In art class in high school I drew letterforms while everyone else did pottery. Eventually, someone asked me to design a poster for a school play, then the spring concert, homecoming banners, everything including the school’s stationery. Unfortunately, the only book about graphic design in the school library was about Nazi propaganda. So everything kind of looked like that.
Typography is at the top of the list. If a designer can manage information and content with clear and beautifully crafted typography, he or she can probably do anything. Next, is the graduate open and hungry to learn? There is nothing worse that having someone roll his or her eyes when I suggests a different direction.
I’m assuming you mean over my career, not just today’s batch. I wouldn’t call them disasters, perhaps missteps. They all seem to be about staying at the party too long (not literally, but I do that too). I worked with a bad client when I should have quit and found better ones. I ignored that voice in my head that said, “It’s time to move on,” for years and wasted time. Of course it all has to do with fear of change. I learned if you don’t follow the fates, they will drag you along.
1. Be open to all ideas and ways of working. My approach may be vastly different from another designer, but embrace that rather than oppose it and make it bad.
1. Get your s*!# together! Have every project well documented and stored in an image asset folder. Have an easy to understand website up and running. Don’t wait for every project to be perfect. It will happen when you’re 70. Get the site up and running. You can refine as you go. “Under Construction” is a disqualifier.