How do I take myself further?

Baris

Junior Member
Are there any good crash courses in design where I can learn:
• how to improve my workflow
• how to negotiate contracts
• how to create and work to a design brief
• information layout (ie. reference books/sites, instructional designs)
• how to manage medium - large scale projects
• how to work with a team

Do practical courses exist like this? I never studied design at uni, is there a systematic approach to creating a design brief?

I enjoy web design, and am fairly adept with CSS/XHTML. I'd like to be able to offer javascript and ajax skills to my clients, but have never had time to learn of either of them.

I'm aware that my workflow in general is erratic. I'd hope to learn ways to streamline and improve it.

I've got an EOS camera which I've used occasionally for work. I'd like to learn what to aim for in photography for clients, if only for gaining confidence in what I already know and do.

It's actually been quite difficult putting what I want into words, but this is a start...
 
I'm guessing Jobs and Resources - FreelanceSwitch might be a useful site for you which will cover at least three or four of your bullet points (and possibly all of them). I'm not sure what you mean by "information layout" and your examples aren't quite making me wiser. However, we have a recently created thread going on about design courses which might already have some helpful comments.

Welcome to the forum.
 
Baris said:
Are there any good crash courses in design where I can learn:
• how to improve my workflow
• how to negotiate contracts
• how to create and work to a design brief
• information layout (ie. reference books/sites, instructional designs)
• how to manage medium - large scale projects
• how to work with a team

Workflow- experience
Contracts - experience
Creating a design brief - experience - and should you not be reading briefs not writing them?
Information Layout - experience and google.
Managing Projects - experience
Working in a team - social skills and experience.

As you can see - i reccomend getting some experience - its gonna be long and hard and probably error ridden journey if you ant to be taught all of the above - its all about looking and listening and learning on the job.

And if it means working at the bottom for a while - then thats the way to do it. Start at the bottom learn, and move up. No one ever starts at the top.


Thats my 99p worth.
 
Although it is possible to have a 'knack' for design, I reckon anyone who hasn't had formal design training will benefit in some way from a few lessons on the basic principals.

It's difficult to teach the business side of things... just be ballsy!

pretty much all of the above can be learned whilst on your journey as a designer, If you can't make an obvious choice,;post up on here and there are plenty of us to help you out!

GL
 
I'm not sure what you mean by "information layout"
Is it 'information design'? I've read a bit about logical ordering of information and incorporating this thought into designs.

Thanks for the links, thanks for the replies. I guess experience is where I'm most lacking. I couldn't get onto the thread about courses, not privileged enough apparently.
 
It's difficult to teach the business side of things... just be ballsy!
I agree with you on the business side of things, don't have so much problem there.

Although it is possible to have a 'knack' for design, I reckon anyone who hasn't had formal design training will benefit in some way from a few lessons on the basic principals.
This is where I fall short - I've never had formal design training. I agree that a few lessons on the basic principles will be a great help!

Do these lesson exist outside of a degree, and outside of books like the designs basics index?
 
Onartis said:
I'm guessing Jobs and Resources - FreelanceSwitch might be a useful site for you which will cover at least three or four of your bullet points (and possibly all of them). I'm not sure what you mean by "information layout" and your examples aren't quite making me wiser. However, we have a recently created thread going on about design courses which might already have some helpful comments.

Welcome to the forum.

Has anybody subscribed to freelance switch? The jobs seem pretty decenton there, just unsure that I have to pay to apply!??

Any feedback?
Sorry to take over the thread! x
 
I had to share this:
My coming here has prompted a kind of reawakening of the designer in me, I've had an opportunity to look back at what I've accomplished over the past couple of years, and where I'm headed. I suppose, RobNorthernUnion, you're right, I should just go ahead and collect more experience. It's worked well for me so far.

Just being on this forum, reading the threads getting my head into these discussions has helped structure a lot of my thoughts, pushed me into revising my workflow and changed the way I approach my work.

This is just the kind of development I hoped to get from a course...

I feel invigorated! Thanks guys, and thanks Design Forum.
 
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