30 Day Challenge Logo

Hello dribbble world,

Recently I had felt like I was going through a bit of a personal slump as far as how hard I was really challenging myself. I just wasn’t feeling as passionate about design as I had in the past and I think it was safe to say I was a little burned out. So for the last 30 days, I decided to push myself and come up with a fun challenge that would help me see not only what I was capable of now, but also see what it would be like working for clients that I had a personal connection / desire to work with. Hence, the 30 day challenge was born.

The thirty day challenge is based around personal growth and quality of quantity. It’s not a matter of how much you can crank out, but what you’re cranking out in the end (although it’s always nice to push yourself when it comes to time.) The goal is to pick something you really want to focus on (for me it was layout and typography in website compositions,) and see how hard I could push myself to come up with the best results. For the next thirty days, the goal is to dedicate a minimum of one hour to help you not only improve your work, but also make it fun.

In the end, I finished 7 total website compositions despite some creative cloud issues and other client work taking priority. Once I finished each mock up, I felt as if I had accomplished exactly what I was hoping to do. I not only noticed the quality of my designs go up as the challenge progressed, but also saw my speed and problem solving increase as well. By the end of the challenge, I had felt like I rekindled my love for web design as well. It was nice working on designs where I was allowed to go a little crazy and not have to deal with the dreaded backlash that sometimes comes from clients.

I strongly urge anyone who feels like they are in a bit of a rut and would like to get back to what it is they enjoy to try this challenge. It doesn't have to be web mock ups, it can be anything! Hand-lettering, screen printing, app design, motion, whatever tickles your fancy. And don’t be afraid to give yourself insanely huge or famous clients (most of mine are.) What you make may never actually turn into anything, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth trying. Design is always better when there is passion involved, so try to pick topics you’re passionate about.

I am very excited about sharing my progress and will be uploading the first mock-up tomorrow Morning. Stay tuned for client 1 of 7 :)