Haley Rich
Haley Rich
Designer / Creative Doer
San Jose, CA
WHAT DO YOU DO?
“I am a Creative Doer. ”
What's a creative doer? Well I have a hard time putting myself into a category, but I do creative things. I’m a designer, a presentation expert, a visual storyteller, an illustrator, a maker, a teacher, and a forever student.
WHAT STEPS DID YOU TAKE TO GET TO WHERE YOU ARE NOW?
Would you believe me if I said yearbook camp is where I got my start? I got the design itch when I had layout design, typography, and print design, thrust into my face at 14-years-old and then I was told that I could do that for a living so I did everything I could to make that happen.
I did freelance right out of high school, contracting for the school and a couple local business. Then in college I became AIGA president my senior semester and graduated in 3.5 years. I was ready for the real world... well so I thought.
I lived in a smaller city so graphic design jobs were mostly at print shops, but after working my through those landed at a retail shop and became their sole designer where I wore every hat I could think of, web, marketing, social media, branding, print, photography, art director, manufacturing design, product design. I learned a lot of it on the job.
Which brings me to today. I'm now at one of the leading presentation companies and if you had asked me when I went into college if I would be using my graphic design skills in PowerPoint and google slides, I probably would have scoffed but here I am, and expert in both and doing trainings to boot!
How do you stand out in your field?
I strive for efficiency, and perfection. I do that by choosing my team wisely. I am very observant and know the skills of the people around me and know what they can bring to the table that I can't. I'm not going to spend hours on something when I know that my colleague can get it done in half the time and probably make it look twice as good.
WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON RIGHT NOW?
I just finished the final touches on my custom illustrated Plant Queens playing cards and am working on figuring out how to go about selling my first product in the time of COVID and the USPS being on the brink of extinction. I’m using the profits from the cards to raise money for mental health. The cards can be purchased here.
WHAT'S YOUR STYLE/PERSPECTIVE/TASTE? DO YOU HAVE A PROJECT THAT REPRESENTS THIS?
My style has evolved through the years but my website and my most recent project, Plant Queens, are both good representations of my current style. Simple, clean, but with a touch of fun.
WE ARE ALL SLASHIES WITH MULTIPLE SKILLS, WHICH ONE DO YOU WISH YOU COULD DO MORE OFTEN?
I’ve been dabbling in the world of workshops, hosting different types of makers workshops (macrame, shibori, pressed flower coasters, bath bombs, serving trays and so much more. I love teaching people new things. The best part is bringing out an old skill in someone, something they forgot about and actually excel at. I often teach myself new things along the way and that is all the more rewarding.
WHAT IS FRUSTRATING YOU RIGHT NOW?
I recently went full freelance out of necessity and having potential clients but no jobs in is very frustrating. Money is always a hard topic for me, giving rates, sending invoices, etc., I would love if there were just a perfect answer on how to go about that, because I find myself second guessing many of the choices, I make around that.
IF YOU COULD HIRE SOMEONE FOR $20/HR, WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE THEM DO TO MAKE YOUR DAY EASIER?
Shop for, cook, and schedule all my meals! I have two settings: 1. Get so busy I forget to eat, and 2. get so bored or procrastinate using food, that I end up eating everything in sight.
LET'S BRING OUT THE TIME MACHINE. WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU COULD HAVE TOLD YOURSELF, WHEN, AND WHY?
You know, there isn't a lot in my life that I would change, even some of the worst things, but if I could go back, I'd go back to myself right out of college when I was getting pushed out of jobs and forced to work the night shift at Denny's or move back in with the parent's. I'd let myself in on the secret that it was going to be worth it. Smelling like syrup and coming home sticky and putting up with--well--some really awful people, would teach me some great life lessons, and great career lessons.
It would teach me about client management and collaborating with people that I may not work well with at all It would teach men to handle feedback, sometime really bad sometimes just no feedback at all.
Sometimes when I'd get off work at 4am I'd be ready to throw in the towel but I made it through and with so much more knowledge and that's what I'd want my past self to know while having to clean syrup off carpet during the 2am bar rush.
IF YOU COULD TALK TO AN EXPERT TO GAIN MORE INSIGHT ON SOMETHING, WHAT WOULD IT BE ABOUT?
What wouldn't I want to know!? I'm a lifelong learner :)
But one thing currently I've been struggling with is the business side of things. I've always been intrigued with how business run, P&L's, taxes, licenses, that kind of thing, and how that transfers into small businesses and the freelance world. There is so much that goes on behind the scenes when doing business for yourself and so many takes on it, hearing and expert lay it all out would be amazing.
WHAT KIND OF OPPORTUNITIES/PROJECTS ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?
I'm looking for an opportunity to make a difference. Whether that be through a pitch deck, pamphlets/brochures, a brand refresh, or social campaign to get a name out there, or refreshing a website to enhance user engagement. I tried to do this with my project Gather. Give. Spread Love. (https://www.haleyrich.com/gather-give-spread-love) but it was just a small side project.
I've been working in the tech industry for 4 years now and have only seen the rich companies talk about how much money they made over last year and how much they plan to make. I'd like to shift my focus and help out the community, the world, in some way.
DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL JOB/CLIENT/COLLABORATION.
Collaboration is the key word here. I love getting to work closely with my clients so I can truly understand their wants and needs to make sure I deliver the best possible outcome.
I once had a tiny start-up that came to me for a project subject that I knew very little about, but they were extremely passionate about. I used that and we met for coffee almost 3 times a week to go through where I was at, to go through the logistics, or to just give me a rundown on what I needed to know for the next phase.
That was probably one of the best working relationships I've had. The project unfortunately didn't take off due to outside circumstances, but I got to see the clients light up every time we met and that made me excited about continuing on.
HOW SHOULD SOMEONE APPROACH YOU ABOUT WORKING TOGETHER?
Send me a DM, shoot me any email, just say hi! I love meeting new people and learning about them!
HOW DO YOU STAY CREATIVE?
I never stop learning! I love exploring the world, languages cultures and I’m always learning new ways to do things, new perspectives.
This member profile was originally published in x 2020.