I first saw Michael Bierut onstage during the design “reality show” Command-X at the AIGA Make/Think conference in Memphis. If Sean Adams was the cool and collected advice-givning Tim Gunn character, Michael was the bubbly host Heidi Klum (hey, that’s a compliment if I ever heard one). During the student portfolio review later that evening, I was trotting around with another designer helping with Communication Design 1-esque critiques, and happened to end up next to Michael. Trying not to trip over my own tongue, I decided to introduce myself. That night we both ended up at the customary conference Design Observer party and hit it off. Michael has been a partner at Pentagram for many years, and I am in complete awe of his work. I was absolutely honored to get a quick interview, and I hope you find him as insightful as I do.

Is there anything you wish you had done earlier in your career as a designer?

I personally regret something I did too early: I decided at the age of 15 to become a graphic designer and set myself to that task in a very single-minded way. When I went to study design, our graphic design studios started in freshman year. My first job for Massimo Vignelli started a week after I graduated. A little more than ten years later I became a partner at Pentagram. My last day at Vignelli was Friday. My first day at Pentagram was the following Monday.

My regret is that I have left very little time for reflection, particularly at the start of my career. I envy my three children, each of whom chose to attend a liberal arts college to get a broad education. I got exposed to other subjects in school — I attended a university rather than an arts school — but I can’t deny that I was in a hurry to start my life as a designer. Nothing wrong with enthusiasm, but I have had to compensate my entire life since then for gaps in my education.

I saw a video of well-known designers giving advice to students, and you said the key to success is being a student for your whole life. Beyond that, what advice would you give students about to enter the field?

Be interested in lots of different things beyond design. Be curious and energetic. Be nice to people. And as soon as you’re ready, start taking the initiative. I remember the moment in my early years working at Vignelli Associates when I realized that it wasn’t necessary to sit with a blank pad in front of me and wait for Massimo and Lella to tell me what to do, that instead I could put some ideas down to share with them. Not all of them were good, but it was a great way to learn how to think as a designer, and won me more responsibility there than I would have been given had I simply waited politely.

What qualities do you look for in a junior designer?

Beyond a great portfolio with really good typography, I look for people who are able to get interested in the subject matter of the projects they’re working on.

What’s the worst thing someone could do in a job interview with you?

Act bored. It happens more often than you’d expect. Some people must get the idea that it’s uncool to be enthusiastic about what they do.

Have any of your projects been a complete and utter failure?

Yes, I’ve been fired several times, some other times I resigned from projects because I just couldn’t solve them, and a few times I made it all the way to the finish line with something that the client liked but that I came to hate later. In almost every one of these cases I couldn’t find a way to get excited about the subject matter of the project, and it showed in the design work that I did. And in a few other cases it was the opposite. I got overly excited, worked too fast, and realized too late another, better way to do it.

I just read your article Five Years of 100 Days and was curious if you have a John Cheever-esque routine to balance inspiration and discipline.

There are two obsessive routines that I have. The first is related to design: the series of notebooks that I have. They are not really that interesting to look at compared with most designer notebooks I’ve seen, but they are a sense of continuity that goes back nearly thirty years for me.

The second thing is personal. Every night before I go to bed I methodically put out the clothes i’m going to wear to work and the stuff I run in — I run three miles every morning. The idea of having to pick out clothes would keep me in bed in the morning, so I give myself a head start by deciding everything the night before.

My final, and customary question: what percentage of your wardrobe is black?

I only have one black suit and one black sweater. That’s what makes dressing so complicated. I guess I don’t think I look very good in black!

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