Through the course of my research, I found that words come easier to me then social and professional interaction, and that is one area that will need improvement. At the end of the day, we must all find a balance between the art and design that we would like to create, and the clients or bosses we will have to please in order to, frankly, gain and maintain our job. Blog post #4 would be an example of this. I'm sure there may be graphic designers - total strangers - who sit at their computers for lengthy periods of time. I am a bit shy in assuming that they will want to talk to me about their industry. That’s shyness - but it does impact my future in the profession.
On a more positive note, there is certainly good evidence that if there are technology jobs to be had, they can be found in the greater Pacific Northwest area. They exist, with greater pay levels depending on your level of expertise. Seattle and the east side are definitely growth areas for the digital gaming industry. As companies like Amazon and possibly Google move further toward the “self-publishing” industry, where there are no publishers to act as money-sifting middle-men, the demand for graphic designers to create the interior art or the book cover may grow, or just... change. Perhaps if future books will all be digital, placed on smaller devices like iPads or Kindles, the need for elaborate graphic design will evaporate. There is after all limited space on devices that small. Or perhaps the technologies will change again, and people will decide they really do still have a use for paper, posters and large-size design materials.
I would like to be a part of the digital adventure. We shall see.
