i saw this blog in passing and thought i would leave my mark..

i at no time in the past and more than likely in the future will ever truly call myself an “expert” in the world of web development and design.. i more often than not hate nearly 90% – 95% of my work.. and i know deep down that i will never learn every language that is written..

i don’t think you can limit yourself to just the design.. as a web designer it encompasses so much more than a graphic or a table.. we may have to meet the goals outlined by a client but we as designers can truly show our artform in any design..

i know that most clients are not asking for SEO services, mainly due to the fact they don’t know what it details.. nor are they asking for dynamic database driven content.. nor do they ask me to comment every line of code i write to help the designer after me know what i did.. nor will they ever understand or fully appreciate the fact that their outlined designed has been formatted to meet every HTML, CSS and god only knows what, web standard out there..

so in that i can find some good in webdesign

Is this all right? No.
I can do better.
(Repeat to fade)

I know this might come across as a selfish viewpoint, but if you can’t enjoy what you do for yourself you really shouldn’t be doing it.

Selfish? Not at all. Commons sense. How can you be an effective person, professional, whatever, if you aren’t even remotely personally pleased in some way shape or form? Whether it’s the small victory in getting your client to stick to a colour choice even if the rest of your decisions were over-ridden, or whether you garner awards and praise for a personal project you’re dear to… half of the battle in business and in life is mental.

You can’t be useful to anyone if you aren’t useful to yourself, first.

I agree with your take. I think all creatives, be they web designers, artists, or craftsmen go through the same thing. If we truly care about the work we are producing, we want it to be perfect all around. We it to meet our clientsbusiness needs, give their customers what they are looking for, and be visually stunning (even if minimalist).

Your an MBA (aren’t you?), bust out those old economics books. The problem is that we live in a world of limited resources. Our clients don’t have the budget or the time to allow us in, most cases, to tweak the hell out of things. If we were on projects for extended periods of time, or had several months to refine things we could do a much better job. Barring that, we do the best we can within the time and budget that we are given. It’s all about balance. Finding the optimal point at which both design and budget (time and money) intersect.

Hell, I’ve been trying to redesign my site (which is in dire need of a fresh face) for months now. I am having trouble because a day after I concept something, I trash it cause it just doesn’t feel right. But I’m not deriving any revenue from it. I also have unlimited time to work on it and don’t have to worry about budget.

“”Very rarely do I come across a design that I am proud of doing for an extended period of time.”

This is precisely the reason why most creative firms hire other creative firms to design own their logos, letterhead, or business cards. To always believe you can do better is a natural and unavoidable feeling in any good designer.”

I had *always* wondered why creative firms hired others to do their own website. It always bugged me, but that makes sense.

The client should be happy. This is the core goal of design work, right?

I’m not saying I fully believe this, but it is something that springs to mind when reading this piece.