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Job: 02762 Title: 365 Habits of Successful Graphic Designers (Rockport)
Page: 463
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This is perhaps the most important habit of all.
It’s all about balance. Especially when you’re
starting out, the temptation is to put everything
you’ve got—time, money, energy, resources—
into this new baby called your business. But
that’s not healthy for you, which means it’s not
healthy for your business, since your business
is simply a product of you and your ideas. Let’s
speak plainly: The ideal is to work as much as
necessary to be able to afford the things that
will make life not just livable, but enjoyable. So
what good is having the money to have those
things if you don’t give yourself the time to
enjoy them as well?
“‘Yeah, but it’s not just a job,’ you say. ‘It’s a
career. It’s my business. It’s my future.’ This
is all true, but if you don’t take some time to
enjoy today, the future is going to come and
go and you will have missed it. One must find
a place for work within life, not in spite of or
outside of it. After all, life came first.”
DON’T FORGET THE REST OF LIFE
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STEVE GORDON, JR
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HOWie Zine 2 “Road Trip” illustration and design by
Steve Gordon, Jr, RDQLUS
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365 HABITS OF SUCCESSFUL GRAPHIC DESIGNERS
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“Make yourself feel OK with having downtime.
Give yourself some minigoals or time frames.
Perhaps set aside four hours of your workday
for developing new business in some way and
then the rest of your day can be spent any way
you like.”
It will help you feel more focused and produc-
tive if you organize your downtime like it’s real
work time. But let’s face it, you can’t spend
ten hours a day on new business development.
ENJOY THE TIME OFF
STEVE GORDON, JR
342
North Lawndale College Prep capital campaign materials design, designed by Steve Gordon, Jr, RDQLUS
There are not enough leads out there, and you’ll
burn out and be ineffective at representing
yourself. So once you’ve done something that’s
productive for the long-term health of your busi-
ness, do something that’s productive for the
long-term health of you. Go take a hike. Visit
your mom. Read a book. Grab that dusty fishing
pole. Take a nap. There have undoubtedly been
plenty of late nights and weekends spent work-
ing; you have to remember that at least some
part of downtime can be considered payback.
“Starting your own business can be an all-
consuming affair. Especially in the first year
when you’ve had so much to do to get up and
running and then to keep up with that first
influx of work. There were undoubtedly many
nights and weekends devoted to your new
baby, your business. In the process, there are
friends who have gone uncontacted, books left
unread, sock drawers left unsorted, and rela-
tives who’ve had real babies.
GET A LIFE
STEVE GORDON, JR
343
Think back to the days when you left work at
someone else’s office at the end of the day or
week. Did you have a hobby? What about that
macramé class you’ve always wanted to take?
How about that girl you met and never got
around to asking out? How’s that new coffee
shop you still haven’t tried? If you have some
downtime, your best first step might be to
look in the mirror and reacquaint yourself with
the person you find there.”
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ACHIEVING BALANCE
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VNDK8 Freestyle Equipment Co., Ascension apparel artwork, designed by Steve Gordon, Jr, RDQLUS
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