I Didn't Know How, So I Learned

Getting hired at Dick's Sporting Goods was exciting. But I'll admit, it was also a little intimidating.

Up until then, I'd been teaching myself at home, experimenting with free software, creating graphics, and building websites just because I enjoyed it.

Now I was working with professional software I'd never used before.

And then there was Photoshop. Oh, Photoshop.

I remember opening it and wondering where on earth to begin. It seemed like there were about 8,000 different things you could do with it. And I'm pretty sure they've added another 8,000 since then.

It was overwhelming.

But I did what I've always tried to do when something feels like too much. I took a deep breath, exhaled, and started figuring things out, one thing at a time.

I learned as I went.

Before long, I was creating banners for the company's e-commerce website, along with animated GIFs and something we called "how-tos."

The how-tos were particularly interesting to me.

Imagine buying a bicycle, getting it home, opening the instruction manual, and realizing the directions weren't exactly helpful.

That's where our online how-tos came in.

We created visual instructions that customers could follow online to help them assemble or use their purchases. The goal was to make those instructions easier to understand than the printed manuals.

I enjoyed that work because it combined two things I was discovering I really liked: creating something visually appealing and making it useful.

Looking back, that experience taught me something that's stayed with me throughout my career.

You don't have to know everything when you start. Sometimes you just need to be willing to learn, make mistakes, try again, and keep going.

And occasionally, take another deep breath.

I didn't know how. So I learned.

Next in the series: Chapter 4 — More Than Just Making Things Look Good.