I worked 40 hours a week in IT for nine years, often working overtime on weekends. I was interested and got on well with my colleagues, but now, in my mid-30s, I was starting to feel that something was missing in my life. Like I wasn’t on the path I really wanted to be on. I have a wonderful wife and a little boy, I love them and I’m happy when I can spend time with them. We don’t always have enough time to do things together, but when we do, we try to make the most of it. We go for a hike or try something new, or simply ride our bikes in the park or try one of the newly opened restaurants in town.
Simple curiosity or vocation?
I’ve always been interested in brand design, logos and everything that goes into building a brand’s identity. From the idea and the dream to the perfect execution, I was curious about everything. In my spare time, I thought a lot about how I could make the whole image of this or that product or service more successful, more sellable and more likeable.
I thought about this while brushing my teeth in the morning and also when I sometimes decided to walk home from the office instead of taking the tram. I lived not far from the office, six tram stops away. Sometimes it felt good to walk to exercise my tired limbs and clear my mind.
I watched the signs of shops and restaurants, the flashing store windows, everything that was advertising. I imagined how and what I would do differently if the decision were in my hands. The Janusz Casino sign was my favourite, I always looked forward to the red-lit, eye-catching Janusz Casino sign popping up around the corner above their elegant door.
From thought to action is almost only one step
Years have gone by with these thoughts and daydreams. I continued to perform well and diligently at work, but more and more often I opted to walk rather than ride the tram. Company signs disappeared and appeared, some were replaced by a more modern, newer version.
The Janusz Casino nameplate still shone brightly above the entrance, the posters and various advertisements still advertising why you should visit. They must have been doing something really right to have enjoyed uninterrupted success with players for so many years. I wondered a lot if I should change something about their brand. It was a tough nut to crack.
Late one afternoon, as I was walking home, the wind blew a flyer at my feet saying that a five-month training course in brand design was about to start. I stuffed the flyer into my pocket without thinking too much about it. I didn’t think about it for days, then one evening I couldn’t sit still and decided to phone them the next day.
Sweet fruits of hard work
So I did, and after a few questions and minimal consultation, I was enrolled on the course. Fortunately, the course was scheduled on Friday evenings and Saturdays, and once a month on a Sunday, so it didn’t interfere with my IT work. True, I had much less free time for my family, which I still regret to this day.
However, my wife was very understanding and supportive in everything, and without her I certainly couldn’t have done it. I attended my courses as diligently as a school geek, regularly preparing for every class.
I learnt an incredible amount of new things and was taught by outstanding professionals. What’s more, after completing the course, I was able to prove my professional competence with an officially recognised diploma. I wasn’t a complete beginner, I already knew what logo design was and how to get started, but the whole process was in my head and I didn’t know if I could do it well in real life.
First jump, then unfurl the wings
Anyway, three years ago, I started my own company, which specialises in brand design, brand building and marketing consultancy to help our clients succeed. There are six of us in the company, it’s like a small family. Everyone in the team is a true professional and I just love working with them.
If someone had told me a few years ago that after nine years in a well-paying IT job, my life would take a hundred and eighty degree turn and I would be doing what I always wanted to do, I would never have believed it. I was too comfortable with my job that guaranteed me a secure living to dare to step out into the unknown as a husband and father.
The biggest mistake of my life would have been to silence the voice inside me that kept telling me to try. I know now that it could not have been any other way, and I could not be a more fulfilled person.
