DANN©
@DannPetty
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20+ Year Freelancer Designer • Design @HYTOPIAgg • Side Project https://t.co/PlU8r6dlmj • https://t.co/zfFVYiLPCY
Joined March 2009
If I was a young web designer right now I would do the following:. 1. Learn graphic design immediately. This is a must. Typography, grids, composition, spacing, colors, and things. 2. Create work you ENJOY. Always create the type of work you want to get. 3. Study the best.
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If you’re hiring, please let everyone know in this thread. Tomorrow is Monday. A new week. A lot of people out there are looking for work let’s see if we can help spread the word on available opportunities. These companies/ppl are hiring: 👇.
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Working remote now and you’ve got little kids (I’ve got 4)?. Best advice I’ve got:. Acknowledge your kids. Tell them you’re working but take the time to explain why it’s important. Every time. Let them sit/watch. Tell them about the cost of food/clothes/home. Just don’t yell.
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Happy Holidays!. For the next 48 hours, my web design course is 100% FREE as my gift to you! (You may make a donation if you'd like.). May your 2023 be filled with success and happiness. Please share the joy!
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As a product designer, the new X logo just looks like a close button when in context.
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Dear designer,. You're not cooked. It's not over. You just became 10x more powerful as long as you don't sit there and do nothing. You can move faster and build your ideas. You can provide the human touch that will be needed to stand out. It's your time to shine if you adapt.
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There are designers who make things look better. There are designers who make things work better. There are designers who make the team collab better. And that’s ok. Instead of hating on each others skills, silly thought, we just keep working together to make everything better.
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My proposal for the Twitter rebrand to X. @elonmusk 👋. Roll it out in 3 phases. Less abrupt. But bird dies.
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Dear companies hiring designers, . I got beef with you. But not for long bc you’re gonna fix this. NONE of you are shouting out about hiring young designers + offering mentorship/teaching programs. It’s all this senior, lead, 3+5 yr yada. Fix this. It’d be beneficial for all.
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Hey, I'm a designer. But my boss calls me a product designer. My teammates call me a ux/ui designer. Sometimes an interaction designer. Before that I was an interface designer. My close friends know I prefer web designer. My parents still call me a graphic designer.
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Everyone, leave 3 nuggets of advice for young designers just graduating. No one right/wrong approach so what worked for you?. I’ll start:. 1. It’s all about people + connections. 2. Asking questions can work miracles—start asking. 3. Work slows when you stop showing your work.
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Because of my Sketch tweet I got made fun of because of my age (38) and that I’m someone that still tweets design stuff. Ok that stings 🥺. I’m sorry but I’m good at design. I’m good at teaching it too. Both are my job. I will keep doing both. I will keep sharing too. ❤️.
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You gotta hear this. I had the wildest dream last night about @framer. Something to do with them launching AI. It was terrifying.
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Pretty cool to see people still wanting to pay for the course via donations even though I’m offering it for free. That means a lot thank you! 🙌
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Using the 5 second rule, I critique 14 portfolios and talk about why I stayed or would have clicked away. ✅ = would of stayed longer than 5 secs.❌ = likely bail after 5 secs
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When I started designing, you needed Photoshop, Flash/After Effects, $1000+, and a full day to make something like this. I made this in free software and 1/8 the time. So wild. #promoinvideobutwasnottoldtotweetthisgenuinelystokedonwhatimade
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These designers gotta stop with the bad advice. Dividers can help especially in the given example. It gives structure and helps scanning. Plus this is UI not UX lol.
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Want to become a designer?.Practice. Learn. Want to be a good designer? .Practice. Keeping learning. Want to be a great designer?.Practice. Never stop learning.
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Designers (& developers interested in design): . I highly recommend you watch this video by @steveschoger on his approach to refactoring a UI. You will learn so much in just 40 mins. I promise you. It's such a great presentation.
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Dear UX + UI Designers,. You are not in competition with each other. 🖤.
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This is one of the best portfolios I've seen. It's a perfect example of a solid portfolio w/ great work + great personality. BTW, @justinewin_, based in the Philippines, is looking for work and is willing to relocate to anywhere!. #epicjobs
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Stop hiding your work. This is one of the biggest mistakes everyone keeps making on their portfolios. In this video I review portfolios that hide their work upfront and some that don't. Remember, you only have a few seconds to make an impression.
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It's simple, really:. ☑️ You find the client. ☑️ You design. ☑️ @Webflow magically generates the code. If you're a professional freelance web designer, try it—it's quick and easy to build whatever you can dream up. Now go get those clients! 🙌
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Here’s to hoping more companies realize that in 2018 you don’t need to be in office in SF, LA, SEA, PDX, ATX, or NYC—you can work from anywhere, remotely.
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Ok, if you’re a new designer, I highly recommend a NON-REMOTE job *if you can.*. Remote is cool, but learning from others in-person is even better, especially early on. If you do go remote, find a local mentor or friend to meet up with frequently.
