If there’s one thing any designer or developer is told—repeatedly—when they go freelance or start their own studio, it’s to find a niche. But is that a hard rule one has to follow?

"You have to find a niche to be seen as an expert."
"You have to find a niche to be successful long-term."

These aren't really lies. Finding a niche can absolutely make you super successful, make you a ton of money, and give the perception of you being an expert. Here's the twist though: the opposite is not necessarily true. Put simply, not finding a niche doesn't mean you'll fail. I'm living proof—I never settled for a niche, and I'm about to celebrate 22 years in business.

What if being a generalist, for lack of a better word, is kind of a niche in and of itself?

A generalist offers versatility and adaptability. Varied experiences. Being a generalist doesn't mean lacking focus. Instead, we choose breadth alongside depth in our skills—going wider as well as deeper.

All of this allows us to see things that a specialist might miss altogether. While a problem solved for a client in one market may not necessarily work for a client in another, it does mean we can learn and adapt, creating a different solution (as opposed to applying the same or similar solution to every client in a specific market).

Being a generalist, at least in my experience, is intentional. And in a lot of ways, it can be just as effective as any specialized niche. Niching down is not the only path to success.

So which option is better?

Think about it this way: specialists are the scalpels of the business world—precise, focused, and perfect for specific situations. Generalists? We're the Swiss Army knives—versatile, adaptable, and ready for whatever gets thrown our way. Both have their place in the toolkit, but don't let anyone convince you that scalpels are inherently superior to Swiss Army knives. They're just different tools for different jobs.

The business landscape needs both types of professionals. Some clients want the person who's solved their exact problem a hundred times before. Others want someone who brings fresh perspectives from diverse experiences. Neither path is inherently "better"—they're just different approaches that appeal to different personalities and business models.

Your job isn't to force yourself into a niche that feels constrictive or to avoid specialization at all costs—it's to recognize your natural strengths and lean into them unapologetically and authentically. If that means being the person who can pivot from designing a restaurant website to crafting a tech startup's brand identity, then own that versatility as your superpower.

What matters most and what will bring you success is doing consistently excellent work, which gets you 80-90% of the way there. The rest is networking, strategic marketing that highlights your particular approach, and yes, a bit of luck. The true advantage comes from embracing who you naturally are rather than forcing yourself into a box someone else designed.