Meet Andy Milligan

 

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Andy Milligan. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Andy, so many exciting things to discuss, we can’t wait. Thanks for joining us and we appreciate you sharing your wisdom with our readers. So, maybe we can start by discussing optimism and where your optimism comes from?

For me, optimism comes from a combination of things: perspective, knowing that I am living my own story, and that I am serving others.

I’m a firm believer that no matter how much we feel like we are behind or disadvantaged, there is always someone who has had it worse or has gotten further, with less.

Ever since I have started freelancing and building my design agency, I have lived by the principle that the magic word in business, for anything, truly is “enthusiasm”! I find that bringing this to every client interaction, networking event, video, or piece of content that I make if you show others that you are truly enamored with what you do and are enjoying the process, then they want to come back in some way. They want to associate with positivity, directly or indirectly.

For me, optimism is generated from within. Sometimes you have to manufacture it initially, but once you start, it’s infectious and becomes your biggest asset.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

By trade, I’m an independent designer and marketing consultant. I dream of building a small remote studio/agency team to help me serve clients and create awesome work together. In terms of projects and creativity, I want to continue to hone my own web development skills and eventually reach a place where I can teach others on my team to serve others with these design skills and make an impact that lasts beyond me.

The most special thing about what I do, hands-down, is the ideation process of the design, Getting to know a client’s values, drivers, mission, and passion for what they do, and being able to translate that into something that serves them is a pretty unreal feeling.

I take a lot of pride in the branding and design work I do. I think many readers will be able to relate, but I’ve learned that attention to detail and meticulous focus on bringing the most light to what is important to them makes the branding and marketing process so much more fulfilling.

An exciting milestone that occurred recently was our partnership with Agency Conspire in Worthington, Ohio. We will share an office space and partner on projects moving forward to be able to add more resources, quality of input, and experience to our client base.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

A big thing that has impacted my success so far is honestly just my stubbornness to see things through. I think there’s a huge value in acknowledging in the beginning of a journey, that you are in it for the long haul and will take the hard times as they come, makes it a lot easier to persevere when they do come. Also perspective and relentless positivity go a LONG way.

If I could offer any advice to a reader, it would be to cultivate absolute relentless enthusiasm. Especially in building relationships, you are making content, sharing your work, and meeting new people. People want to associate with and support you when you are enthusiastic about what you do.

Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?

One book that has made a huge difference in my life is “So Good They Can’t Ignore You” by Cal Newport.

The main theme and takeaway from this book is that it’s a far more productive use of your time to focus on getting as good as you POSSIBLY can at what you do and become a craftsman of your trade.

For me, this ended up being design, branding, and web development. I used to have a LOT of career insecurity around being a business owner and wasn’t focusing on the craft. I was worried about making enough money, what others. would think, and honestly, just the sustainability,

I realized that it was a far more productive use of my time to focus on getting better at what I do and let that be the north star, rather than worrying about things that take away from that one singular goal.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Andy Milligan, MMG Design

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