

Rafal Tomal: When I came to the United States, nobody was asking about the college, nobody was asking about a degree. So I chose to drop everything and move to the United States. I stay in Poland, probably have to go to college, probably have to do all this, stop that what you are supposed to do, or I can drop everything, move to the United States and start over, and see what else is out there. Rafal Tomal: And at the end of school, I got an opportunity to move to the United States. So that was like a natural way of learning for me. Like I couldn't understand anything that people were trying to teach me, I have to do this myself. And I was always a self-taught designer/developer, so to me, it was much easier for me, even in school, like I could listen in the class, I could listen to the teacher, but I had to go back to home, I had to open the book and read it myself to understand it. And I saw my friends who were very good developers, very good programmers and designers, and it's slowed them down, going to college and learning all this stuff in a different way. And they're teaching us some outdated stuff here and it's waste of time. After talking to some of my friends who went that road and they told me like they're teaching us stuff that we already knew a couple of years ago, that you could already learn from internet online. So all my teachers expected me to go to college. Rafal Tomal: At the end of high school, I had a big decision to make, I finished with honours and all that stuff. So after high school, did you go to college or did you just think, "Nah, clearly I can make a living from what I know already"? So I knew there was something in it, there must be more that I can do, and that's how it all started. Rafal Tomal: So that's how I started, I started looking for some small gigs when I was in school, I was hired to even make some projects for students and I was helping them finish their classes in college and universities and they paid me for it. But even in high school, when I was freelancing, I started making more money than my teachers did, so I knew there was something in it, and maybe college and all of that stuff, maybe it's not for me. I remember my teachers telling me that I should spend more time learning and if I want to become someone, I need to attend all the classes, I need to go to college and all that stuff. That's how I started making some money on the side, and I was still in high school. Rafal Tomal: Yes, so I started freelancing very early, probably when I was still in school when I was 16. As ever, how about we get started hearing how you got started being freelance?

#Freelance ux designer crack#
Steve Folland: Let's crack on, find out what it's like being freelance for UI and UX design consultant Rafal Tomal.

Give yourself a chance to see what’s really out there.” These days, Rafal’s running a one-person design studio (with help from assistants and other specialists) and selling digital products and courses. He formed a small agency with friends later, before leaving because his days were filling up with project management tasks rather than design work.
#Freelance ux designer full#
Until, eventually, he left the job to focus on his business and his personal brand full time. Rafal progressed within the company, designing for some of the biggest websites and blogs out there, all while continuing with freelance work on the side. When he moved from Poland to the United States at 18, and with zero contacts and no design qualification, he landed a full-time job as a developer. Rafal taught himself design and started freelancing around his schoolwork at age 16. What do I want my days to look like? - Freelance UI/UX Designer Rafal Tomal
