Work Flow and Process Junkie
Research and Organization are Key

How we hate the smug, overused cliches. They are typically dead on. Here's a good one. Failing to plan is planning to fail. Period.

Talent is a wonderful thing. All the best designers have it. I claim to be a talented designer. However, having raw talent with no deadline groove to put it in is murder to work with. As young designers, many of us fall into the trap of thinking that our work must remain "as designed" and that our word is final on matters artistic. It is a good thing to have that whole mode of thought beaten right out of you.

The job is the job. Deadline and budget are king. Changes changes changes. If your art guy can't keep his head level in a firefight then you need a new art guy.

One of the best things that ever happened to me was to get the living tar beat out of me as a young designer. I developed that crucial gumshoe detective mentality early on to keep the wolf away from the door. Whatever your job needs, my approach is one of the marathon and not the sprint. I am accountable to be ethical and transparent.

Samples are to be collected and evaluated. Notes and documentation for every ball in motion need to be written and kept. The client has to know what he is buying. Expenditures of time and material can pile up and kill the margin. File management is crucial to make sure that final product reflects all input. I have seen tens of thousands of dollars go down the tubes over small issues. Talent adapted to reality is best practice.