Hey friends,I’m Faizur
A designer turned solopreneur. I’ve been designing for founders, startups and brands for 14+ years. And I share what I’ve learned to help designers charge more, win better clients and build careers they love.
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I was good at design. Nobody taught me the business side.
So now I write it down for you. Each week, I send practical design tips, real stories from my client work, and what I’m learning right now.
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About
From a 9-5 job
to $100k a year working for myself
I started as a junior graphic designer and worked my way up: UI/UX Designer, Senior UX Designer, Principal Product Designer, and then Creative Director at a VC-backed startup.
After years climbing someone else’s ladder, I built my own.
Now I run a six-figure design business, and share what works with designers like you.
Maybe you’ve been designing for a year, maybe ten. You know how to make good design. But nobody showed you how to charge for it, talk about it or build a career on it.
Somewhere along the way, you were told that good work speaks for itself. That you need a design degree to be taken seriously. That the only way up is someone else’s ladder.
I believed all of it too, and none of it turned out to be true. A director once told me I couldn’t be a designer without a design degree. I studied computers, not design.
It’s been a strange road since. I taught myself Photoshop at 14, got my first design job at 16, became a Creative Director, and finally opened my own studio. Today I design for everyone from early-stage startups to teams that have raised over $25M.
After going solo, I started sharing what I learned. Now 100,000+ designers follow along online. Most are great at the craft but were never taught the business side. Same as me.
Read my full storyLetters
Weekly solo letters
How to price your work as a freelancer
Every client asks the same question, and most of us guess the answer. The three simple rules I now follow every time someone asks for my rate.
Undercharging won't get you more clients
Cheap rates feel safe, but they keep freelance designers stuck. The discount that taught me this, and how to raise your rates without losing good clients.
I stopped hiding my work. Everything changed.
Waiting until the work was perfect cost me weeks. Then a client hated the direction. The small change that now saves me time on every project.
/ Tools & Resources
Check out resources
Proposal Kit
A complete proposal kit to help you save time, win better projects, and get more clients.
Figma Thumbnail Kit
Beautify your Figma projects with 50+ minimal cover thumbnails in light and dark modes.
Grid Layouts Kit
The ultimate grid system for websites, portfolios, dashboards, and app designs.