reading.