Day 30- Portfolio Hacks-How to Build from basics - Hackathon 90 Days Challenge

So I'm just going to give you a very short nutshell how you can do your portfolio from the beginning.

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So I'm just going to give you a bit.

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Anyway, YouTube Live is happening. We'll forward to some of our friends as well. Let them join.

Great guys. Fine.

Okay, so I'm sharing the screen as well.

Just a second.

Yeah, look at this. Just quickly observe this concept.

Okay? Yes.

So like in continuation to the activity, whatever you guys have did. First of all, welcome to the skill booster session, guys. People are watching in the YouTube and also for the people who are doing the live hackathon with me. In fact, the topic was very different today. The reason why I choose portfolio is Portfolio is one of the major pain point for many student. You should know how to and able to get started in the portfolio. Maybe this short YouTube live will not give you complete break breakdown of this portfolio. In fact, there is another video also in our first YouTube live video which is called Physics, Chemistry biology of portfolio. You can watch that.

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But this will be the ultimate starter for you. So first of all, when you're creating a portfolio, what I would highly suggest you is you first write down why you wanted to create a portfolio. That is the very, very first reason.

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And the second thing, what you have to do is analyze best portfolios. Okay? Ideally I put four here, but you can do 400 also or you can even do 10,000 also. That is up to you.

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Whatever you want, you can able to go to that numbers. The reason why I'm asking you to do that is your eyes get strained. Your eyes will follow a pattern. You will know which elements and visual elements are working good for the designers. You can use Dribbble, you can use Pinterest, you can use Lemonoosh, you can use what you call behance, whatever that platform and whatever is comfortable for you, you can do that.

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So what happens is when you work on their storytelling, when you work on what is the visual consistency these people are doing and when you are able to make a presentation for you initially, what we used to do when we are making portfolios, I need to take a snap of best elements and I will save it in my folder or maybe I'll save it in Pinterest. Also you have option to save. You can save some inspirations, whatever you're interested, right? In fact, that's the whole idea behind Pinterest. You can save those palettes like let's say one of our students now shared the case study of that plant, right? Shinibas has showed. So like that you can save it first because many times we will not remember it again.

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And then find out the key aspect of each of this portfolio. Why is this portfolio really attractive? Why is this portfolio communicating crystal clearly? So he showed some banking application also. It's very simple, right? The gamification reward functional. It's not a aesthetically visual portfolio, but it's functionally showing how people can able to engage in their platform. The visual engagement is highly available because of the gamification things, whatever is there. Okay, so try to bring the essence of this. Imagine when you try to decipher this 3, 4 elements with 10 portfolios, 20 portfolios, with hundred portfolios, you'll be able to grasp a lot more content. Once you're able to do 100 portfolio in three to four hours, in next one or two days, you can able to go through even 500 portfolios really fast. Because you got the clarity, you got the essence. After you do it for thousand portfolios like in minutes, you'll be able to understand what is this thing about. Initially you may take little time. Initially you will take five to 10 minutes for one portfolio. But eventually when you go along more number of portfolios, you can able to cover it. This is the big hack, guys. A lot of people don't know this, okay? They just start randomly. No, first you will have to train your eyes. Train, train, train, train. Just watch, watch, watch. Close to 1 lakh portfolio I watched. You guys will not believe. I made 17 to 18 iterations of my portfolio. And I made 16 to 17 iteration of my website. Totally 30 plus iterations I've created. But still I'm evolving. Recently I'm not started. But ideally you have to do again and again and again.

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See whether you're doing a PPT portfolio or website portfolio or BillyHands portfolio, it doesn't matter. Start with something. But initially your training of the ICE is very, very important. And you'll have to pick out the elements which is really working for these people or not. Okay, so the next activity, what I would suggest you is try to write down what is your real plan for making this portfolio. You wanted to create around a theme. You wanted to do a kind of about me section, or bring case studies or projects, or write about your blog. So make sure you are structuring your content properly. Because what happens is if you are not able to structure your content properly, you will not be able to put it in that skeleton. So initially what I said watch, train your eyes. Second, start constructing yourself. Create A game plan around it, how you wanted to build your portfolio. Build a very big chart, paper or maybe a notepad or pen, whatever. Use sticky notes to build your entire mind map. This is how I wanted to visualize my portfolio.

