In this episode, I’m chatting with brand designer Abi Lee about something we don’t hear discussed very often, how you keep a freelance business going when you’re grieving.

Two years ago, Abi lost her dad very suddenly. While trying to process what had happened and support her family, she was also dealing with the reality of working for herself, where there’s no compassionate leave and nobody else automatically steps in to manage the clients, deadlines and bills.

We chat about the guilt of trying to be everywhere at once, how Abi slowly found her way back into work and the impact the experience had on the way she now thinks about her business and what she wants from it.

It’s a very open and personal conversation about grief, freelancing and trying to keep going when life changes overnight.

You can find Abi and see more of her work on Instagram at @abileedesigns.

Please be aware that this episode includes a conversation about the sudden illness and death of a parent, intensive care and bereavement.

I’d love to hear what you think of this episode. If you’ve listened and any part of Abi's chat resonated with you, send me a message on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/designerinyourpocket_juls/ or https://www.instagram.com/thehonestdesignerdiaries/.

Take care

Juls

This week I’m chatting with editorial designer, speaker, host and Adobe mentor Kieron Lewis about all the different skills that can shape a creative career. We talk about why being a great designer will only take you so far, how important it is to communicate your ideas and why Kieron considers his people skills to be one of his biggest strengths.

We also get into some of the more difficult parts of the design industry, from bullying and hierarchy in creative workplaces to imposter syndrome and being the only person in the room who looks or sounds like you. Kieron shares how voluntary work helped build his confidence, why junior designers need better support and how he created new opportunities for himself, including taking a chance and asking D&AD if he could host one of their events.

And because we’re both print designers at heart, we finish with a very serious discussion about the correct way to greet a newly delivered book, which obviously includes inspecting the binding and smelling the paper.

Connect with Kieron on IG:

www.instagram.com/kieronanthonyl

I’d love to hear what you think of this episode. If you’ve listened and any part of Hannah’s story resonated with you, send me a message on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/designerinyourpocket_juls/ or https://www.instagram.com/thehonestdesignerdiaries/.

I really hope you enjoy the chat.

Juls

Chloe from The Chatty Freelancer and I have a habit of sitting in the car talking for ages whenever we meet up, usually after one of us has offered the other a lift home. We always end up saying we should have recorded the conversation, so this time we actually did.

So we've set ourselves some big audacious goals we want to reach in the next few months and sharing our progress in this bonus series the Chatty Diaries.

Follow along with us as we keep each other accountable where we'll be meeting up again to find out whether either of us has actually done what we said we would, which may be exactly why making this public was a terrible idea.

Listen to Chloe's podcast on Spotify

Connect with Chloe on IG

I’d love to hear what you think of this episode. Send me a message on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/designerinyourpocket_juls/ or https://www.instagram.com/thehonestdesignerdiaries/ .

I really hope you enjoy the chat.

Juls

When you’re good at listening, asking the right questions and understanding what really matters to a client, it usually makes you a better designer. It can also mean that somewhere between the brand strategy and the logo concepts, you accidentally become their therapist as well.

This week, I’m chatting with art director, brand designer and content creator Wayne Fick about the client relationships that become far more personal than either of you expected.

In this episode, we chat about:

• How designers can unintentionally become emotional support for their clients
• Why being sensitive and intuitive can be both useful and exhausting
• What happens when you introduce a boundary after a client has become used to constant access
• Why skills swaps need an agreed value on both sides
• Pricing work when you’re worried about where the next project is coming from
• Dealing with micromanagement and clients who question every design decision
• Becoming a content creator and YouTuber later in your career
• Staying open to new technology without pretending every new tool is wonderful
• Finding thoughtful, practical uses for AI while still questioning its effect on creative work

You can find Wayne under Created by Wayne on
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@createdbywayne
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/createdbywayne/

visit createdbywayne.com, and subscribe to his weekly Meaningful Creationist newsletter.

Hannah Walker didn’t set out to become a content creator. She studied fashion design, worked in London and New York, then found herself back in the UK wondering what the next version of her career might look like.

Hannah also shares how she plans content around big events without spending the entire trip staring at her phone, why she hasn’t forced herself into one very specific niche and how she’s attracting collaborations through the content she already enjoys making.

There’s also plenty about procrastination, late-night working, filming yourself in public and the reality of having to give yourself all the encouragement and validation you once got from a creative team.

You can find Hannah on Instagram and TikTok at @htwcreative, or connect with her on LinkedIn by searching Hannah Walker.

I’d love to hear what you think of this episode. If you’ve listened and any part of Hannah’s story resonated with you, send me a message on Instagram at @‌designerinyourpocket_juls or @‌thehonestdesignerdiaries.

I really hope you enjoy the chat.

Juls

In this episode I’m chatting with Robin, brand and graphic designer and host of Creative Confessions, about the fear of growth and why we can make a decision in our own head, sit with it for ages, then still feel like we need somebody else to tell us it’s a good idea.

We talk about overthinking, changing direction, working on your own without other creatives around to bounce ideas off, and why starting something new can feel so much harder when you’ve already built something that’s working.

We also get into creative careers, confidence, getting older in design and that point where staying where you are can start to feel more uncomfortable than actually making the change.

You can find Robin at:

instagram.com/brandsbyrobin

brandsbyrobin.com

Listen to Creative Confessions wherever you get your podcasts.

I’d love to hear what you think of this episode. If you’ve listened and any part of Robin’s story resonated with you, send me a message on Instagram at @‌designerinyourpocket_juls or @‌thehonestdesignerdiaries.

I really hope you enjoy the chat.

Juls

What happens when you graduate from design school and realise you’ve technically already been working as a designer for a few years?

This week I’m chatting with graphic designer Morgan Hastie, aka The Logo Lassie, who had graduated just two weeks before we recorded this episode. But while she might be a brand new graduate on paper, Morgan has already been freelancing since 2023 and has worked with brands including Adobe, Uniqlo, Aardman Animations, GF Smith and First Bus.

And, naturally, we somehow end up deep in a conversation about print, packaging, dielines, CMYK and why sending a printer a file they can actually use is quite important. Who knew.

Connect with Morgan
https://www.thelogolassie.com
IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelogolassie/

I’d love to hear what you think of this episode. If you’ve listened and any part of Nikki’s story resonated with you, send me a message on Instagram at @‌designerinyourpocket_juls or @‌thehonestdesignerdiaries.

I really hope you enjoy the chat.

Juls

It would really help if you could follow, subscribe or leave a 5* rating and review wherever you’re listening. If you’re watching on YouTube, liking the video and leaving a comment helps more designers find these conversations too.

And if you know another designer, creative pal, student, graduate or freelancer who might enjoy this chat, please send it their way.

And if you’re looking for somewhere to ask the questions that are harder to post publicly, get support with a difficult client or talk things through with other creatives who understand the day-to-day of working in this industry, come and join us inside The Creative Room.

In this bonus episode, I’m sharing the story of the Saturday Night SOS client, who also happened to be a friend, which made saying no even harder. What was meant to be a quick emergency job turned into hours of designs, feedback and changes.

This episode follows on from my conversation with Bhavini in Episode 5, Bad clients and blurry boundaries, where we had plenty to say about red flag clients, people-pleasing and the situations designers somehow find themselves agreeing to.

Have you ever had your own Saturday Night SOS client? Come and tell me on Instagram, where I’m @thehonestdesignerdiaries

Subscribe to The Honest Designer Diaries for more conversations and bonus episodes about what working in design is really like. If you’ve been enjoying the podcast, I’d also really appreciate a five-star rating and review, as it helps more designers find the show.

Chat soon

Juls