Today we’d like to introduce you to Monique Meyer.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Monique. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I always designed posters and flyers in high school, but I never thought about a career as a graphic designer. Back then, doctor, lawyer and engineer were the career paths that were drilled into my mind, so I was fine with one of those until I got to my sophomore year of college and saw that I enjoyed spending more time on the projects I had working in the music industry in Atlanta. It was through organizing and promoting events where I met people who were running their own businesses and doing marketing and promotions. This when my eyes were opened to other careers that would give me the excitement and razzle dazzle I was looking to have in my career.
I spent some time behind the scenes learning how events come together from conception to completion, and it was then that I saw how professional flyers were designed, printed, and distributed and how to track an event’s success. That gave me life, I tell ya! When I graduated college and left Atlanta, I landed a job outside of the music industry, but got the opportunity to design some marketing pieces for conferences. When leadership saw my work, they fully supported me by getting me a new iMac and Adobe software so I could do more design work. I had no idea how to use that stuff then. So, I taught myself the software and navigated myself through the iMac as there were no YouTube tutorials back then!
I loved designing so much. I decided to go back to school so I could learn the rules of graphic design and learn how to do things professionally. It took me six months of researching, calling, and writing letters to find a program that would accept me because I didn’t have an undergrad degree in design. I made a portfolio by making up companies and creating fake logos and stationery to show that I had the necessary skills to get started. I entered my graphic design and digital media program in 2010, took a break in 2012, and returned to complete my degree in 2018.
I made the move from freelance and full-time jobs to running my own design studio full-time at the end of last year as I relocated to Texas for my husband’s job. My life experiences building my design career over the past 20 years has opened doors for me to now teach, be actively involved in local, national and global design communities, and to be an advocate for ethical practices in graphic design.
Has it been a smooth road?
No path is smooth, right?! The road has been equally hard and fun. When I realized deep down inside what I really wanted to do in my career, I literally jumped out of bed each morning excited for what I could design and what new projects I could convince leadership to back me up on. So, it has been fun in that I have been able to set the goals I want and stop at nothing to accomplish them. Staying on course with what I want and never wavering from it has given me ultimate thrills!
The road has been hard in that sometimes I had to take jobs that didn’t suit my education level or skill set. Despite meeting truly wonderful souls, I also encountered a crazy amount of people who weren’t motivated to do any better or accomplish anything amazing. When I started to allow that desolate energy to creep in is when things got rough for me. I assumed everyone wanted to take advantage of opportunities to grow and further their careers, so I unknowingly sought support from people whose opinions would never matter. I actually allowed myself to be criticized and judged by random people. Crazy when I think about it, but I’m the one who opened that door.
Additionally, in some roles, I dealt with very poor leadership. I experienced leadership lying to me, talking about me behind my back, and avoiding me because they were afraid to face up to their wrongdoings. I didn’t understand why it was so difficult to be helpful and help me grow or why I had to fight to do the job I was hired to do. It was like bait and switch; the job posting and interview would be exciting and positive, but I would get in there and it would be a completely different story. I like getting things done and having a respectful and fun work environment (work hard/play hard), so dealing with workplace politics and other unnecessary bullshit was something that made the struggles super real. Waking up to face that everyday can deflate your dreams and break you down to where you don’t even care to keep going.
While the struggles happened probably 20% in my career, they were intense enough for me to wake up and pay attention because they were going to steer me off course. I am very grateful to have always had love and support from a really close circle of people, both near and far, so navigating through these hard times were probably easier for me than other people in similar situations. Lesson learned? I no longer dim my fabulous bright light to make others comfortable and I surround myself with people who are encouraging and make me want to be a better person.
Please tell us about your work.
I don’t do logos! I’m proud to play a role in connecting nonprofit organizations to their target audience with powerful and impressive marketing graphic design. Whereas branding is concerned with who you are (e.g. logo), I am concerned with how you present yourself to your target audience. People tend to focus so much on what their logo is going to be and neglect how they are going to truly obtain and retain an audience. It’s like getting dressed fabulously for a hot date but staying at home and sitting on your couch. What are you going to do with just a nice logo? You can have that, but what are you bringing to the table to capture someone’s attention? Beyond a vibrant color palette, who are you?
People judge and they want an experience. Professional graphic design uses strategy and research to develop unique pieces that tell a story as the reader moves through the work. This is what I do. Whether in print or digital form, I create marketing collateral to align with an organization’s strategic goals. Creative marketing collateral includes pieces like: books, brochures, conference material, direct mail, email graphics, invitations, magazines, newsletters, postcards, social media graphics, viewbooks, wayfinding, etc. I am well versed in design principles, color theory, typography, marketing, research, and strategy, and can see the bigger picture when it comes to outlining the potential in how successful a project can be.
I classify my design studio as refined, distinctive, and relevant, and my work reflects this as well. I helped a small department at a top-ranked university raise $15M in documented gifts as a result of my marketing graphic design work. I am not an agency, nor am I a freelancer. I’m the in-between independent studio that has the resources to manage large projects, yet can manage my own schedule and be highly selective in the projects I take on so that each project has my full attention.
I am most proud of the work experience I’ve had at different companies because I was able to see the good, bad, and ugly when creatives don’t have a seat at the decision-making table. I saw firsthand how detrimental it is for creatives to be pulled in so many directions that their fresh, exciting ideas get left behind, ultimately resulting in an organization not getting the return they were hoping for. Nothing purposeful is accomplished when you are only allowed to give it 5% of your attention or skills. The foundation of my design studio is built on fully utilizing the design process in order to craft unique pieces that stand out amongst a sea of sameness.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Augmented Reality is definitely going to be a big shift for design educators to pay attention to. Alternatively, I see the graphic design industry going back to a major focus on print work as companies pay more attention to this being a great way to cut through the digital clutter we now see. Studies are already showing the negative effects of being on screen all day.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.moniquerenee.design
- Email: director@moniquerenee.design
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moniquereneedesign
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/moniquereneedesign
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/monireneedesign
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meyermonique
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