Fear and Design

Now you may be wondering what fear and design have in common.

Fear in the design process is a lot more common than you think, and it affects both the designer and the client.

Fear from the client side is natural as you hand your brand over. You may be concerned about your choice of designer:

• Can they design what you want?
• Can they stay within your budget?
• Will it be done on time?

And from designers’ perspective there is always that worry or fear that the client:

• Won’t like the designs.
• We misinterpreted the brief.
• That our style of design isn’t suited to the job at hand (that is why not all designers are the right ones for you).
• Won’t pay for the designs at the end, which is why many designers require upfront payment or part payment prior to starting.

How to reduce the design process fear

To reduce the fear in the process best thing to do is ensure there is good communication and honest feedback on the designs and detailed brief.

And also ask questions, choose a designer whose style works for what you want and need from your designs.

One way I get past it is to look at things from other perspectives, if a client doesn’t like the design that is fine it’s all a learning curve and about solving a problem creatively. And sometimes it’s simply got nothing to do with you.

In life fear can hold us back – it can hold us back in design too. One way to look past this is to find quotes that inspire you to move past the fear and do it anyway.

Here are a few quotes I’ve collected that I feel speak about fear and may help you to move past it.

‘Never fear shadows. They simply mean there is a light shining somewhere nearby.’

Ruth Renkel

‘I’m scared inside… of everything. But if I let that stop me…’

Emilie Richards in ‘Rising Tides’

‘Everyone’s afraid at one time or another. The trick is not letting the fear control you.’

Susan Mallery in ‘Daughters of the Bride’

‘Once you become fearless, life becomes limitless.’

Lisa Messenger from Collective Hub

‘Don’t let your fears overwhelm your desire.’

Sheryl Sandberg

‘We’re all scared sometimes, it’s what you do with it that counts.’

Victoria Purman in ‘Someone Like You’

Let’s take the fear away from your next design job book in a discovery call with me and let’s see what we can create together.