Designing a Creative Career that Suits You - Looks Like Work, Season 1, Ep 5
Some careers are a straight line. Lital Gold’s is more like a winding ribbon — patterned, textured, and moving with its own flow.
She grew up next to her father’s graphic design studio in Israel, where the smell of ink and the hum of creative work were part of daily life. What began as a plan for a three-month internship in the U.S. turned into nine years of designing for some of the most recognizable fashion brands in the world — Free People, Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters — and eventually Kate Spade. The day she started her new role, she had no idea that lockdown was just three weeks away.
Textile design is intimate work. It’s not just about creating something beautiful — it’s about designing pieces that literally wrap around people’s lives. Bedding that touches their skin. Patterns that hang on their walls. Prints that become part of their most personal spaces. And yet, while Lital’s designs were moving into homes around the world, her own heart was split between two places — her life in the U.S. and her longing for Israel.
In this conversation, we talk about:
Growing up immersed in design
The naïve dream of “just a year abroad”
Meeting her husband the day she planned to leave Philadelphia
Freelancing across multiple offices with a three-hour daily train commute
Leading a novelty design team remotely after just three weeks in person
Balancing “one foot here, one foot there” emotionally and geographically
Teaching virtual art classes during the pandemic to help process anxiety
Why burnout is creativity’s most persistent enemy
How small, imperfect acts — like drawing five lines — can keep your creative spark alive
Finding gratitude even in the low points
Lital’s implied question is a quiet, potent one:
👉 What happens when you let yourself draw five imperfect lines — without measuring, counting, or making them “mean” something — just to let your brain breathe?
Her story is a reminder that creativity isn’t just about the big projects or perfect portfolio pieces. Sometimes it’s about the smallest, most imperfect acts — the ones that keep you tethered to yourself, even when the world feels disconnected.
"Even at your lowest point when you're most burned out, there's still things to be thankful for. And they can light your way even when you're very, very low."
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