I feel like I’ve wasted 15 years of my life, and my career has led me nowhere. At 35, I should be at my peak in terms of earnings and health, yet I’m a nobody. I keep ending up in shitty companies where I’m expected to do everything while getting paid less than gate keeper. For the past 10 years, I’ve designed websites, logos, mobile apps, print materials, books, t-shirt prints, labels, packaging, product photography, social media content, 3D designs, modeling, animation, and simulations. If I had focused on one thing from the start, I’d be an expert in a specific field by now and making decent money. Unfortunately, the harsh truth is this: if you are able to do anything that means you are good at nothing. When there are job listings for simple graphic work, they don’t want someone with 5+ years of experience. If they do want someone with 5 years of experience, they expect an expert in one particular niche. Today, no one even wants to spit in my direction. No one is looking for a 35-year-old guy who has done everything (but nothing specific) because they have 100 young, dynamic grads fresh out of college to choose from. The competition in the big city is just too strong. For the past 5 years, I’ve been working from home part-time, and somehow manage to pay the rent. The MS diagnosis broke me. Depression, no friends, far from family, always making excuses. If it weren’t for my wife earning well and help from my in-laws, I’d have nothing. It feels like everyone around me is doing fine, earning well, and building great careers - except me. I’m feeling down, I’m sick of this fucking city and its weather. I just needed to get this off my chest.

>>459830 (OP)
I am thankful I noticed it early and specialized in food packaging design. You can so something similar, I mean, if you are good on, idk, websites and apps, overplay your hand on how much have you worked on them on your resumés so it looks like you are an expert.

You can also dominate AI tools then cover some "AI expert" role in a design studio, (this role is 90% soft skills). Or you can also still switch to coding. Data analysis, BI expert and some other roles can incorporate your knowledge of design to it. Btw, once I talked with the head designer of a huge bank in my country and basically she said that she would love to have a designer that know programming or the other way around as the roles clashed frequently. I mean, it is one person in a foreign country of yours, but I think you can use think about it if you want to learn how to code.

It was nice to hear you. But when you are fine, think about what you want a trace a plan with short steps so you can update your successes.

>>459830 (OP)
you have 10 years experience on how to get shit done.
what do you enjoy making the most? just build a freelance business around that
move out the city if you can, it's true, it makes people very sick.
career types do well in corporate culture, you sound more like a rebel

freelance motherfucker as my main man MC Ride would say

dont care desu

kill urself faggot :^)

If you think this is bad, just wait until AI comes in full force, it will render 99% of designers useless.

>>459861
It will render a lot of professions useless, for some reason the world only believes it would effect only artists.

Generalists like yourself do well when they spread their wings and use their network of vendors to roll over into consulting gigs. Granted it's risky but if you do a little research in that direction, you may be surprised with the results.

>>459830 (OP)
Ah yes, 35—seems like the cutoff for the fool’s phase. If you haven’t made it by now, it’s over. Welcome to the club.
Experience is a fools argument...of wasted time.
Means you don't get it and are just older.
What ever, doesn't matter.

>>459841
>just build a freelance business around that
>just build a freelance business
>just
the annoying truth is that not only was the value of graphic design/art already pretty low since the rise of Photoshop and affordable digital cameras, but a whole generation of digital natives have pushed into the market and still are. and then AI is pushing the the price on all of this even further.
(not just gen AI but also just AI tools within more traditional apps)
if you're actually thinking of building a career in gd you got to take a look at the market as it is and roughly where it's going. and then honestly ask yourself, are the skills you're studying to become a graphic designer going to give you an edge when competing with current players in the market.
currently the market is dominated by large stock library providers, AI generators who are extremely cheap (though bad), and professionals who not only already have the tools (and licenses) you are collecting as well as access to AI aids.
If you're sure you're willing to compete in that arena you can definitely try to get a foot in the door. however, if you're under the assumption that gd is about pouring your passion into individual works of art/design, and making money from it, then you're going to have a bad time

>>459833
This is the whitepill. Thanks anon, I liked that.

>>459830 (OP)
Can't you design logos as freelancer? I've met several who started with zero and earn much more than 100k within few years. Are you good? Why not try it?
>narrative design
I recently learned the word or rather concept. Explains a lot, really. It's of course subjective, but it does exist imho. My question is, how can I reverse engineer such a narrative when I only have the design? Is that even possible? Let's say I have the BMW z1, how to find out that the narrative concept was?

>>459830 (OP)
>No one is looking for a 35-year-old
>>460732
Me again. Ofc no one is looking for you. Haven't you watched fight club? Old fags are expensive and ask a lot questions. As you say, you did everything and more for the money. That's what people who pay people expect (of young people). Everyone knows a 35y old bum won't work for free, as the propaganda doesn't work (anymore). Hence no one cares for you, you arent competitive anymore, as the guy half your age will diligently do everything and more to "create a career". That's a meme of course. Ideally you would already have enough money to enslave other. As this isn't the case, you need to position yourself correctly. Forget companies, this won't work, with the exception of nepo ties. What's speaking against frealancer work? Ideally you have an us account and work from somewhere where the yearly cost is 1 usd.