Show all episodes
Episode
149

An interview with Michael Johnson - LIVE at Birmingham Design Festival

An interview with
Michael Johnson

Introduction

In his first-ever live episode, recorded at the Birmingham Design Festival 2024, Ian interviews Michael Johnson, renowned British designer and brand consultant, founder of the studio Johnson Banks, and author of Branding in Five and a Half Steps. Together, they explore the origin story of Johnson Banks, uncovering how it started, grew, and flourished into a successful design studio. Don’t miss this compelling conversation filled with expertise and inspiration!

Interview Transcription (AI Created)

Hey Logo Geeks, it's Ian Paget here with another podcast episode, a companion to my book Make a Living Designing Logos, which you can find on Amazon.

This episode is a special one. Earlier this year, I was invited to do a live version of this podcast at the Birmingham Design Festival. Historically, public speaking would have completely freaked me out, and I would have likely said no a few years back. However, I've been working hard to overcome this fear. This podcast has been key to that, and over the years, I've also been attending speaking clubs to practice presenting, as well as participating in Zoom hangouts with other designers and Zoom calls with clients.

Interestingly, all this work, over a 10-year period, didn't seem to make it easier each time I did something. It only felt easier when I looked back and compared my progress. Each time I faced my fear, it chipped away at it bit by bit. Over time, the effort has really been worth it.

So this year, when I was asked to speak on stage at a design event, I decided it was time to say yes. Surprisingly, I didn't feel too anxious leading up to it. Instead, I felt excited. When the time came, I felt calm and relaxed, which was new for me. Normally, I'm very nervous. I don't know if this was just a one-off or the result of years of effort finally paying off. I will be doing more of this in the future to find out if I've truly overcome my fear of public speaking.