Is Graphic Design Stressful?
There is something appealing about the thought of working as an artist all day and earning money. But what if, instead of hustling to sell one of our paintings, there was a steady work that paid you for doing what you love? Welcome to the world of graphic design. Does not it sound like a fantasy? Working as a graphic designer, though, might not be what you have hoped for. Is graphic design a demanding profession? Is it the artistic ecstasy you have always desired, or is it anything else entirely?
Is Graphic Design Stressful?
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For those who fail to combine their interests with their jobs, graphic design may be overwhelming. Your art is influenced by other people’s dreams, constrained by deadlines, and constantly criticised. Some individuals are unconcerned with these causes, but they may be stressful for others.
Being a graphic designer, like every other work, has its benefits and drawbacks. That being said, the aim of our working lives is to find a job where the positive outweighs the bad; a job where we feel like we can make a difference and spend the rest of our time at work enjoying ourselves. Are you in a state of stress or are you in a state of artistic bliss? Let us take a look at some of the factors that can influence your decision.
Is Graphic Design a Career in Peril?
Until we get through the benefits and drawbacks to becoming a graphic designer, let us discuss why we should care in the first place.
How can we be sure the graphic design will still exist in ten years?
Can a company’s graphics and brochures be designed by a computer or algorithm?
Is this entire debate on how to become a graphic designer a diversion from the main problem of how to defend ourselves from a global AI takeover?
No, that is not true. Technology will continue to transform our lives, but we will Still need human imagination, especially in the arts, in my view. When walking the dog or having a shower, a robot would never come up with the brilliant concept. Humans would still need to be a fundamental part of the artistic process because of our eccentric and flawed minds.
This is not to suggest that the graphic design industry is exploding at the moment. No, graphic design is growing at a slower pace than the rest of the industry.
Burnout in Graphic Design vs. Career Advancement
Work burnout is a major problem. Even for those who like their careers, it is a major concern. However, if you burn out from your graphic design job, there is something special going on:
You run the risk of losing your enthusiasm for art in general, particularly if you take on a demanding job.
Turning an artistic talent into a job is a huge deal. It is for this purpose why many musicians choose not to do it.
We prefer to overemphasise the “pleasure and relaxation” and overlook the “work” while considering choosing a passion as a profession. The “work” side of things slaps us across the face until we get our dream employment following our creative hobby as a profession. It is a huge let-down.
Humans are famously bad at foreseeing the future, especially when it comes to predicting what makes us happy.
Turning an artistic talent into a job is a huge deal. It is for this purpose why many musicians choose not to do it.
In reality, science supports this claim. We are terrible at projecting how we will behave in the future regarding particular circumstances, according to Dan Gilbert, author of Stumbling on Happiness (source). It is really normal for us to believe that such activities can bring us happiness though they don’t. Consider all of the lottery players that are not pleased.
Why would it matter if we made a huge mistake regarding our potential happiness? We should not only presume that since we like painting, we can like pursuing it as a profession.
No, we need to do our homework to see how we can handle the “work” aspect of a graphic design profession.
Another factor to remember is that many of us just engage in our activities for a few hours per day, if we are fortunate. Can you be satisfied working for 8+ hours a day on graphic design with tight deadlines, stringent rules, and under the thumb of your boss?
When you choose a passion, you have complete control of how and when you make your art. You no longer have this right if you work as an artist. These aspects would be discussed in more detail in subsequent sections.
The Creative Mandates of The Boss vs. Your Creative Inspiration
You get to let your imagination and ingenuity run wild as you sit down at your art table and make art for the sheer fun of it. You may have any artist’s block, but at the very least, you are in control of your own job.
How would you do if your manager made you do anything you did not want to do? Or a whole squad of designers, each with their own dreams and suggestions about how to better reflect the clients’ brands?
When you work as a graphic artist, you must let go of your art’s “preciousness.” The drawings you make when on the clock are directly related to the work for which you were employed.
This does not imply that you would suppress any of your artistic ideas. Designers who can step beyond the box and introduce new things to the table, on the other hand, are strongly respected and accepted. You can not get away with having a brochure full of fire breathing dragons and unicorns if the client has a toothpaste business and wishes to reach the nursing home demographic.
As a graphic designer, you must constantly prioritise your boss’s and/or customers’ wishes above your own artistic instincts. Your art expertise would need to translate with the target you have been recruited to fulfil, whether you are a consultant that works with a variety of companies or a full-time employee.
This will also lead to you completing jobs that you find tedious. You still can not sit around designing a toothpaste brochure in your own time, but it is on your daily to-do list. Working within a larger company’s artist vision can lead to the creation of dull and drab products.
That is not stressful; it is simply tedious.
Some occasions, you will be challenged to do something you have never done before and quickly pick up new design skills. Your manager might be unfamiliar with the intricacies of graphic design and challenge you to do something impossible. It is critical to be ready to fight for yourself, develop easily, and comprehend the breadth of your responsibilities.
