Jennifer Reynolds

I think it's the fact that I have been a creative my whole life, ever since I was little. My mom was a graphic designer. I used to see her. My mom had me young, so she had to finish college almost in her late 30s, and she worked. I got to go see where she was working, and I always thought it was super cool. It was almost like when I chose graphic design, I was kind of doing it in homage to her. We even worked in the same building for a little while. When I was in college, I had a summer job two floors down from her. While she was the designer, I was doing typing, but it was still fun to see her in action. She's been a huge influence on me.

The best career advice I've received came from a woman named Carolyn Hammond, who was head of the public relations department at Washington Hospital Center. She told me, 'This is not for the faint of heart.' I understood what she meant, because there are some days you just run ragged, you get a few hours of sleep, and there you are back at it again. Graphic design isn't easy. Another piece of advice that has always stuck with me is, 'Don't spill all your candy in the lobby.' If you're working with somebody and want to show them what you can do, give them a taste of this, a little bit of that, but just don't give them 20 things to choose from. Really make sure that they can pick their direction, and you can guide them towards a better design. It's kind of trite, but it's always stuck with me.

Don't give up. Aim high. Even if the design firm or company doesn't state that they're hiring, send them something anyway. I think it's also important, while you're in college, to attend all the portfolio reviews that they have, where other outside people come in and critique your work. Don't be afraid to show your work, and don't be afraid to receive criticism. It's not personal. It's there so you can learn. Never stop learning. Take advantage of what the AIGA has to offer in talks and any sort of workshops you can find. Even bouncing ideas off of other designers, just talking shop, is something that matters. Find diverse clients.

Well, AI is changing everything, and we're all disgusted about it. I know I've met friends who started off in design and then went to fine arts, and they never came back. AI is something that we really need to find out what it is good for. It's not good for creating art, but I believe it can be integral in some form within the design community. I don't think we need it. I think also, with the presence of the web, and the way it is now, it's so easy to just put up a website and get a URL, as opposed to back in the day. You need to know more about programming if you're in the web field, and I do that. I try and learn as much as I can, and I think, even if it means taking a class here and there, to introduce yourself, never stop learning. Take advantage of what the AIGA has to offer in talks and any sort of workshops you can find.

I believe in a balance, I always have - career, family, home life. Even before I had a family, I made sure that I had my evenings planned to do what I like to do. I used to like to run, and I think finding a balance is important. The work hard, play hard thing was really cool when I was young, but now it seems to be work smart. Work smarter. Plan things out, visualize on the calendar and in the sketches. I've been blessed by having some good bosses, some challenging ones, some tough ones, but it was part of the field. As a woman, you work in a hospital, you're working on Madison Avenue, you're working in a design firm - there are men everywhere. I tend to see the big jobs go to men before the women. I don't feel great about it at all, but I always have found there is still a double standard. So, I like to work with women, and with female bosses, and they've taught me the most as far as work ethics and how to deliver a message to a client in good quality and designed well.