The Long Game: How 20 Years in Design Taught Me What Really Matters

When I started my design career in 2002, I thought success meant perfect pixels and flawless portfolios. Twenty years later—after surviving EA Sports' infamous crunch periods, navigating multiple layoffs, and eventually managing teams across government applications—I've learned that the most valuable lessons never appeared in any job description.

My journey began creating technical drawings for Wall Street signage, where every measurement had to be precise to 1/16th of an inch. That obsessive attention to detail became my foundation, but it was just the beginning. From there, I'd work 4 AM shifts creating TV graphics during major news events, spend years in video game studios working 65-hour weeks, and ultimately discover that the best work happens when teams say "we" instead of "that's not my job."

The layoffs taught me about corporate loyalty's limits. The difficult managers showed me what not to do. The exceptional teams revealed what truly matters: character over portfolios, collaboration over individual brilliance, and the understanding that great leaders serve their people, not the other way around.

Today, like many talented professionals, I'm between roles. But instead of viewing this as a setback, I'm seeing it as preparation for what's next—because every challenge in this 20-year journey has been a masterclass in resilience, adaptability, and what it really takes to build something lasting in the creative industry.

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Intro