Generalist vs Specialist

Which one should you be and why?

The pros | The cons | And Everything In Between.

An Apt Sunday Thread.

A design generalist is an individual who has a broader knowledge base over several design disciplines / techniques. They can pivot because they are competent in various disciplines.

We all tend to start here.

A specialist has targeted expertise meaning that they have a deeper and more streamlined knowledge base and skill relating to a particular discipline.

Generalizing makes you a more confident and adaptable designer. You can naturally pivot as long as you have the necessary skill set. It also gives you access to a wider market and more volume of work.

However, due to the nature of being a generalist and the territory itself - having access to and serving a wider market may potentially drive your market share down due to competition for projects and overall “saturation”.

On the flip side, specializing allows for you to elevate your offering as your work is valuable to a prospective client because you’re able to provide targeted solutions. Your work looks more consistent and due to expertise you are in a position to command a higher price for it.

However, one “downfall” of being a specialist is that you would have to outsource / turn down inquiries that fall outside of your expertise and it takes a lot of consistent and ongoing practice to truly master one thing.

So this brings us to the question of the day.

WHICH ONE SHOULD YOU BE AND WHY?

I believe there’s merit to both. Applying substantial knowledge over a breadth of design disciplines can just be as beneficial as streamlining and applying more targeted expertise.

The value of a specialist who delivers and the broad application of a generalist cannot be ignored. I believe that effective design thinking requires that you’re able to strategize like a generalist (especially amongst non-designers) and deliver like a specialist.

It all comes down to what fulfills you the most, the type of work you prefer to do and identifying a niche in your market.

Circumstantially, generalism would be ideal if you’re still starting out in your creative journey and/or intend on being in or are a part of a design team.

Specialism would be the preferential route if you intend on following a personal passion and having a more lean area of focus - like myself!

It’s also safe to say that as beginners we are all generalists. We dabble and we experiment. I was too when l started. However with time, l stepped into a fuller discovery of the work that excites me, inspires me and pushes me creatively.

It allows follows and l am of the mind that an increase in overall experience paves way for a more streamlined approach whereby generalism may naturally shift towards specialism.

With all the above - the model that we decide to take on is purely subjective.

There will always be different strokes for different folks.

I hope that l have provided you with an apt enough breakdown that will help you make the decision if you’re currently navigating this.

Happy Sunday.

And if you’re reading this and you’re a mother - Happy Mother’s Day