Find Your X-Factor

Good design gets attention—but what keeps your business going? Nick sits down with Jen Borror of Hoot Design Studio to explore what it takes to build a lasting creative business. From the everyday projects that pay the bills to the personal connections that bring clients back, Jen shares how she balances illustration, graphic design, and the realities of running her own studio.They dig into why done is better than perfect, how to turn one project into more paid opportunities, and why the way you treat people matters as much as the work you deliver. Plus, Jen explains how making and sharing the work you enjoy can attract more of it. It’s an honest, practical conversation about staying creative, staying visible, and staying paid.https://www.hootdesignstudio.com/

AI slop is everywhere, and that might be the best news graphic designers have heard in years! In this episode, I sit down with an unlikely guest, ChatGPT itself, to explore why the explosion of cheap, generic AI-generated design could create a massive opportunity for experienced creatives. We dig into the hidden costs of bad design, why creative judgment matters more than ever, and how designers can use AI to their advantage. If you're worried about the future of graphic design, this conversation might just change your perspective.Our website: https://deeply-graphic.netlify.app/

What if your next big creative opportunity didn't involve a client? In this episode, we challenge the traditional freelance design model and explore how designers can turn their skills, knowledge, and creativity into independent revenue streams. From digital products to education and beyond, could a client-free future be closer than you think?Our Website!

What does it really take to build a successful creative business? Spoiler alert: Great design skills are only part of the equation.This week, we're joined by Patrick Carter, founder and creative director of 63 Visual, to unpack the hard-earned lessons from nearly 17 years of running an independent design studio. From getting fired and getting ripped off to learning how to price confidently, recognize red flags, and build lasting client relationships, Patrick shares the experiences that shaped his approach to business.We dig into why trusting your instincts matters, how taking action builds confidence, and why success isn't always about getting bigger. Sometimes it's about getting better, making smarter decisions, and building a creative career that supports the life you actually want.Real stories, practical advice, and a refreshing reminder that confidence isn't something you're born with. It's something you earn.https://patrickcarterdesign.com/https://deeply-graphic.netlify.app/

Design careers come with a LOT of questions, and most of the answers aren’t taught in school. In this episode, I’m tackling the questions designers ask me most about portfolios, getting hired, workplace dynamics, confidence, career growth, and everything in between. Straight answers, real experience, and advice you can actually use.Our Website

What if the thing keeping your prices low isn’t your client, it’s you? In this episode, Nick breaks down why creatives so often undercharge, how pricing shapes the way clients perceive your value, and why your rates should evolve as your experience does. From raising prices with new clients to navigating those awkward conversations with longtime ones, this is a practical push to stop negotiating against yourself, get more comfortable saying the bigger number, and finally let your pricing catch up with the designer you’ve become.To listen to our “Double Your Rates” episode, click below:https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/deeplygraphic/episodes/TEST-PILOTS--Double-Your-Rates--DGDC-el0qua/a-a3hf631Our Website:https://deeply-graphic.netlify.app/

Ever wonder why some creatives always seem to be in the right place at the right time? In this episode, Nick explores how to get luckier by increasing your surface area for opportunity, putting yourself in the room, saying yes before you feel ready, creating your own opportunities, and giving those lucky breaks more places to land.

At some point in your creative career, getting better at design stops being the whole answer. In this episode, Nick explores how to uncover your X-Factor, the skills, experience, personality, and strengths beyond design that make you uniquely valuable, memorable, and harder to overlook. If you’re a mid-career designer wondering what it takes to get unstuck and reach that next level, this one’s for you.

Jacob Paris has been a sewer, a screen printer, a graphic designer, a streamer, and now an Adobe contractor. Somehow the biggest turning point in his career wasn't a job, a client, or a big break. It was a DM.In this episode, Jacob traces his creative path from teaching himself to sew on TikTok during the 2020 lockdown, to tie-dyeing a viral Travis Scott shirt that hit nearly a million views, to running a screen-print shop in Philadelphia that printed for acts like 100 gecs, Online Ceramics, and Nine Inch Nails. He opens up about the boss who told him, on his way out the door, that "not everyone's cut out for the art world," and how that one sentence lit a fire that pushed him to freelance full-time and land clients like Microsoft, Adobe, and JBL.Then the story takes a turn nobody sees coming: a nurse named Joanna slides into his DMs, they bond over Magic: The Gathering, and nine months later Jacob is on a 13-hour flight to meet her for the first time. What started as an internet friendship turned into a relationship, a marriage, and a full relocation from Philadelphia to Calgary, Alberta, a move Jacob describes as "exclusively beneficial," despite starting completely from scratch in a new country with zero followers or credibility.We dig into what Jacob calls the "medium fish in a smaller, less crowded pond" effect: how leaving an oversaturated market like Philly for a tighter-knit, less gatekept creative scene actually accelerated his growth. And we get into the mindset that's carried him through all of it: comparison as the thief of joy, doing things first instead of best, and the belief that the fear of failure is scarier than failure itself.This one's a masterclass in staying durable, not by having it all figured out, but by staying curious, staying humble, and saying yes to the DM.Guest LinksWebsite: https://www.byjacobparis.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-paris-798547306/🚀 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dgdcpod/🚀 Explore more at: linktr.ee/dgdcpod🚀Our Shop: deeplygraphicgoods.printful.me#GraphicDesign #DesignPodcast #CreativeBusiness

Get over it.If you're still arguing about AI-generated "slop," you're missing the point. The smartest designers have moved on – they're too busy using AI to amplify their creativity, effectiveness, and competitive advantage.In this no-nonsense episode, Nick Longo and Brady Patterson break down the 5 game-changing ways designers are harnessing the power of AI – not to replace their skills, but to enhance them. Discover how to use AI for research, art direction, mockups, client presentations, and more.Nick and Brady just wrapped up two Adobe events where they saw firsthand how designers are winning with these strategies. The ones who aren't? They're being left behind.This isn't about churning out generic logos. It's about working smarter, faster, and more persuasively. It's about using every tool at your disposal to stay ahead of the curve.So if you're ready to stop debating and start dominating, this episode is your wake-up call. Tune in and learn how to make AI your secret weapon. Your competitors already have.Buckle up for some real talk. It's time to adapt, or get left behind.