Creative work using a wide range of digital software, dealing with client feedback and revisions, client onboarding and consultation, self-promotion, dedicating time to passive income such as merchandise and licensed artwork.

I'll start the day around 9am, making edits to a client's election leaflets. At around 10am I'll work on building out pages on a client's new website, using Beaver Builder to design page templates they can edit themselves down the line. After lunch I'll tweak a web application which allows people to contact their MP, on behalf of a campaign organisation. I might have a meeting with an ongoing client about their new campaign, and spend an hour or two applying for commissions listed on various jobs sites. In the evening I might work on a personal project such as an animation or a video game.

It provides a constant change in the kind of work I do, which allows me to maintain my interest and expand my skills. Hourly rates of pay are significantly higher than in contracted work, which means that during times when I have a few large projects I'm able to work less hours overall and make sure I'm dedicated to getting them right. The lack of a commute means I can have more time to myself and also lets me work on the go, so I can work from anywhere with a decent internet connection.

The inability to predict incoming work makes financial planning difficult, and it's best to start freelancing alongside another job at least initially. There is also no defined career ladder to automatically progress through - you need to be self-motivated to improve and expand your skillset. Doing tax returns and paying your income tax as a lump sum is also no fun!

The autonomy and ability to define my own hours, and to pick and choose to a degree what kind of work I do and clients I work for.

My main skillset is with the Adobe Creative Cloud suite - Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and After Effects are a big part of my day to day work. I've taken the time to teach myself HTML, JavaScript and CSS, and while I'm not a fully-fledged web developer, understanding how websites work and being able to build and tweak basic functionality is hugely useful when working on web design. My Journalism experience has come in useful in a copywriting role for writing video scripts, Facebook ads and website copy for clients, as did my experience creating print designs through my course and on Forge Press.

June 2016-November 2016: Unemployed
November 2016-October 2018: Senior Communications Officer for Louise Haigh MP
November 2016-Present: Freelance Graphic Designer
May 2019: Video Designer for the Labour Party
September 2019-March 2020: Graphic Designer for Telcom
October 2019-June 2021: Digital Officer for the Co-operative Party

In October 2021 I will be moving to Seattle, Washington to pursue my freelance career and hopefully make connections and client relationships in the technology and game development industries. I'm continuing to develop my game creation skills, including programming, and aim to release my first commercial game project towards the end of 2021. I aim to continue my work in the political campaigning sector, and a career dream would be to work as a designer on a US Presidential campaign!

You don't need to reinvent the wheel - the only measure of your worth and ability as a designer is that the client is happy and the design succeeds. Don't be afraid to save work that you're happy with and use elements of it in future projects, and to use your downtime to go through tutorials and expand your range of abilities. Remember, there's almost always something new you can learn from each job, so make sure you grasp the opportunity.