Identify past successes

• Getting an Associate degree from Arapahoe Community College, where I figured out what I wanted to do with my life. 
• Getting promoted to Assistant manager at my seasonal job. 
• Getting into the Digital Design program at University of Colorado denver. 
• Gaining confidence to ask questions when confused. Over the years I was always terrified to talk to my teachers whenever I was confused or lost. In high school the thought of talking to the teacher made me feel like I was going to cry because I thought they would be mad at me. Now in college I have overcome that feeling. I still sometimes get nervous but now have more confidence when talking to my professors. 

Common theme

When reflecting on past successes, I noticed a common theme. What I thought were some of my greatest successes were also times when I accomplished something. Times when hard work and focus towards a goal helped advance my position or skills. Sometimes it can take a while to accomplish your goals but once you do that feeling of success stays with you.  

Identify core values

“Be real, be yourself, be unique, be true, be honest, be humble, be happy.” – Marilyn Monroe 

• Family
• Reliability 
• Teamwork
• Positivity
• Loyalty
• Accountability
• Learning
• Creativity 
• Open-minded
• Honesty 
• Adventure 
• Respect 
• Kindness
• Real
• Happy

Top five

• Reliability
• Family
• Positivity 
• Teamwork
• Respect 

The one value that is most important to me is Reliability. It means that I can count on them to be there when needed and they are willing to help. If you’re reliable, everything will seem to fall into place. It also means they are trustworthy and you don’t have to worry about them going back on their word.

Identify contributions

In an ideal situation, how could you contribute best to the world in general, your family, your clients or future employers, your friends, your community?

• Provide my digital design skills to create great services or products.
• Continue to learn about the world around me and become more empathetic.
• Always have an open mind and listen.
• Try to always provide a positive experience.
• Problem solve
• Be reliable.
• Have meaningful connections and conversations with family, friends, peers, clients, and future employers. 
• Try to help those around me.

Be there for the people around you and the people / things you care about. 

Identify goals

Short-term

• Refine my skills while also learning as much as I can
• Refine my resume 
• Refine portfolio to show my style and be more geared towards places I would want to work.
• Overcome my fear of speaking in front of a group. 
• Graduate college and get an entry level job 

Long-term

• Travel to some of the places on my bucket list
• Have a solid portfolio that showcases the work I have done and if clients allow, show client work I have done. 
• Working at a job with reasonable benefits that makes me happy
• Have a place of my own

Mission statement

Connecting people with the power of motion by forming meaningful connections and conversations. 

Or

Helping communicate ideas through storytelling with motion graphics, that convey meaningful experiences.

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Design Philosophy 

Definition: My design service will offer simplistic motion design that helps tell a story to create a user-centered experience that touches on your emotions. 

Users: For people who want to create stories, whether they be fictitious or not, to promote the product or entertainment they are creating. Create motion design that is clear and engaging.

Purpose: Create motion that makes the client and the viewer happy. When your design takes into account the viewer, it is more likely to succeed as that is who you should be designing for. If the client is the only one who likes it and the viewer does not, it will probably not do as well. It is a whole balancing act. There are lots of designs that do not take into account the fundamentals of design and in turn makes for bad design. By having an understanding of design fundamentals and a goal to design meaningful pieces that connect to the viewer as well as the client, one can overcome this problem of bad design and convey stories that have meaning.

I hope that in the end my motion work will have the opportunity to inspire others and truly help their lives.

Differentiation: My differentiation will be looking at problems as a way to convey a story that helps inform or empower the viewer about something they may not know or be misinformed about. Whether I work on a team or individually I hope to reach original ideas, perspectives, movements and designs that fit the brand and the client. These stories will develop a deeper meaning with the viewer. By working closely with clients and viewers I hope to create meaningful motion designs. 

Value: My design services will be built on my value of reliability. Reliability can relieve stress, in turn making your life better. I also hope that through every project I will be constantly improving my skills. My service will focus on simple eye catching designs that help convey a story. These things combined will help build a distinguished experience that will benefit clients while also delivering results that will build my value of reliability. 

Goals: My end goal is to become skilled in motion design and hope to provide great designs that benefit the client and the viewer. My success will be measured through self assessment and testimonials from clients and future employers. Success will also be measured through job position as I hope to eventually move up in ranks as my skills improve. 

Final design philosophy 

In order to tell a meaningful story one must design with empathy towards the client and the viewer. Motion can help empower and inform the viewer about problems or be used for entertainment, but no matter what it is selling the story is one of the most important aspects. By researching and designing meaningful stories, I will create simple eye catching motion designs that benefit the client and the viewer. Whether I work on a team or individually I hope to reach original ideas, perspectives, movements and designs that fit the brand and the client; while building reliable connections, constantly building my skills, and always being inspired to learn.