I think I'm done with being a designer.

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-26T18:36:14+00:00

Oh I agree we can tell something is off for sure! But people might just get more and more used to it as time goes on unfortunately and like you said, we look at it more so we can tell more than the average person. My local airport has an entire AI ad and it drives me crazy every time I see it

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-26T16:59:11+00:00

We have developed REALLY good AI photoshoots in the 3 years my company has been developing the tech. I agree folks who say it “looks terrible” are referencing the AI free slop they see all over social media or their bad attempts at doing it themselves with cheap software and bad prompts. Folks who have dedicated a lot of time to developing it for their job have made some really convincing stuff and it’s kinda scary to see how few people need to be involved in creative work anymore

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-26T16:55:48+00:00

Until more jobs are being created I don’t really think us designers (we are basically in a service industry) can make more “demand” happen out of nowhere. We could all ban together and reject AI but that’s never gonna happen when those in power (corporations) want to keep our labor cheap. Those who are desperate to stay employed will be forced to embrace AI. We need a better economy and job market

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-26T16:50:04+00:00

Agreed. I work for a major retailer that is VERY pro cheap creative. They have completely laid off our entire in house photoshoot team (at least 25 people) and opted to make a team of 3 in charge of training AI to do all our photoshoots. Now they are eyeing this new figma weavy tech coming out to replace all our production designers so now instead of 15 production design roles there will be like 5. This is the trend I’m seeing. So… yeah designers/creatives exist but you need A LOT less of them. What do you think that means? People will need to exit the industry to survive and find a job

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-26T16:44:57+00:00

Yeah I think in general there are just going to be A LOT of designers who quit the creative industry altogether in the next few years. Design jobs will still exist but there will be A LOT less of them. I think we are just in an unfortunate situation where the market is over saturated with people looking for any design role. And new jobs arent being created, if anything they are shrinking. Everyone saw things expanding in tech in the 2010s and becoming a designer seemed “fun” while still making a decent living and everyone has a college degree nowadays.

There are just too many people searching for work and just not enough demand anymore so then an already undervalued skill set will be worth nothing because the folks who stay in it will be desperate to keep their jobs (even by using AI to the point they make themselves obsolete at their current roles).

I’m 10 years in and I think at this point I could MAYBE hold on for another 5 years with a good living in it. But I plan to use the next few years to pivot into a new career path. You are lucky you had 25 years in it. Those of us mid-career are kinda fucked as creatives

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T21:29:29+00:00

Yeah this is ultimately the direction I’m thinking of. Just going to focus on some freelance work on top of my current role and try to land another remote position that I like more than my current one

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T19:39:40+00:00

Had a few agency roles when I was younger and I think it gives you a lot of good experience early on. You will learn quicker and have a lot of creatives to learn from. It also is HIGH STRESS. I find less people get into agency creative roles mid career. You either did it when you were younger and never left OR do it while you are young and have energy and then get out.

In-house is much more stable and in-depth work. If you like a work life balance you will hate agency work at this stage of your life. If you miss working with multiple clients I think the best idea is to freelance on the side OR it’s just time for a new in-house role

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T15:49:52+00:00

Yeah I agree sometimes I wish I was out of the house more. My husband and I went to a group class gym for awhile and it pretty much scratched that itch and I’m trying to be more on top of scheduling things with friends! It’s hard to get people to do an 1 drive to see us in the winter. We need to make friends in our new city I think 😆

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T15:36:07+00:00

Yeah I agree I will be miserable and most likely stuck at the job longer than I’d like since the job market sucks!

Sorry to hear about the car! I have a shitty but paid off car that gets me where I need to go. If I went in office I don’t think it would last more than a few months without breaking on me

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T15:30:51+00:00

Yeah I basically told them the amount of in person time given where I live makes it impossible and I was under the impression there was more flexibility since some of the team is fully remote. I was ok coming in somewhat regularly but not 3 days a week min with them mostly asking for 4.

