23 Feb 2024 · 15 min
A designer walks through ten steps to build a portfolio that lands jobs. Pick projects that show problem-solving, not just pretty work. Practice presenting it until you can explain every choice in color, type, and layout.
How do you make a killer portfolio in just 10 steps? Even though there has been a lot of podcast which has been recorded in this arena, I wanted to make this as a very, very special episode for you guys, okay? Because I'll be giving you five mindset steps and five skill set steps wherein which you can apply in order to make a killer portfolio. Definitely you'll have to take a lot of notes. Let's jump in. What are the 10 steps? Let me start with one, guys. Okay, so when you're making a killer portfolio, the very first thing which you will have to understand is you need to have a very good biggest social impact which people think most. See, you need to really understand this. Okay, so think about what most problem, what people are really trying to solve or maybe they are thinking about like let's say petrol prices are hiking or let's say the change of government or like let's say any kind of a policy which has been laid by the government which people are not liking or maybe they are liking too much. So think about any big social impact which people think most of the time. Okay, so just, just follow it guys. You will get it. So you may be, you may be wondering like what are the difference and how does it make a sense like what people really care about and how do I make my portfolio? It all matters guys. Okay? Just, just wait for it. You will get the connection at the end. Okay, so the second step is solve it in a crazy way. Like let's say if drinking water is a problem, like let's say in, in a particular state there has been a big disaster happened and lot of people were not able to drink water and because of some reason, okay, so now this has been a viral topic across the country for this past week. Let's say that's a big social impact which is happening. So now you take it that as a case study and try to solve in a most crazy way. See guys, when you are making a design problem and then when you're redefining it and then when you're solving it using a design process, definitely you will be ending up with a creative solutions. You'll be doing brainstorming, you'll be coming up with lot more solutions. Okay, in my, in my particular earlier podcast which you can listen it out in one day, how do you make a project? I have given you a short and crisp steps, how you can do research, how you can do ideation, prototype testing and close that so you can take one of that approach as well and you can solve it in Your crazy way. But if you're not, no issues, guys. Just think in your own way. Take a rough paper and pen. Just write it down. What do you feel how it can be solved? See, it could be possible. It could be not possible. Realistic, non realistic, implementable, non implementable, that doesn't really matter. Okay, so just think about it and then try to solve it in the most crazy way. So now build a solution for it. Like let's say by introducing a new policy, you're going to solve a water problem. Okay? You can do that. Try to put it in a solution and solve it in your portfolio. Second, okay, maybe building a big reservoir in that particular area which is having the most innovative mechanism to lift the water and supply to all the small, small places across the village. Yeah, that could be a great solution. Definitely you can able to suggest that. So it's not about the solution. It's about the way in which people see it in a crazier way. Hey, how do you build dam here? Hey, how do you bring that technology here? Hey, how is it possible that people are getting one rupee flight ticket, right? Something like that. Craziness needs to be there in your solution. I'll tell you why it is important. The moment when you're putting a big social impact on your project, your portfolio and then you solve it in the most crazy way. People get a natural way of tendency and attraction. Okay? They'll come to see your thinking process. They'll come to see your approach. Then it's your job, then it's your skill. Then it's your own way of attracting them. Okay? I've just given you a way to attract and make sure it should be looking like a killer portfolio. The moment when you bang this kind of headings in a controversial way or in a subliming way where people really talk about and yell about for a lot of time. You will get attraction with any people, guys. Any people will get attraction and then they will get their attention into what you have did as a project. Okay? So even people who don't design, who don't know design, that doesn't really matter. People are interested to see what you've got. What you got. Okay? So now the third important thing is please write about yourself. Okay? Write about yourself. Write about your achievement and create a different, different layouts. Like let's say 50 to 60 different layouts of your information flowing in a way. I'll tell you why it is important. The moment when you write your achievements about yourself and then you put it in a different different formats. You'll start developing a greater visual perception over your portfolio, which is really looking attractive. How do certain people see my first page? Like let's say if you're building a website. Like let's say if you're building a behance profile. So how does the people really say so that perception really matters? Okay, this is the third way in which you can really rework. Like let's say writing about you, your achievements, your picture or something. And then you put your layouts in 50 to 60 different arrangements in order to find out the sweet spot out of it. Okay, if you're