My bank is in a small town as is more-often-than-not pretty quiet and empty when I go in. Today was a such a day.
As I was filling out my deposit slip, is was impossible not to overhear the bank manager at her desk talking to one of her workers. I got the sense it was an employee review. (And if so, it really should have been done out of earshot of customers and the other workers. But then I wouldn’t have this story to tell you.)
The manager was telling the worker that managers want employees that are proactive, not reactive. Managers don’t want to have to micro-manage their staff. And if this worker wanted to get anywhere in her career, she was going to have to be more proactive.
I really wish I could have sat in on that whole conversation because I’m fascinated by the process people use to try to motivate others if they’re under-performing.
So, what does this have to do with you as a designer? Plenty.
One of the reasons clients keep giving me projects is because I’m more than a designer. You can find designers anywhere online these days… and you can pay them next to nothing if you’re willing to look around and take some risks.
But when you’re able to go beyond design… that’s when you find yourself with a full schedule.
A client gave me a testimonial this week and part of it read:
I appreciate your attention to detail, friendly exchange, and willingness to work with creative solutions to the little hiccups that come now and then.
It’s that last part I want you to focus on. When “hiccups” occurred during this project, I didn’t simply throw it back to the client and say, “Well… what do you want to do here?”
Instead, I either put a potential solution in the layout for the client to see, or outlined possible solutions in an e-mail if that was more appropriate.
That’s a part of being proactive… seeing a problem and coming up with a solution.
Reactive designers may not even be aware there is a problem until it’s pointed out by the client. Or, they know there’s a problem but dump it in the client’s lap without any solutions.
That type of designer isn’t as highly valued as the proactive one.
Part of your job as a designer is to solve problems and make your client’s life easier. Dumping problems back in their lap without possible solutions does not make their life easier.
Maybe you could compare that to an auto-mechanic who says, “Yeah… there is definitely a problem with your brakes. Any idea how I should fix it?” Uh… no… that’s why I hired you. You’re the expert!
Another area where you can be proactive is in recommending other marketing vehicles to clients.
For example, a client hires to design a postcard that ask prospect to visit a website for more information. Does the client have a free bonus for those folks that might encourage a better response? Have they created a special landing page for that postcard promotion so they can easily track results?
These questions don’t even necessarily require more design work… it’s simply you helping the client to think things through or consider ideas they might not have come up with on their own.
Proactive leads to a busier schedule. Reactive leads to more free time than you probably want to have in your freelance career.
