David Airey

“Design has to work.
Art does not.”

The more people you surround yourself with, the greater the chance that one of those people will know someone who needs design or branding work.

If you put a poster in the street that shows Beethoven or Mozart a lot of people will automatically say it’s not for them.

It’s important to do more than what is on your business card.

Younger designers will sometimes focus on what they initially want to do with the brief, but the listening phase is extremely important.

The fact that you’re around the same table for one or two days, eating and drinking together, makes it much more interesting, and the key to any good job is a good human relationship.

Never negotiate the same amount of work for less money. Instead, remove some of the deliverables.

After a presentation, if a client tells you he or she doesn’t like the design, reply by asking, “But does it feel right?”

Experiencing and experimenting is to make room for the unexpected.

Letting your client follow the process with you can help to eliminate potential issues toward the end.