Starting From Zero: A Strategic Approach To Building A Career As A Pro Illustrator
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I’m very lucky to be married to a former management consultant and online marketing whizz and so have a live-in marketing and strategy coach which I plan to make the most of while I transition from full time graphic designer to full time illustrator.
One of the most important lessons I’ve learned is that everything I do needs to be based on a sound plan and marketing strategy rather than making things up as I go along.
Having a strategy from the start ensures that I’m not wasting time (something I don’t have a lot of with a baby on the way in 3 months time), that I know exactly where I want to be and a plan of action how to get there. It also ensures that I have a set of measures along the way to gauge how my progress is going and where I need to focus my efforts.
When I finally decided to take this seriously and get over my self-doubt, here is how I got started with planning a more strategic approach to creating an illusration career…
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Stylistic Experiments
A few things I’ve been working on - experimenting with different mediums and styles.
Polar Bear Swimming
Going From Graphic Designer To Professional Illustrator: Useful Skills To Learn
As a professional Graphic Designer with 10+ years experience (inc. 3 years as a freelance designer), I’m very lucky to have built up a set of skills and experience that (I hope) can be easily transferred to a career in illustration.
You certainly don’t have to come from a graphic design background to have a successful illustration career but here are a few skills I’m glad I have and that it would be worth any wannabe-illustrator acquiring - which could also give you the edge over the competition…
Why It’s Taken Me So Long To Get Started
There is a fine line between being inspired by the work of a favourite illustrator and being crippled with self doubt that your work will never be as good or look as professional.
This has been a big problem for me so far and has been the biggest stumbling block in following my passion and making the move into a professional illustration career…
Welcome To The Zero 2 Illo Blog
The time for procrastination, self-doubt and style hang-ups is over - it’s now time to get going and start working towards my dream career as an illustrator…and I’d like to invite you to join me.
This blog is all about my journey from zero 2 illo, transitioning from full time graphic designer to full time illustrator. Each week I’ll be updating the blog with the following posts:
- My to-do list for the week ahead and a review of the past week including accomplishments & learnings
- Resources and/or useful articles about business, marketing & more for illustrators
Along with keeping me accountable and on the straight and narrow, I’m also hoping that by sharing the things I do and the information I learn alongside the things I get wrong, it will serve as a road map to help other aspiring illustrators make a successful leap into the exciting world of professional illustration.
For even more details about my progress - including my monthly earnings - and (hopefully!) exclusive interviews with other illustrators and art directors, join the mailing list in the sidebar.
You can also see my portfolio site here >>>
