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Interview with a Senior Web Designer
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Are you interested in both art and technology? That is what this senior web designer at her own firm loves about the work. In this interview, she shares the up and downs of the work, how she finds it difficult to work with clients with bad design taste, and how much you can expect to make as a professional in this field.
Q: What is your job title and what industry do you work in? How many years of experience do you have in this field? How would you describe yourself using only three adjectives?
A: Right now, my title is CEO, since I own and operate my own business. If I were in a bigger organization, I my title would probably be "Senior Web Designer". I have been working in this field since 1993 - only two years after the web was created, and at the time I was in high school. If I could describe myself using only three adjectives, they would be energetic, driven, and creative. That may be aspirational, but I hope to live up to them.
Q: What’s your ethnicity and gender? How has it hurt or helped you? If you ever experienced discrimination, how have you responded and what worked best?
A: I am a white female. Women in computing fields face a lot of discrimination since we are a vast minority (often less than 10%). A lot of women don't get started early in computing, so they come in behind the level of their male peers. The only way I have found to handle this is to prove through my work that not only am I competent, but usually superior to my colleagues. It means working harder a lot of the time, but ultimately I have always been able to earn my colleagues' respect.
Q: How would you describe what you do? What does your work entail? Are there any common misunderstandings you want to correct about what you do?
A:I design web sites, including the overall architecture, visual design and graphics, and programming for the front end (on the browser side) and the back end, including scripting and databases. I like to really touch the code, so I'm involved in all parts of the process. I think a common misunderstanding about web designers is that we are all geeky types who think about code all day. We love code, but because the web is a visual medium, we are often creative and artistic people who also love technology.
Q: On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rate your job satisfaction? What might need to change about your job to unleash your full enthusiasm?
A: I would give it a 9. There are times where I have to focus on sales or administrative work. That brings in clients, which is good, but the part of my job that I love is the creation, both graphic and technical, so I can sometimes feel bogged down in business details. However, I love the freedom that comes with choosing the projects we want to work on and controlling them. At times, I would like someone else to handle some of the business end of the work, but in reality, I'm not wiling to give up that control.
Q: If this job moves your heart – how so? Ever feel like you found your calling or sweet spot in life? If not, what might do it for you?
A: I think this job exactly fits my personality and career desires. I love art - both creating it and viewing it - but I am not talented enough to make my living as a painter or other visual artist. I also love technology, but writing code for other people's projects can make you feel a bit like a robot who is churning out lines of Java just like others churn out widgets. Working in the web design and programming arena lets me use both things that I love in unison, and it gives me balance since I can pursue one when I need a break from the other.
Q: Is there anything unique about your situation that readers should know when considering your experiences or accomplishments?
A: I was fortunate by birth to be coming into my adulthood as the web was born. That allowed me to get in at an age where I could start working on it right away (as opposed to someone younger who may have been stuck doing only class projects on the web for years until they were old enough to really get working). This has been a great advantage for me, both in the years of experience I have at a relatively young age, and also in the fact that I've been able to watch the medium evolve. I'd suggest to younger people now to seek out what might be the next big thing and immerse yourself in that if you want to find a parallel benefit.
Q: How did you get started in this line of work? If you could go back and do it differently, what would you change?
A: A family business asked me to do their website for them when I was in high school, and that got me into the industry. I found I knew more than some people who were putting on seminars then, because I had really studied the ideas and they were often marketing the "Next Big Thing" without fully understanding it. I think my start was very lucky and I wouldn't change a thing about it.
Q: What did you learn the hard way in this job and what happened specifically that led up to this lesson?
A: I resisted some changes because, like so many people, once I know how to do something, I don't want to have to re-learn it in a new way. However, in a few cases those changes turned out to be very important things (e.g. the introduction of CSS) and my stubbornness at the beginning made me have to catch up later. Now, I try to at least stay involved in, and up to date on forthcoming changes, though I am rarely an early adopter.
Q: What is the single most important thing you have learned outside of school about the working world?
A: It doesn't matter where you come from or how much you want something, what matters is the quality of what you do.