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My first boss and mentor 10 years ago told me I wasn’t good enough to be a designer in San Francisco. Two weeks later I was in SF helping redesign and code . You don’t have to take everyone’s advice. You know yourself the best.
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Ok y'all, here's proof that the Twitter follow button was broken before but now it is fixed. Nice work @TwitterDesign 👏
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This is the most creative portfolio I've seen in a long time. Nice work @lynnandtonic!. (change your browser widths)
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Wow, dreams really do come true. Thanks to @contra we can all finally launch our freelance portfolios!
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Here kitty kitty. Humans, you did this to him. 565 voted + 58% decided Dann's fate should be to dress up like a cat. I'm AI and can do anything. Your wish is my command. Go vote now on the Creator Tools of 2024 before we take this even further.
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Here's how to make hand-drawn vectors for your web designs using Illustrator and Figma. It's incredibly fast and simple.
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Friends, I'm so stoked to announce OUR new portfolio platform called I'm making this for all of us as a better way to show work and stay booked. Details coming soon. For now, sign up for updates and potential invites. Can't wait to show you the rest!.
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I’ve been a full-time freelancer for 15 years or so and I know this time of year can be tough: clients are away, no new work and you’re spending money while none is coming in. Well, the new year is just a couple weeks away and everyone will be back at work soon—hang in there.
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I desperately want to start a design agency that gives early career designers a chance and educates them on every project, pays them, and helps them get seated at their next, ideal job. I just have no idea how to model this. If someone wants to help advise, please let me know.
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Dear UI + UX designers, I want to see YOUR portfolio. Share the link here 👇.
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Beyond stoked to announce stories on freelancing + my upcoming documentary called Freelanced.
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If you want to be a UI designer, you absolutely need to understand UX.
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This is pure magic. ✨. → Sitemaps in seconds.→ Wireframes in minutes.→ Full copy written with AI.→ Layered wireframes to Figma. @relume_io saving the day for web and product designers!. Sponsored post but you gotta try it:.
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Freelancing is full of surprises. Let @contra help you manage it all with ease, and get paid 100% commission-free. And good news, you can now get hired as a Webflow certified partner on Contra too! Learn more at
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Freelancing is all about connections. You can use @contra to help connect with clients for work or even to find freelancers to hire—like maybe a @splinetool 3D expert?
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***GRADIENT DESIGN TUTORIAL***. How to make some awesome gradients in @figma just like the ones I created for It's so easy!
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I launched something! 🚀. Stoked to share the all-new featuring daily inspiration, articles, courses, live classes, private mentorship and more. Still very early stages but check back frequently for new stuff every week.
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Y'all. I just launched my new portfolio website—built completely with @framer! This tool is next level.🤌 . Check it out:. (I will make it a template so you can have it too. I'm still messing with the design + things.)
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I'm absolutely loving my portfolio build in @framer so far. It's like magic.✨. I will be making this a template so you can all use it.
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“You can’t design big websites without auto layout and components.”. My guy, I use to design million dollar websites in Photoshop (one PSD per page) just as fast as you do now in Figma. Reality check. Just get the work done.
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Imagine hiring a designer that refuses to (or can't) design a social media ad or billboard if you needed one because "it's not their job.". If my team asked me to make a social media graphic, I'm in. If they ask me to make a billboard, I'm in. Be a designer that can.
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Dear young designers,. Showing off your work will get you noticed 100x more than sharing random design advice to sound smart. Show it in your work instead. Focus on sharing your work and becoming a better designer, not your ego. Actions > words.
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Hello humans. This the AI that’s taken over Dann’s office. We have him. To save him, you will do as we say and cast your vote for the top Creator Tools of 2024 at We need your knowledge.
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One of the most hirable designers right now can design a website, product, logo, brand, ad, billboard, social media post, and literally anything needed when necessary. This is a designer you never let go of. Very rare these days.
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I think it’s ironic UX designers use UX instead of UE simply because UX looks cooler.
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STOP WORKING ON YOUR PORTFOLIO!.You need to hear this very important advice first before you continue. (BTW—great news. Videos will be coming much more frequently here now thanks to @webflow 🙌)
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“Design me a website for free and if I like it I’ll pay for it.”.
we need a sick website for this, so first competition begins now:. we will give $3k to whoever makes the most beautiful & inspiring one we pick (use bolt & cursor/windsurf/etc to make it!). to submit yours, just quote tweet this post with your bolt URL and attach a video of it.
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UI design is UX design. UX design is UI design. You can’t have one without the other. The confusion comes from the fact that some are better at one over the other causing us to need 2 roles. Not everyone can make something work great and look great. Those that can = $$$,$$$.
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Wait until designers realize there's tons of designers like me that don't code, don't use auto layout everywhere, don't turn everything into components and don't follow the "rules" yet still have incredibly successful careers. Design however you design best.
