At a very young age, I knew that I wanted to create and design beautiful things that people would be not only able to enjoy but also be able to use on a regular basis. Growing up I was very involved in school publications such as the newspaper and the yearbook, and I also took great pride and the projects that I would design for my classes.
As I continued to enjoy being able to work and create things for other people to use I knew that this is what I wanted my career path to be. After discussing various points with my family, they were concerned for me thinking that I would be taking on a job of a starving artist and that I wouldn’t be able to make enough money to make a living to provide for myself. It was challenging because I felt their feedback as negativity towards my chosen career path, which I came to find later out wasn’t exactly what they were describing.
Granted there are individuals out there who are incredible artists who do make an astonishing living but there are also artists out there who are struggling to make ends meet, and I feel like that’s the case with a lot of people; not just artists. I think if you’re passionate about something and you put forth the effort you can see success in your life. To better help my family understand what my career path was going to be for myself, I had to explain that I’m not just an artist I am a designer, a photographer, and a marketer.
Using all of these skills has given me greater confidence that I can be successful in life. Having been to a university that teaches the skills and how to improve them, I’ve become a Swiss Army knife of skill sets to best for fill my current position as an intern but also future career opportunities that are before me. Every day I love what I do because it not only challenges me, but it makes me think outside the box. I enjoyed being able to create something that I can say, “I made that” and have thousands if not tens of thousands of people see it and use it.
Granted there are hard days, and this is a hard field to be on top of everything. However, this is the dream career, the dream job, that I have always wanted. I hope that as I continue to gain experience, I’ll be able to prepare myself better and to improve my skills to put myself in higher demand. With all of this said, I never gave up on my dream of becoming a creator. As well as someone who enjoys working with data and analytics and how people interact with designs and how you can make them better.
Don’t give up on your passions because it is true what they say that if you love your work, you’ll never work a day in your life. Even though there will be hard days, there will be roadblocks, or perhaps can’t think of what to make, there is always a way. Never give up on your dreams and do what makes you happy.
-Adam Harper