Frustration

December 22, 2003 | View Comments (8) | Category: Design

Summary: Frustration happens to us all. We just gotta work through it.

When I first began to design I wanted to design sites like all the other greats on the web. I wanted the ability to design something wonderful instantly. I mean all that was needed was a basic knowledge of CSS and XHTML, right? So I built a site, but it didn't even look like anything I envisioned and it surely wasn't worthy enough to publish online for the public to see. So I tried again and again got the same results. I mean building websites were easy, yet all my sites looked like garbage. Frustration set in and I got tired of designing and looked for other interests to take my time.

I kept on coming back to design though. It drew me in with the thought of having the ability to create something that everyone else envied. A site where people would go to and say that they wish they could design like that and all my great peers would look at it and say "job well done." So I tried the design again. Still it didn't work, but I did notice it was a little bit better. I found a site that I wanted to "copy" so I tried to do the layout in CSS. Some elements worked and others were broken. I looked at their code and copied it. Now I had a site that looked just like their's, yet with different content.

Now the frustration was knowing that I created a site I liked, but that it wasn't my design. So I began to manipulate the site and tweak certain elements. Over time the site began to evolve and take on a design of its own. When I came across another site that had some cool effects I wanted I simply copied them and began to change them to the way I see things. In the end I had finally created a site that wasn't the best, but I was proud of creating.

I began another project and the frustration set in again because I thought it would be easier since I already had one site under my belt. However, the same process began all over again. This time however, I learned how to put the frustration aside. I realized that I knew where I wanted to be and that over time I would work myself into that mold. I just needed more time. In the meantime I would work on little things. I would do a design I was pleased with and knew that the next day I would have to change something. However, I at least knew I was getting some where.

What these lessons taught me was that over time you are not only learning design, but you are learning your style. Your style isn't necessarily the kind of sites you like to look at on the web. Your style is what evolves over experience. Your style develops through all the frustration you endure while designing. For the beginners out there, do not ever think design comes easy. Even the veteran designers get frustrated. What separates them from everyone else is there ability to proactively work through that frustration and use it as a form of creativity.

If you get frustrated at least you understand that there is something you want to do, which usually means that there is something that you care about. Keep the passion within you and let that become your foundation. Let the frustration become a source of energy to help your designs, not a ball and chain that holds them back. Always remember that frustration is not something new or a unique quality that only you have. We all go through it and amazingly we have all found a way to work passed it.

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Comments

#1

thats deep, thanks for the e-mail scrivs!
im feeling refreshed :)

Steven

#2

Good words. Whitespace is emerging as one of my favourite blogs to read, with content the quality of stopdesign but more often!

Keep it up.

David House

#3

Thanks guys, I like to write stuff like this because you really don't see it that often on the big boys' blogs.

Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)

#4

Well thought out, finding one's own style is a lifetime process. It's comforting to see other designers go through the same kinds of frustrations.

Keep up the good work.

Hendrix (http://www.neoalbion.com)

#5

I understand how you feel. ^_^

Zelnox

#6

You really are emerging as one of the great thinkers of the web! Despite the fact that you say you copy from others, it seems fairly evident to me that you really are thinking out of the box these days. You new design makes this evident.

You modest self-critique enables you to give us, as people in a similar boat, a blog with which to identify. Keep up the excellent work.

Guy Carberry (http://www.guyweb.co.uk)

#7

Thanks for the compliments (aka pressure) :P

Its always good to know that I am not the only one who hits the wall more time than I would like.

Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)

#8

Love this.

I'm totally relating right now. I still have yet to create that killer design that I can be really proud of. But I am doing pretty well for a person with no background in design.

It's good to be reminded of how far we've come because it makes it all the easier to go even further.

Jack (http://boxofjack.com)

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