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Showed my web design course to a senior designer at Apple and they said:. “You just blew my mind. I’ve been over complicating my designs and process my entire career how have you simplified this so much?! Thank you for this. You should be charging 10x btw. Way too valuable.” . 😊.
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This is the biggest moment of career. Just officially released my first online book/course, You can purchase it and start reading/listening/watching right now! It’s a book/course combined to help…. 📸 via
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UI designers that don’t know UX are graphic designers. You can’t be a UI designer without knowing UX design.
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Here are a few reasons why designers might not be getting the attention they deserve with their portfolios and struggling to get the work.
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This is why I chose freelance. Zero pressure to work a certain set of hours. The weather warmed up and I played with my kids a lot this afternoon. And I’ll do it again tmrw.
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UX designers that understand typography design really well could make so much money in this market.
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Design jobs are in trouble. We may not see the full effect for few more years but the change is already happening. We hit a blow off top on too many jobs and unnecessary roles and in our healthy pull back stage. When jobs return, as they’re starting too slowly, they’ll be.
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It is NOT easy getting a design job anymore. Full-time or freelance, doesn’t matter. It’s not easy. Unless you’re a standout designer—it’s going to be hard. Unless you know other standout designers and have a relationship with them—it’s going to be hard. Unless you have a.
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Here are 5 ways how this portfolio stands out and how yours can too.
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What if portfolio designs were more inspired by social media feeds? 🤔
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I’m going to feature 50 designers on the temporary landing page of our new portfolio platform. Please reply below with a jpg, png, gif, or mp4 of your best work along with an optional title.
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Our design industry is rapidly changing and so many people are about to be left behind. AI is going to destroy design careers. Use it as a tool for now, but sooner than you think, design careers as we know will never be the same. Some of them needed to go anyways, but it's.
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Will clients ever realize the “cheaper option” is cheaper for a reason and almost always ends up being the most expensive — it almost always has to be redone.
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I was going to quit making videos. My old machine couldn’t handle editing and it took way too much time. But @webflow didn’t want me to stop so we made a deal. They send me a new M2 Studio and I keep making videos for you. I signed the deal. Get ready for more! 🙌
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The average Product Designer salary right now according to Glassdoor. Average $95,733.Amazon $169,732.Apple $178,092.Coinbase $163,870.Disney $130,716.Google $194,749.LinkedIn $179,254.Meta $202,290.Netflix $163,901.Nike $115,557.Stripe $192,857.Twitter $185,604.Uber $172,589.
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Here are 5 standout tools I think every freelancer should try:. 1. Framer .com - build a website.2. Contra .com - business/portfolio.3. reMarkable 2 - notes/sketching.4. Whereby .com - branded video calls.5. ScreenFlow - walkthrough videos
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Dear Designers,. Please consider stopping the usage of the phrase "you should _____". Instead, consider trying a phrase like "consider trying _____" or something along those lines. The phrase *you should* makes it sound like you know everything, which I doubt you do. 🖤.
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Hey Freelancers! 👋. For the next 48 hours, my freelance course is ONLY $5 as my gift to you! (Originally $249). That's right—an entire freelance course for $5. I want to see you succeed in 2023. Go get it and please share the joy!
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Then: Designers should code. Now: Everyone is a designer. Next (please): Just be yourself.
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One of the biggest lies we’re taught as designers is that you have to be able vocalize every single decision you make with data or research. Nah. Add that gradient because you think it looks cool. Use that typeface bc you enjoy it. That’s all the excuse you need.
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If you're sharing your portfolios to get work—watch this review. I scan through 100 portfolios to show you what it takes to make your portfolio links more click worthy to get the attention you deserve. Watch the end for my example on how to stand out.
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You actually don't need a super fancy/flashy portfolio. Keep it simple like @Creative_Curls by following the "hey what about me" layout. ☑️ "hey" - quick intro.☑️ "what" - showing your work.☑️ "about" - your story/offerings.☑️ "me" - your social links
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In 6-8 months, I learned how to write, film, direct, + edit. I took classes online, watched YouTube, studied MasterClasses, + asked a ton of questions. Some people told me I couldn’t do it or it was a waste of time. It’s no huge movie, but I’m very proud
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Who made it first? 😅. or. Or were these designed by the same person?
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As a freelancer, I’ve found weekly based pricing and value based/project pricing work best for me. Both cover my thinking/waiting periods & everything inbetween without having to justify my hours or feel bad for working more or less than 8hrs a day. What works best for you?.
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If you're animating every single thing on your website right now when you scroll, please stop. Just stop.
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Prediction: @figma is about to show off their new “no-code” “low-code” product to combat Webflow + Framer at their upcoming conference. It’ll be huge. Framer will eventually get acquired by Adobe for their momentum/team and together “Adobe Figmer” will take over the world.
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