in my mentorship program, I would have given you a personalized suggestion. But yeah, if you are someone who want join my mentorship program, there is an email which you can write a mail to. Our team will help out or else no problem if you're doing it on your own, just make sure you just write in my podcast description that what did you do, how do you progress and where do you stuck? I'll be happy to reach you out back. Okay, the fourth important thing is add little augmented reality and virtual reality touch points. Make sure it should have a very good story connection and it's emotional. See, I'll tell you why story narration is important. Because this connects people. This connects their emotion and the moment when you give some touch points, like let's say interactions, which is augmented reality or virtual reality, which is most prominent. What happens is people tend to get close to your project in a more deeper way. Even in your landing pages about yourself if you're writing, if you give a small interaction about you or maybe people can touch a button to just know about you. The moment when they touch it and you are coming and talking like a small carrier catcher animation. What happens, people will be really super excited, right? See, augmented reality is really, really, really spreading like anything guys making AR dolls or any kind of animations or emoji or memoji. It's very, very simple, guys. There are a lot many tools to do it. Okay, I've recorded a separate podcast on that you can touch upon it. And the fifth is try to understand what is your real character? What's your real design value? What is your color perception? What is your why do you are. Why do you want to become a designer? So collect all this information. See, this is about your personality. I'll tell you why, your aim, your reason why you wanted to be a designer, your achievements, your favorite colors, your favorite design, layout or graphics. Also I can add to it. Okay, all these things will keep A personality of you. I'll tell you guys, people who are reviewing your portfolio, like let's say a well established designer, I would say maybe 5 to 10 years experience or somebody who is a core designer. All these people have a very knack skill. The moment when they see one glance of your portfolio or page or something, they'll get to know how you're indesign. That's why it's very important to showcase your originality. Because that wins always. Nothing else will. Okay, so just be very sure about it and make sure how it is really true to you. Don't just copy some formats which is there in the online. Just think about how you can reflect on top of that. Okay, so this is the fifth important thing. So you need to have your mission, vision, value, your brand, colors, your composition, your best design, your graphics, your picture. It all should synchronous together. See, I'll tell you why it will all make a huge difference. The moment when you are real, the moment when you are showcasing yourself as a person, the true honestness comes in your portfolio. That is really a killer. Guys, killer portfolio is not copying graphics from some other website and putting it there. No. Okay, so let's just let me recollect guys the first five steps which is mindset. So you need to choose a big social impact and make sure people think about it most of the time. Solve it in your crazy way and write about you yourself and your achievements. And write it in a different layouts and choose the best one and create a story, narrative and AR augmentation touchpoint to interact with different users so that they get engagement in your portfolio. And the fifth is choose your mission, mission value, brand, colors, graphics and make sure your landing page or behance page should resonate on it. Okay, now let's go to the fifth five other elements which is technical elements. See when you're using website builder I would normally suggest WIX as a great tool. You can use that. Okay. And you can use carousel effects, you can type in Google and you can just let the Google tell you what is going to make corrosal effects. In fact WIX has lot of templates to do just use that. That's most trending graphic element I would say you can use. And the seventh important trending element which is making you as a killer portfolio is use very minimal composition. Less. Less. Less Use very minimal text, very minimal picture, very minimal video, very minimal icons, very minimal sentences and text guys. Because less is more. Dieter Rhimes always says the lesser you make, the better it is for the people to perceive what you're really thinking about your design. Okay? This is the seventh important thing. The eighth important thing is choose some colors which can either be mono chrome or maybe luminescent or bright. See, it should resonate with what you're really liking as a color. Okay? It's not like you copy from somewhere and then you're putting it. That's not the case. So think deeply about it. This is the eighth point. So the ninth important thing is choose a legible typeface. Choose a very good, readable, proper typeface, okay? Don't choose like very, very, very handwriting, calligraphy kind of a typeface for your website. That is not the case. Website is a proper functionality product. People should understand what you have written. People should see what you have put. People should understand your communication. What is that? So it should be very precise, clear, legible, readable. That's what you have to consider before choosing a typeface. Okay? So if nothing works, go with Helvetica. Guys, that's my favorite and I always recommend because 60 to 70 percentage of the world's logos and symbols and other things and the brands were using Helvetica color because