Blueprint for Design

This past month I learned a valuable lesson about owning my own design company: knowing my limits.

For me, I like to do everything.  It’s not that I’m a control freak, I just enjoy working on every facet of a project.  I also take a certain amount of pride in working on all aspects and calling it “my own.”  There are areas of design that I’m very strong at and there are areas that I struggle with. Knowing these limits can improve the quality of my projects and client relations.  There is no shame in admitting your weaknesses and seeking help from those with more talent.

The project that led me to this realization involved a character illustration of a knight.  I like to think that I can illustrate, but I can’t hold a candle to guys that do it for a living.  It’s a unique talent.  Swallowing my pride and acknowledging that my client would get a better illustration if I outsourced was difficult decision to swallow, at first.  After seeing the final product, and hearing my clients’ delight over the final product proved my decision was correct.

Another factor to take into considerations is time.  While it probably only took the illustrator a few hours to draw the character, it would have taken me days to get it right. I’m out of practice and do not posses that raw talent.  This could have eaten into time I should have been spending on other projects or refining the skills that I really am good at. I would have given a proposal for a few hours, and far surpassed that.  It’s not an efficient way to work.

(Nerd Alert.)

I remember a scene in The Dark Knight with Alfred and Bruce Wayne.  Here’s how it went.

Alfred Pennyworth: Know your limits, Master Wayne.

Bruce Wayne: Batman has no limits.

Alfred Pennyworth: Well, you do, sir.

Bruce Wayne: Well, can’t afford to know ‘em.

Alfred knows that at some point Batman can’t do everything. Of course, this is a movie, and he can do everything and save Gotham City. But, it was a good scene to drive my message home…sort of. Unlike Bruce Wayne refuses to believe, a designer should know their limits. It makes for a more successful company and higher caliber projects overall.

Have you had a similar experience? Have you, as a designer, realized that you just can’t do everything?

Photo courtesy of zimway2k