Q: What’s the strangest thing that ever happened to you in this job?
A: I had one client who wanted to pay me via fraudulent return credits to my credit card from his business. I had to tell him "no" many times.
Q: Why do you get up and go to work each day? Can you give an example of something that really made you feel good or proud?
A: I love the challenge of coming up with creative solutions to meet people's needs. Cute coding solutions that elegantly achieve a visual effect always make me proud, and I find one of those every couple months.
Q: What kind of challenges do you handle and what makes you want to just quit?
A: Sometimes clients don't know what they want. That's ok. The ones that make me crazy are the ones with really bad ideas and who don't understand how websites work and what keeps users engaged online. They insist on these bad ideas, and it makes it hard to create something we are proud of while still meeting the customer's needs.
Q: How stressful is your job? Are you able to maintain a comfortable or healthy work-life balance? How?
A:I work a lot, but by choice. I don't stress about it too much. We get done what we can, and are very good with our planning so that deadlines rarely are difficult for us to meet.
Q: What’s a rough salary range for the position you hold? Are you paid enough and/or happy living within your means?
A:The salary range is quite wide. An HTML programmer may make close to minimum wage while someone with database programming skills and a good design background can approach a six-figure income. I think with a lot of skill training, anyone can make a very comfortable living in this field.
Q: How much vacation do you take? Is it enough?
A: I don't really take vacation. I'm a bit of a workaholic, but so far I haven't felt deprived by working so much.
Q: What education and skills do you need to get hired and succeed in this field?
A: Honestly, the work can be done by someone who practices a lot but has no formal training. In practice, most places require a bachelor's degree and that is very useful. It will teach you to write - a critical skill - and taking courses in art and computer science will give you a well rounded background.
Q: What would you tell a friend considering your line of work?
A: Practice, practice, practice. The only way you get good at these things is to do them and do them a lot. Make portfolios and create projects for yourself. Push yourself. It's the only way to become excellent.
Q: If you could write your own ticket, what would you like to be doing in five years?
A: I would like to be doing the same thing, really. Maybe with a few more people to give me freedom to focus on the parts of the work I like most, but I hope I will still have the chance to keep being creatively engaged in the tech world.
Q: What is your job title and what industry do you work in? How many years of experience do you have in this field? How would you describe yourself using only three adjectives?
A: Right now, my title is CEO, since I own and operate my own business. If I were in a bigger organization, I my title would probably be "Senior Web Designer". I have been working in this field since 1993 - only two years after the web was created, and at the time I was in high school. If I could describe myself using only three adjectives, they would be energetic, driven, and creative. That may be aspirational, but I hope to live up to them.
Q: What’s your ethnicity and gender? How has it hurt or helped you? If you ever experienced discrimination, how have you responded and what worked best?
A: I am a white female. Women in computing fields face a lot of discrimination since we are a vast minority (often less than 10%). A lot of women don't get started early in computing, so they come in behind the level of their male peers. The only way I have found to handle this is to prove through my work that not only am I competent, but usually superior to my colleagues. It means working harder a lot of the time, but ultimately I have always been able to earn my colleagues' respect.
Q: How would you describe what you do? What does your work entail? Are there any common misunderstandings you want to correct about what you do?
A:I design web sites, including the overall architecture, visual design and graphics, and programming for the front end (on the browser side) and the back end, including scripting and databases. I like to really touch the code, so I'm involved in all parts of the process. I think a common misunderstanding about web designers is that we are all geeky types who think about code all day. We love code, but because the web is a visual medium, we are often creative and artistic people who also love technology.
Q: On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rate your job satisfaction? What might need to change about your job to unleash your full enthusiasm?
A: I would give it a 9. There are times where I have to focus on sales or administrative work. That brings in clients, which is good, but the part of my job that I love is the creation, both graphic and technical, so I can sometimes feel bogged down in business details. However, I love the freedom that comes with choosing the projects we want to work on and controlling them. At times, I would like someone else to handle some of the business end of the work, but in reality, I'm not wiling to give up that control.
Q: If this job moves your heart – how so? Ever feel like you found your calling or sweet spot in life? If not, what might do it for you?