that was one of the proven typeface family in the world ever. In fact, you can use that, okay? And you can have your own style. And the 10th important thing is. Let me tell you the 10th, guys, but just wait for it. I'll recap you the last four, which I told you, okay? So the sixth important element is use corrosal effects in WIX tool and find out some more templates also which can help you out. Seventh is use less and minimal composition because less is more. Okay? Leonardo da Vinci said simplicity is the actual sophistication. So minimal. Minimal. Minimal. Minimal. Less. Less. Less. Less. Less text, less picture, less video. If you're doing that, definitely you will have a killer portfolio, guys. 8th important thing is use colors either luminescent or bright or monochrome in your own accordance. Ninth is choose legible typefaces. And the tenth, and the most, most, most important thing is somehow for the next 30 days you need to watch at least 1 lakh portfolios. In Behance, Pinterest, Lemonous, dribble, anything, guys. I don't care where you see 1 lakh portfolio. Each portfolio you need to take at least 30 seconds to 45 seconds. Okay? Glance, glance, glance, glance, glance. I'll tell you the scientific fact behind it. The moment when you see different different portfolios. Different. Different graphics. Different. Different pictures. Different. Different text. Different. Different composition. Subconsciously, your eyes will get trained for it. Subconsciously, your graphical patterns in your mind and your brain cells will realign to which is the most, most, most convenient way for you to redesign it. Okay? If you're not seeing anything, that's a different thing. You can definitely do whatever is coming in your mind. That's good. I would say no problem. But if you are stuck, if you really wanted to make a great work, just go and see 1 lakh portfolio views in just next 30 days. Okay? Don't take long time. It's not a task which needs to be done for more than that. Okay? Then you will get another state which is a bad state. So just. Just make it parallel. Also you can work. That's not a problem. That's totally fine. Even after one or two days you can start working and then you can go back. Make sure you complete 1 lakh views. Because automatically your brain, your eyes, your coordination of your hands, your usage of graphics, your usage of colors. Everything will make a very good coordination and synchrony in order to bring a best beauty visual out of you. Hey Jagdish. How is it possible? Let me tell you guys how it's happening. Okay? See, when you're seeing portfolios, you will see a lot of good portfolios. According to you, you will see a lot of bad portfolios. According to you, you will see a lot of. Okay. Portfolio according to you, you will see a lot of jarring colors according to you. So according to you, according to you, whatever you are seeing, that 1 lakh portfolios will get registered in your mind. Your perception will just keep on accumulating. Okay? Again it will be changing. Like let's say if I am doing that activity, I'll see some portfolio as good. I'll see some portfolios, bad I'll see some portfolio. Okay? Who will put this kind of graphics here? Stupid. You'll damn in your mind. That's okay. But you will not take that. You'll take only something which is really attractive. Superb for you, right? So what happens is when you're completing this whole exercise, your mind will accumulate all the very good things. Which is favorite for you, okay? Which is superb for you. Which is attractive for you. Which is aesthetically visual for you. The moment I asked you to immediately do the design projects in that in between time is the moment. If you put graphics. The moment. If you put text, the moment. If you arrange some text or picture or something, subconsciously your inner will drive you towards putting that. And you'll see. Wow. It looks better. Yeah. Let me keep this text this way. Let me add this picture this way. Let me add heading with this kind of height. Let me use this typeface. This looks better. Let me use a small graphic. Automatically your mind will become a judgment. Again you are continuing the task. 30,000, 40,000, 50,000. Again you're going and working. Again you're coming. 70,000, 80,000 views you're seeing and then you're going back to your project. And then 1 lakh portfolios. If you completely complete and then you make your portfolio, let me tell you guys, nobody in the world can say you have a bad visual sense. Everybody's going to really make sure you are having the best communication visual design skills happening. Okay? Please do it guys. I've tried this, I've did that. I've iterated my portfolio more than 34 times and I've asked a lot of people. I've seen a lot of portfolios because I've trained my eyes exactly to see and do whatever is really good for me. Okay? It is all coming only by practice and action. Guys. Hearing out of this podcast will not change you anything. Okay? So go and take action on these 10 steps. All the best for you. If you need my support, you can write to this email dfcdesignforchangemail.com I'll be happy to help you. And there is a surprise gift for people who are honestly sharing their feedback. And if you need my mentorship support in learning the skills and doing the project and portfolio in order to get you a good job, I'll help you in less than 90 days to get 0 to 50,000 rupees per month. This is a kind of program and the intensiveness what we have in order to make you get that results. If you're someone who is really driving to that, you can send that email dfcdesignforchangemail.com with your resume and portfolio. Me or my team will help out and get in touch with you. Okay? Take care guys. Thank you. All the best. Bye bye.