AMA ☞ Founder of a design studio based out of Bangalore

I took the safe way, and recommend this to everyone.

I had a stable job and started my agency on the side. This meant working very late into the night for months. Only once we had two retainer clients, did I feel safe enough to quit my job.

So sustenance wasn't really an issue.

Thanks for replying. It must've been hard to do a full time job with less sleep alongside this. How did you deal with burnouts?

I worked at a great startup before starting my studio. Most of the people who worked there ended up moving to much bigger companies. Most of them were happy to introduce me since they liked my work. That's how I got to work with large startups.

I have tried Upwork and Fiverr, but much later into my career. It was so late that I couldn't justify the time and effort that it would require to land a client there (you need testimonials/reviews to build a strong profile, might have to take on lesser paying jobs just to get those ratings).

If I had to start all over again, I would definitely give fiverr/upwork a proper shot. But it doesn't make sense today.

(Also, I read somewhere that platfoms like fiverr/upwork is a race to the bottom where clients filter based on lowest price. If that really is the truth, I don't want to compete there either)

Very cool I think this journey from building credibility to then going agency route makes most sense

1. I've never taken that course, however, some really good designers seem to endorse it. Might be good?
2. On-the-job experience beats most of the courses/traditional education. However, it's hard to find someone who will trust you at first, so taking a course might help you open doors. College in my opinion is good for the network you get out of it. So, before joining one, try and figure out where the alumni from the college are working right now. College might help get a job at "big" firms, which might filter candidates based on that.
3. Design is a painful job tbh. I doubt if any other profession sees so much failure (rejected concepts, hurtful feedback etc) so often. So just ask yourself if you really want to go through all of that? If you still want to learn, find out agencies who excel at what you want to do, and read through their case studies.
4. I own the studio, so don't really have a CTC

All answers were really excellent. Will forward most of it to nephews and nieces who want to go into design.

Point 4. CTC is essentially what is your net take home.

Haven't calculated tbh, but less than 15Cr

15Cr is the point I would stop calculating as well :p

I worked as a graphic designer at a startup before starting a studio. Even though I had a great boss and a stellar team, most "good" work would get outsourced to agencies even though we had the skillset to do it.

While I saw growth in terms of money working at another company, growth in terms of good projects was missing. That's why I decided to switch.

Hope this helps!

Great answer.
I have no questions here but I'm loving the answers you're providing here. Cheers! 🥂

One of my first projects was for an accounting firm. We had a great relationship with them, and as of today, they handle all the legal contracts.

Fortunately haven't needed any lawyers yet, but I think we might need them soon!

Ouu, a lot of people make the mistake of opting to have all their legalities drafted by accountants/CA firms It's the same as having a lawyer file your taxes - manageable up to a certain extent but you should really let a specialist take a look at it, especially if you can afford to!

Shameless and selfish promotion, I'm always available :P

Only I dropped out 😂 The rest of the team completed their degrees

Ah, I thought username checked out 😆

In my experience, relationships compound over time. Try to work with people who trust you and think you are valuable. They will ensure you get paid on time because they don't want to lose you.

If you have to constantly chase after payments, you might want to either drop the client OR hire someone whose job would be to send reminders/calls etc. I prefer the former.

Thank you. Solid advice that.

I would LOVE to take equity instead of cash.

I have tried negotiating this deal once, they laughed at my face (this is before ESOPs were as popular as it is today).

I also tried working with a startup that helped business take services in exchange for equity. But it never materialized.

So, probably not the right person to ask this question to.

But I know atleast one person who does take equity for the work he does (brand consulting).

Super interesting! How would you go about negotiating usually? Let’s say a startup is in pre-seed stage and there is no clarity on any valuation so far. I just want to know how these conversations start and how they work out eventually

1. Let's step into the shoes of someone hiring. They need someone who will either save them time or make them money. If they have to train you, you aren't going to save time or make money. So, if you can showcase a good project which can tell them that you can save time/make them money, they'll definitely consider you.

2. It hasn't been in my case, BUT, there's a catch. Most people I know end up doing a post grad from abroad (especially if their career isn't going well). So if in case your career doesn't work out they way you wanted (for any reason), you suddenly don't have the post-grad from abroad option.

3. I've been designing informally for close to 15 years now. Formally for at least 10. Here's a rough timeline, it's not accurate:

~2008: First paid project, was probably 15 years old ~ 2010: Took over the entire design for a school event, from website to printed collaterals ~2013: Dropped out of college. Worked as a party photographer, got first job for 15k where I worked for a month or two, but they didn't pay. Changed two jobs in quick succession. Until I found a great startup to work at. ~2014: Quit and started a design studio ~2019: Quit my first studio and started my second studio

4. I don't follow a lot of designers on social media, but there are too many to name. Here are some top of mind names in no particular order:

https://www.amazon.in/graphic-design-things-explain-better-ebook/dp/B015QBHLPO/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

https://www.pentagram.com/about/paula-scher

https://www.wearecollins.com/

https://landorandfitch.com/en

https://sawariasanchit.com/

https://khyatitrehan.com/

https://djr.com/

http://www.juankafka.com/

https://sankhalina.com/