How do you become a good designer?

Hang out with good designers or plumbers

While I was at Jupiter, a graphic designer working in the marketing team asked me, “How do I become a good designer? I wish to learn UI and UX”. I told her, “Hang out with good designers. Satsang is way too powerful”.

I said this as a quick reaction to her question, but then, I realized, it’s because I have always strived to be in the company of good designers and thinkers. I have tried to associate with those who I wanted to be like.

It’s very tough to find a good Guru in this day and age. Also as they say, “The teacher appears when the student is ready”. So the question is are you ready to be a student? Let’s assume you are not - which is the fact in today’s day and age. So the next step is to associate and hang out with designers you want to be like.

In Sanskrit, there are 2 words, Anukaran and Anusaran. Anukaran means imitating and Anusaran means, following. Now, following here doesn’t mean following but, observing, studying, and practicing what they did when they were your age or your stage of life. Let me give a few examples of both:

Anukaran of Steve Jobs means

1. Wearing a Turtle neck Tee and Blue Jeans

2. Being arrogant and be a bully with your stakeholders

3. Pasting Jobs’s quotes on your portfolio website as if you follow it

4. Thinking that Design can change the world and broadcasting it on your LinkedIn and twitter feed

Anusaran of Steve Jobs means (recommended)

1. Trying to understand how he must have felt when he was thrown out of his own company?

2. Why and how did he build Pixar which did equally amazing work?

3. What was he doing in his garage?

4. What made him think that he should meet Neem Karoli Baba in India?

We, humans, are group creatures (and if are evolved from apes) and tend to imitate. There is nothing wrong in imitating but make sure you imitate from the best. Even in Indian classical music or drawing schools, they first teach you to imitate a master’s artwork or a rendition. I guess we need to do it long enough and also continue this practice as we evolve.

First initial years it could be Anukaran and then Anusaran as you mature into your thoughts and profession. This is the same reason why we have Running and Kayaking communities. Associate with the best lazy people and you’ll be lazy, but, associate with keto diet people and you will reduce carbs intake in your food.

It is not a coincidence that guys like Picasso and Matisse knew each other, teased each other, encouraged, and spurned each other. Vijay Tendulkar was in touch with the best playwrights of his time from Europe and other geographies. (This was long before the internet)

In one of the podcasts, I heard Kunal Shah (Founder of Freecharge and CRED) saying, “In the early days of your career, find a good manager and not necessarily a good organization. Don’t be a logo collector”. He is talking about Anusaran. Find people whose energy you appreciate and stick to them.

I feel a bit sad when I ask budding dentists or MBA graduates, whom they admire in your profession and they don’t have answers.