A Jack of all Trades

Dominique Ari Creative Specialist

“A Jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.”

A Jack of all Trades

May 3, 2022

Dominique Ari Creative Specialist

“A Jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.”

Jack of all trades character juggling everything on his plate Until a few years ago, I had never heard the full quote in reference to a Jack of all trades. I had often felt there was a bit of negativity around the label, for as far as I knew, the quote ended after “A jack of all trades is a master of none”. Not that any person’s worth is defined by a label. But I often felt that I was failing as an adult professional because I didn’t have an abundance of experience in any one area. It’s ultimately due to a few factors, including my personality and simple chance. My entire childhood I just knew I was going to be an artist. But what kind of artist? That varied year by year. A comic book artist at first, then an animator, a videogame concept artist, and then a graphic designer.

MSU Rugby logo So, I did what made sense. I went to college for graphic design, got pretty darn lucky, and got an internship at Addis Enterprises. I was beginning to learn and grow. After a while, I began to be exposed to things that weren’t in line with my goals of being a graphic designer. Sometimes because we were a small company (at the time just 3-5 of us) and everyone filled in when something needed to be done. Other times I explored new skills because I was intrigued by their potential. Regardless of its relevance to my other interests and career goals, I enjoy learning and wanted to be as much of an asset to the company as possible. So, I learned to create online interactive courses with Articulate Storyline. Then I began learning to code HTML and CSS. Soon I was becoming a competent course and website developer as well as having my graphic design skills in my back pocket. If I had insisted on only being a specialist for my original interest of design and illustration, I wouldn’t have unlocked potential I didn’t know I had until I tried.

The Varelli website So why not dabble in different professions? Even if it just becomes a hobby or something you give up on, you’ll still know more than you did before. I’ve learned that being involved in various services our company provides allows me to have a different perspective when the services are combined. Things I learned while developing a website help when I’m creating interactions for an online course. Having experience with design and composition helps when I’m creating a mock or talking through possibilities with a client. And proficiency in software like photoshop and illustrator to create elements for a website or a course as much as it helps create elements for graphic production or artistic expression. Sure, splitting my focus across different specialties can be difficult at times, as I have to keep up my abilities in several different professional areas at once. But I believe that I am better for it, because learning more new skills doesn’t replace my original skills, but enhances them. The next time someone calls me a “Jack of all trades,” I’ll know it’s not a sign of creative failure, but a sign of success.