A: I think this job exactly fits my personality and career desires. I love art - both creating it and viewing it - but I am not talented enough to make my living as a painter or other visual artist. I also love technology, but writing code for other people's projects can make you feel a bit like a robot who is churning out lines of Java just like others churn out widgets. Working in the web design and programming arena lets me use both things that I love in unison, and it gives me balance since I can pursue one when I need a break from the other.
Q: Is there anything unique about your situation that readers should know when considering your experiences or accomplishments?
A: I was fortunate by birth to be coming into my adulthood as the web was born. That allowed me to get in at an age where I could start working on it right away (as opposed to someone younger who may have been stuck doing only class projects on the web for years until they were old enough to really get working). This has been a great advantage for me, both in the years of experience I have at a relatively young age, and also in the fact that I've been able to watch the medium evolve. I'd suggest to younger people now to seek out what might be the next big thing and immerse yourself in that if you want to find a parallel benefit.
Q: How did you get started in this line of work? If you could go back and do it differently, what would you change?
A: A family business asked me to do their website for them when I was in high school, and that got me into the industry. I found I knew more than some people who were putting on seminars then, because I had really studied the ideas and they were often marketing the "Next Big Thing" without fully understanding it. I think my start was very lucky and I wouldn't change a thing about it.
Q: What did you learn the hard way in this job and what happened specifically that led up to this lesson?
A: I resisted some changes because, like so many people, once I know how to do something, I don't want to have to re-learn it in a new way. However, in a few cases those changes turned out to be very important things (e.g. the introduction of CSS) and my stubbornness at the beginning made me have to catch up later. Now, I try to at least stay involved in, and up to date on forthcoming changes, though I am rarely an early adopter.
Q: What is the single most important thing you have learned outside of school about the working world?
A: It doesn't matter where you come from or how much you want something, what matters is the quality of what you do.
Q: What’s the strangest thing that ever happened to you in this job?
A: I had one client who wanted to pay me via fraudulent return credits to my credit card from his business. I had to tell him "no" many times.
Q: Why do you get up and go to work each day? Can you give an example of something that really made you feel good or proud?
A: I love the challenge of coming up with creative solutions to meet people's needs. Cute coding solutions that elegantly achieve a visual effect always make me proud, and I find one of those every couple months.
Q: What kind of challenges do you handle and what makes you want to just quit?
A: Sometimes clients don't know what they want. That's ok. The ones that make me crazy are the ones with really bad ideas and who don't understand how websites work and what keeps users engaged online. They insist on these bad ideas, and it makes it hard to create something we are proud of while still meeting the customer's needs.
Q: How stressful is your job? Are you able to maintain a comfortable or healthy work-life balance? How?
A:I work a lot, but by choice. I don't stress about it too much. We get done what we can, and are very good with our planning so that deadlines rarely are difficult for us to meet.
Q: What’s a rough salary range for the position you hold? Are you paid enough and/or happy living within your means?
A:The salary range is quite wide. An HTML programmer may make close to minimum wage while someone with database programming skills and a good design background can approach a six-figure income. I think with a lot of skill training, anyone can make a very comfortable living in this field.
Q: How much vacation do you take? Is it enough?
A: I don't really take vacation. I'm a bit of a workaholic, but so far I haven't felt deprived by working so much.
Q: What education and skills do you need to get hired and succeed in this field?
A: Honestly, the work can be done by someone who practices a lot but has no formal training. In practice, most places require a bachelor's degree and that is very useful. It will teach you to write - a critical skill - and taking courses in art and computer science will give you a well rounded background.
Q: What would you tell a friend considering your line of work?
A: Practice, practice, practice. The only way you get good at these things is to do them and do them a lot. Make portfolios and create projects for yourself. Push yourself. It's the only way to become excellent.
Q: If you could write your own ticket, what would you like to be doing in five years?
A: I would like to be doing the same thing, really. Maybe with a few more people to give me freedom to focus on the parts of the work I like most, but I hope I will still have the chance to keep being creatively engaged in the tech world.