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A portfolio always has a purpose. Let’s define a few ways you can realize your portfolio’s purpose.
New Terms:
Metric -- a system or standard of measurement.
Further Reading:
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There was a popular 80s TV series
where one of the main protagonists
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consistently said I love it
when a plan comes together!
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And my guess is that you love seeing
your hard work pay off, as well.
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Just like our 1980s protagonist,
you need a plan for your portfolio.
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But to know that your plan has paid off,
you need to establish some metrics.
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What is a metric?
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A metric is a system or standard of
measurement, or in the context of your
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portfolio, it's your goal, the thing
that you're trying to accomplish.
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Without it, you won't know if you've
been successful at completing your task.
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For instance,
you might wanna see X number of
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social media impressions about your
work on your favorite design blogs.
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Or, perhaps, you want to see employment
as a direct result of your efforts.
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These are both examples
of success metrics.
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Whatever the case, you first want to
start with that end result in mind and
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work your way backwards to now,
in order to plan your steps.
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Failure to set metrics could easily
mean a body of work that lacks
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an overall message, which could
certainly confuse your audience.
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Let's break down the two success
metrics I mentioned before,
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social media impressions and employment.
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If getting noticed on design blogs is your
goal, then consider media outlets that
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those authors frequent, and
how they recognize their favorite content.
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Is that content innovative in
processes used, like design thinking,
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or even newer co-creation methods?
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Is it timely in its content,
like blockchain or quantum computing?
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Or is it chocked full of personality,
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like it's copywritten from a very honest,
human perspective?
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An early metric for your social media
impressions plan could be having your
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work showcased on a local blog with
the intention of moving up to regional,
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national, or international blogs.
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Either way, think about how you
can start small and then move up.
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Let's talk employment now.
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You will immediately need to research
the companies you admire and
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would hope to work for.
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What do they do that makes
them stand out to you?
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Remember that they won't be looking for
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an exact copy of the folks who
are already working there.
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But they will care about whether
you can handle processes or
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methods they employ on a regular basis.
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For instance, larger companies will likely
wanna know how you work with a remote team
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or whether you can use methods
like Agile Scrum or Kanban boards.
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All of that is definitely process that
can be included in your portfolio.
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An early success metric for future
employment could be moving forward into
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the first round of portfolio
screenings with a local company.
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With the long-term metric
of making it through your
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dream job's portfolio screening process.
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In the end,
if you want your plan to come together,
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you need to have made
a plan in the first place.
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I'll see you in the next video.
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