Hit 50 hours on my first logo project and it made me rethink my whole workflow

I spent 50 hours on a single logo for a local coffee shop. Took me three weeks of tweaking colors, adjusting curves, and second-guessing every pixel. What got me was that the client ended up picking the very first sketch I showed them in the first 10 minutes. Now I set a hard limit of 10 hours per logo before I show anyone anything. Has anyone else spent way too long on a project only to realize the first idea was the best?

2 comments

2 Comments

finleybutler9d ago

Bro that's the worst. I did the exact same thing on a branding project for a buddy's food truck. Spent like 40 hours overcomplicating everything and he picked the dumb little doodle I did on a napkin in 5 minutes. Now I literally set a timer for 3 hours, make 3 rough versions, and send them off before I can talk myself out of it. The client usually goes with one of those first 3 anyway or gives feedback that saves me from wasting time on stuff they dont want.

james_butler9d ago

Man yeah that's brutal but honestly it's the most common trap in design work. I started forcing myself to stop after 2-3 hours and get initial concepts in front of someone before I go down the rabbit hole.