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Automatically you will get hundreds of ideas because your eyes is already trained. You have lot of inspirations in front of you, okay? Not few inspirations. I'm telling you 10,000 portfolios. Do this. Don't do this prematurely. Before that I would highly recommend you that. Okay, watch it. After you watch 10,000 portfolio and then you go to your drawing board, you go to your notepad and pen, you will know what to put. Sometimes you will not even put this about me section. I mean, I'm just giving you an example, guys. You don't have to always put that. I've seen many portfolios without this about me also.

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It is. It is not a mandate that you will have to always put this. Nobody is asking you to do that.

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Sometimes you can show only your work. People who are interested can click and know about you. They can be redirected to your Facebook profile or LinkedIn profile or anything.

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Ideally I would suggest start with a blank sheet, paper and pen. Even Miro is also not recommended. Just do it with a paper and pen. Write it down what you want, okay? And then try to understand on what reason you are building this portfolio. See guys, this is the ultimate basics to get started. Don't just take some behance and start building your portfolio. Don't do that first initially understand this. Watch lot of portfolios. Write it down the reason why you wanted to build a portfolio and structure the content around it.

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And then you have to answer me very clearly why you need a portfolio for a designer. Why a portfolio is required for a designer like me. Like let's say Aravind or Srinivas or Punish. Why a portfolio is required. Question that once you're questioning that ability on the basics, you will know the real reason why you're building it. See, once if this reason is clear, only you can start putting your elements. Like let's say I will put about myself. Why you wanted to put you wanted to project to the world. Okay, I will put my case studies. Why you wanted to project your case studies. You wanted to showcase your skill set. I want to show my personal blog. I want to show my personal podcast channel. I want to put my personal. What you call stories. I'm writing stories. I'm more interested in stories. So why I'm a creative guy. I want to Showcase that. So whatever is your innate ability, you will have to bring that. Okay, this is the most most important thing, guys. See guys, if you are not being unique here, there is no point in building a portfolio for the namesake. Don't do that. That is not required. Ideally speaking, if you do that, you are becoming a copycat. Please don't do that. I highly recommend you.

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If you feel there is no need for you to build a portfolio, don't build that. This is also a session to tell you. Don't force fit anything. Oh, everybody is having portfolio jagdish. As a designer, then how will I share my skill set to them? You share somewhere. It doesn't matter. You will have to always have a portfolio. You take one picture of like let's say if you have. If you have really solved a problem of a particular. Like let's say. Like let's say you're going to a visually blind person's home. They are struggling with some kind of a problem. You have found out some solution. You have really worked out a prototype. Like let's say this is your prototype. Imagine. Okay, this is there in front of me. I'm just showing it. Okay, some prototype you created. With this prototype, the blind people can able to now navigate very easily into their rooms, public places and all. Imagine you have created some prototype, some solution you have created. You take one picture of your prototype with the blind guy showcasing how it is working. One picture. This is enough. Write one line behind this. Using this prototype, blind people can navigate at any part of the world. With this, they can able to navigate an airport, railway station without any support. This prototype will help them to navigate how some technology have invented some processes there inside it will work. You just put one line and put a one picture of you. Send that picture to recruiters. That's it.

What?

