Why passion projects are a game-changer

All creatives have a portfolio that helps them show what they are capable of. I remember in design school my professors giving us assignments and projects that would then go into our portfolios. Oftentimes it was more to help you start learning about design. However, it was rare that you heard professors say much on a passion project or a personal project for you to put in your senior portfolio. I look back at that time and I remember having almost all my projects not something that I enjoyed. I wish I knew then about passion projects to have put in my portfolio.  

Since school, I have created several of my passion projects. They have changed the game when it comes to attracting more of the clients that I want. This is something that you can start implementing for your portfolio. I also have fun creating these projects because it is what I want to focus on. They have been so important which is why I wanted to dive a little deep into why they are game-changers.

You can show your skills 

Passion projects are great places to show your potential clients or audience what you are capable of and the skills that you have. But I also think that it's a way that you can continue to sharpen your skills. You have the opportunity to keep improving your skills by creating more passion projects and each time you can keep track of how you have improved. I have done several now and I can tell you my first passion project was not as good as my recent ones and that's okay! It is a learning experience that keeps getting better with practice. 

Gives you the ability to experiment

The beauty of creating your passion projects is the ability to experiment. You can experiment with techniques, mediums, categories, and industries. The only limit here is your imagination. You get to mix things if you want to. This is a place for you safely to try things out that you would not normally if you're starting with client work. This may give you the chance to understand what you're good at or what you enjoy most. You can then choose to niche down on what you want to focus on and create. I recommend looking at online courses or classes that might teach you something new creatively to step outside the box of what you're used to. You can look at other creatives as well and see what they have done. However, make sure you're just looking for inspiration and not copying. Let what all you learn and try out start shaping and molding your style. 

You get to focus on what you want to work on

Passion projects allow you to choose what you want to work on. If you enjoy illustration or hand lettering then create projects that focus on that. Or maybe your focus is more on who you want to work with. When you determine this it gives you the liberty to try new things than you wouldn’t have when you were in design school. However, if you don't know where to start or what to focus on it might be helpful to do some online design challenges in an area that you like or follow. For example, there is a challenge for typography that is called 30 days of type. If you love bible verses and hand lettering then there is a challenge called 30 days of bible lettering by Stefan Kunz on Instagram. For brand identity challenges check out brief club on instagram. Challenges are a great way to find what you might want to work on. There is some freedom in passion projects to just work on what you want. 

Attract the right clients

When you put all the things above together you are then setting yourself up to attract the kind clients that you want to be working with. Putting together in your portfolio images and quality mockups of the design with strategic copy is a great way to show potential clients that you are passionate and a skillful designer in this focus. When writing out a small description of the project it's important to explain the results you can give and the problem that you can solve. You want to be able to showcase a transformation in your projects. When starting and you're creating these projects in a fictitious way also include how this type of client could get results even if they are not real. You also can make it seem like it is real because it will be clients that you will be attracting.  

Passion projects are a powerful process that not all designers might be aware of. But when they are put in a portfolio they can be the catalyst to attracting those dream clients. With passion projects, you will have in the portfolio work that you enjoyed doing, grew in your skills from and gave you the freedom to try out new things. Now it's your turn! What passion project are you going to start working on? I am excited to see what you will work on!