There’s an advertisement on the local Careerlink website for a graphic designer. A company in Omaha is looking for someone with the following qualifications:
- High level of expertise in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator
- Have an intermediate knowledge of HTML, CSS, and other web technologies
- Some Video editing, animation, and After Effects experience. 3D abilities are even better, although not necessary.
The pay? Ten dollars an hour. Seriously. The Aldi grocery store down the street had a sign out front advertising jobs starting at $12.50 an hour. Let that sink in for a moment — a job requiring knowledge of print graphics, web graphics, and video editing pays less than the starting wage of an employee at a grocery store.
This kind of situation would be seriously disheartening if you’re a graphic designer trying to support a family on what’s effectively less than minimum wage in parts of this country. However, bear in mind that there are plenty of graphic design careers out there that may much more than this paltry sum.
Where are they? Definitely not on Careerlink. They’re positions going unfilled at companies unaware that they have a need for a creative person to do work for them. They’re positions you may have to create yourself by going freelance. More than likely, however, they’re positions that simply go unadvertised. Companies ask employees, clients, or other people to recommend potential candidates without ever advertising that they have a position open.
So if you’re looking for a good job when it appears there aren’t any available, go through your channels. Be that person a friend-of-a-friend would recommend for a gig. Let people know you’re looking, and be patient. Don’t settle for less.