Ideally what you did. Let's say if you're going and pitching for any kind of a product, design studio or anything, whoever is interested to know about your innovative skills and all this one picture is enough for them. You don't need to show oh design thinking process, a problem statement, research. No need to put all these things, guys. That is why I'm telling you it is up to you what you wanted to project to this world. Portfolio is a complete reflection of your behavior or personality. Our intention to showcase who you want. It is not like okay, let me create one behance account. I will also put one problem statement. I will also put some primary research, secondary research. Are you. I did not do any research. Okay, let Me make up some goof up. Okay, Let me do some kind of a primary research for this. Let me add some data. Don't force fit anything that is not called portfolio. Portfolio is a true reflection of you. If you not did the research, don't put that. If you have not did the ideation, don't put that. Maybe you have directly solved some problem without any kind of a design process. Put that. That is what is highly required. A portfolio should be honesty. A portfolio should showcase what you did, what you not did. You should not force with anything. If you try to do that, then that becomes a copycat. Have you seen in portfolio of Behance and all these things? In one go I can able to tell you this person has exactly copied from somewhere else. In one go I can able to tell you that in one go people can able to. I can able to understand and assess. Okay? This guy is a copycat. This guy has created some kind of a. What you call like one more version of it. This is how we reject a lot of portfolios. Recruiters also reject a lot of portfolios for that reason. Okay, guys, switch on your camera or else we are removing you from this call.

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Because if you are there in this call, you have to switch on your camera. Pay full attention and focus, okay? Or else we are removing you.

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Yeah, fine. So people are watching in the YouTube live. Type out in the chat. What did you learn? I've told you very important basic elements of this portfolio.

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So you're there in this call for the last 15 minutes. Type out in the chat. What are you learning? So first I'm just recollecting you. Okay? First I told you train your eyes with 10,000 portfolio. Maybe I'll write it down very shortly.

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10,000. Watch it.

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I told you that. Then I told you write down paper what you wanted to do.

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And then what I would also suggest you is check choose a medium. Whichever medium works. I told you, right? If you want to take a picture also you can do it. It doesn't require always I'll build a WIX website. It will always behance profile. That is okay. The reason why I already started asking you to build a website in the wix is at least you have to get started. Your confidence in the tools has to go little higher.

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That is why even though it's little difficult for you to build a website, I asked you to do that. I've also shown in the mission one also how we can able to do it live and you can Watch it in Bonus 6 also like Bonus 56 also I've shown you some live demo also. You can do that. But the point here is you will have to start with some media. Simple word file is enough for me to showcase my portfolio. Do it. A simple Excel sheet is enough. Do it. Nobody is forfeiting you anything. Nobody is asking you. Oh, you will have to send your portfolio in behance only. No, nobody has ever asked that. If somebody is asking that, that is not a real design studio. A real design studio will never ask you for any kind of. You need to have only portfolio in behance. Please share me or else we are not going to hire you. That person is too fixed on something else. They are not creative. I mean ideally, please reject this kind of a. Studios don't apply there. You know, when I applied for any many big design studios and all, you know the job description, what they said. Any form of your work. See any form of your work. You take a picture and also send your journal. It is totally fine. Nobody cares, guys. People care about your authenticity. This is the true essence of a design studio. A proper design studio will only expect this. Any form of your work. See ideo. If you go and apply for ideo. Any form of your work, they'll put you. Because they are looking for the authenticity. They are not looking for flashy visuals. They don't want that. They have did more visuals than you. And you're going to do inside lot of case studies and all these things inside. There is no doubt about it. But initially who are you as a raw person? If you're able to do this three things, guys. And watch the video, whatever I showed you in the day one live video. I. I already put you that. Anyway, I'll paste you the link also again in. In the. In the chat box.

Okay? Yes.

So how do I put this link? If you go here in my channel in live, you can find that first video, guys.

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One hour 19 minutes. I'm just sharing with this to you so that ideally you can also. I'm just picking this link and pasting so that you can quickly watch it out.

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Once if you are doing that I'm absolutely sure guys you will be able to get some basics to start. Fine. So thank you so much guys for joining the live and we'll come back to this mission. Don't leave guys. This is not for you. This is for the outer public.

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I'm just starting the live. Stopping the live stream. Just a second. Okay. And any doubts is there you can able to reach us through this channel. Comment on our post.