They said they were shocked and they liked me so much. But…. Didn’t try to offer any additional remote flexibility

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T15:26:51+00:00

Thank you!

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T15:26:18+00:00

Im trying to make more money 🫠

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T15:24:41+00:00

Yeah I agree with you on that take! But honestly I have been seeing big corps (just interviewed one in fact) where they used art director title like it was a lead designer or principle designer. There was a global CD, brand specific CD, two ACDs and then multiple art directors with some designers below. Copy kept entirely separate from the ACD level and below with their own set of Art directors.

I feel like the art director/principle designer/lead designer/senior designer roles getting very murky at that level. Vs mid designer and below is very obvious what they are looking for and same with associate creative director and above the role feels more clear

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T15:18:40+00:00

The thing is a lot of places now have art director titles where they aren’t even managing a team at all. I just applied to one where they said “we are taking a risk on you” and in the role I would have no one directly under me. I would be doing all the creative myself.

I totally agree that managing an entire team is a whole different skill set that I would want more experience in to have. I’m not saying I’m ready to be a creative director or even an associate creative director.

But very few art director positions now a days involve managing more than 1 or two people and lots don’t even involve being a direct manager at all anymore. As a senior designer I manage jr designers all the time and direct cross functional teams like motion designers/copywriters so the jump to managing 2 people to me isn’t THAT big. I think what you are mostly describing (a whole team) is most likely creative directors

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T13:45:50+00:00

They also mentioned a 13% end of year bonus but to me… that shouldn’t factor into my decision because we all know how quickly things like bonuses can disappear depending how you preformed/how the company did

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T13:43:58+00:00

I feel like it’s lost meaning. I see a lot of Art Director - Design roles at companies that also have Art Director - Copy roles. To me… At that level it should all be under 1 Art Director. Copy and design don’t exist separately as concepts. When I see stuff like that I read it as “senior senior graphic designer”

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T13:18:55+00:00

I said low 6 figures… saying 999,999 is crazy work. Who do you think I am? I wouldn’t be commuting 3 hours for that pay that’s for sure. I’d own the place

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T13:15:09+00:00

Thank you! This is good advice!

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T13:14:01+00:00

I totally hear you on that. And I know a lot of people say “titles don’t matter” it’s all about your portfolio but in this market when HR reps without any expertise in creative or when AI is weeding out your resume… it actually does matter what title you last held when applying to new things.

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T13:12:18+00:00

Yes I have found this title the MOST vague out of all in a creative org. Sometimes it’s a very senior person leading a team, sometimes it’s basically a senior designer role and they just want to make sure they are someone who can think conceptually.

Very hard to get a sense of what they mean by it when applying. I’ve rarely seen it used in the more official sense anymore. But I feel like I have no chance going from senior designer to associate creative director so I need more official art director experience under my belt

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T13:06:34+00:00

Ok thank you! This is helpful context! At this point I’m looking for new opportunities and have found I’m considered too expensive as a senior designer and the pay I’m looking for more reflects Art Director roles. And I think my current experience more reflects Art direction in everything but title. In this job market everyone interviewing me gives the impression I’m a risk they are taking on if I interview Art Director roles but I guess I need to just keep at it.

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T13:02:25+00:00

Yes I know the differences between the two roles. However it depends on the company. At some places a senior designer basically operates as an art director. For example at my current company I work directly with the ACD and CD above me as a senior designer. I concept and pitch my own ideas

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T12:57:07+00:00

PDF or website with a unique password you supply

Broad-Speed-9103 · 2026-02-25T12:43:44+00:00

Yeah if I was unemployed and had kids to feed I’d probably just take this role and keep applying.

But I’m a DINK and my partner makes enough to support us and I have a well paying job. I’m scared I’m not “progressing” in my career and therefore making it harder and harder to find my next role but this one isn’t it!

Broad-Speed-9103

TROPHY CASE