How to Become a Designer in 8 Steps

This post is meant for non-designers who are exploring design as a career option. If you do go to design school already, skim through the list anyway and you might find something useful!  

Being a designer is hard work (even for design graduates, believe me). Sure, you get to be creative and follow your passion, but it takes years of skill development, industry experience and self-promotion to become an established designer. Unlike art, design is not merely a form of self-expression. Design is often made to fulfill a need, by following specific briefs. It requires technical know-how as well. And this post will tell you exactly how to acquire the same!

Here are 8 steps that an individual must follow to become a designer:

1. Conceptualize  

Design is a solution oriented field. A common design doctrine, ‘form follows function’ means that aesthetics follow functionality. I personally don’t believe in a superficial approach to design and that is where conceptualization comes in. Think of the kind of designer you want to be. Identify the problem and conceptualize a solution.

A lot of designers skip this step, and it shows in the final outcome.

The concept is the soul of the design, and everything revolves around it. Every design you explore will start out in the form of a sketch, or a concept board. Do your research, sketch to document your thoughts, make notes and come up with a theme for your projects.

2. Sketch

Sketching is a helpful communication tool for designers, so try your hand at it. It will help you think and conceptualize better. Your sketches don’t have to be works of art. They don’t have to be pen and paper sketches (though that’s a good starting point). Just start and you’ll get better at it.

I first started sketching in design school, at the age of 26. In just a couple of months, I was surprised at the results. Contrary to popular belief, it’s a very learnable skill. There are plenty of free tutorials online to help you practice as well.

3. Get your software right

Your software skills make a big impact on your portfolio and potential employers. Before a design is used, it is fully thrashed out on the computer, be it interiors, graphics, products or industrial design. In a good firm, production drawings and renders are taken very seriously. A number of revisions happen and drawings and renders are made as accurately as possible, with mm to mm precision.

The key is to figure out which software you need to learn and get started. If you have the ethic to sit down and learn from online tutorials, that’s great. There are amazing tutorials available online, many of which are free. If you prefer classroom education, get enrolled in a course.

You can also hire someone to do all the software work, but that stage only comes in when you’re in a position to pay someone. If you’re starting out and have limited resources, it’s helpful to know your software.

4. Find your niche

Design is a very, very broad field. Industrial design, Interiors, graphics, UI/UX, clothes and accessories, Service System Design, Furniture, Jewelry, Product: these are just a few types of design. There are endless options. Designers need to asses not their interest but also their skill set, aptitude and industry conditions.

It’s hard to pick, but the choice has to be made because picking a niche allows you to grow vertically. Knowing a bit of everything and being all over the place is not great for growth. The one helpful thing I can say is: before taking a call, get to know the industry as well. You don’t want to land up in an industry with less job opportunities or poor work hours.

Every type of design has its own challenges to offer. For example, currently UI/UX is really hot right now, if you’re looking for employment, but no one knows how the situation will be 10 years down the line. A lot of graphic design work can be done from a desk, whereas interior design requires site visits and material exploration. Consider the design process and not just the end product to pick the right specialization for you.

5. Develop your style

It’s OK to take up any opportunities in the beginning. You have to start somewhere. But keep in mind that eventually you must have something to communicate: your statement, your style. Should you design for the luxury market or middle class consumers? Do you want to make art installation pieces for commercial spaces? Or do you want to with the Government and create solutions for rural problems? Who are you designing for? These questions are important because good design comes from a personal space!

By just knowing that you have to develop your own personal statement over a period of time will lead to an organic development of style.

6. Learn consistently

This industry is so dynamic. Design rends and software change ever so often. So it’s importantly to learn consistently and stay on top of all the changes. All the legendary designers that we see around us got there by years of consistent learning, hard work and that madness to do better, to push themselves. Consistently being able to learn new things or getting better at old things is something that helps designers become masters in their field.

Things like improving software skills, reading more, researching better, finding better vendors, forming your reliable team of people to work with play a very important role. Learning helps you do all that and improve your portfolio. Once that basic level of learning is complete, designers need to practice and explore more to reach a level of sophistication that new designers usually lack. When your practice has passed its nascent phase, there are still manufacturing processes, business development, import export, , sustainable business practices, material exploration, and technological advancement to study. The amount of learning you can do in this field is endless!

7. Build your portfolio

Your portfolio is a collection of your very best work and it’s a great way to show off your mad skills and creativity. Any designer is as good as their portfolio. So portfolio building has to be pretty high on the priority list!

Don’t be intimidated if your work is not top notch. The objective is to start somewhere and get better with time. Every year, I find the previous year’s portfolio embarrassing. And that’s ok because it’s a sign of growth!

No matter how busy you are, take out time to build and review your portfolio from time to time. Have your graphics improved? Is there a new product you made? Are there some insane renders you’re working on? Is there a cool project that you want to start working on? Organize your work and put it all up on Behance or wherever else you want.

8. Promote yourself

Self-promotion is uncomfortable and hard. You have to talk about yourself, your work, be consistent with your updates. It takes a lot of effort, but if done it right, it is very rewarding!

Open up and show people what you’ve been up to! It builds interest in your work and creates an online presence for your brand.

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Phew! Does that feel like a lot of work? Don’t worry! The good thing is you don’t have to be an expert at everything at once. Becoming a designer is not a matter of learning the software or getting a degree. It’s a process of learning and exploration, culminating in your own transformation as a human being. Get better at what you do and opportunities will start opening up. Good luck!