Portfolio 101: Pick a Least Favorite

When I review a designer’s portfolio, I love to ask: “Which project is your least favorite?”

The answer I loathe to hear is: “Oh, they’re all my favorites and I love them all!”

That’s when my eyes roll.

The answer’s polite. It’s inoffensive. It’s safe. But it’s also the lamest response you can give. I know, you don’t want to trash your work. But saying you love every piece equally is simply a lie.

In any body of work, you’ll always prefer some pieces over others. When was the last time you loved every song equally on an album? And how many of you list the rainbow as your favorite color? Look at it this way. If they’re all your favorites, then none of them are.

I ask designers to explain their least favorite project, because it shows three things:

1. How well you evaluate your own work
   Designing involves picking the best option from a range of choices. This means you must know how to edit—to evaluate, select, and eliminate options. When you explain why you chose one option over another, you give the interviewer a glimpse into your decision making and editing skills.

2. How well you can tell a story
   Designing is also storytelling. And every portfolio piece, even your worst project, has a story—terrible pieces actually lend themselves to more dramatic stories. If you can captivate and charm your audience with a good story, then you’re on way to getting hired.

3. How gutsy you are
   Who would you rather hire? A designer who politely tells you she loves all her work equally? Or a designer who has a real opinion and point of view about her work?

So, next time you show off your portfolio in a design interview, don’t give the same easy answers everyone is giving. Take a stand, pick your least favorite, and tell a good story about it.

I’ll be reviewing portfolios at AIGA Portfolio day in San Francisco on May 31. See you there. I promise I won’t bite.

Disagree with me? Sound off in the comments.