It’s important to keep your skills sharp and your ideas fresh. So, here are a few things you can do to keep improving your skills as a graphic designer!
Firstly, make a list of things you’d like to learn
Creating a to-do list is always the easiest way to keep organised, I personally don’t know what I would do without ClickUp scheduling my daily tasks. Having a list of ‘things I want to learn’ I’d say is the best way to add learning into your diary and start the process of self-progression!
Practice!
Practice makes perfect… right? Stating the obvious, practice is always the best way to improve anything. Practice often speeds up the design process, builds your portfolio and provides you with skills you may need in the future! My best piece of advice would be to refer to mock design briefs online! They provide a fun and creative way for designers to elevate their portfolio, leaving more time to focus on the designs rather than thinking of briefs themselves! Check them out for weekly design briefs and inspiration.
Check out the links below for useful instagram profiles I’ve used!
@briefclub @brand.brief/ @clubdillydally
Graphic Design Books
I think books often get forgotten about, especially with how accessible the likes of Pinterest, Behance or dribble are for quick inspiration. Check out ‘book of ideas – a journal of creative direction and graphic design vol 1+2’, these are particularly brilliant to reference for inspiration!
Keep an eye out for books that may spark your imagination!
Follow graphic designers on social media
Social media has allowed designers to share their work with ever-growing networks and communities. By keeping up to date with new trends and styles a LOT of great ideas can be triggered from referencing other designers in the industry! Discover and follow your new favourite designers via Instagram and TikTok for your next big idea.
Learn a new piece of software
The industry is forever evolving which requires you to keep up to date with different pieces of design software. With regular updates it’s important to keep on top of understanding how new features work within different design software e.g. Adobe Creative Cloud. Learning how to use other software also expands your knowledge and capabilities within design and may even open up new opportunities within your work/career!
