I’m a big fan of the work of Chip Kidd – probably best known as the book cover designer for titles such as Jurassic Park, much of Brett Easton Ellis’s work, David Sedaris … etc. etc. Anyway, there’s a good interview with him over on Smashing Magazine.
If people liked everything I did just because I did it, as opposed to whether it was actually good or not, that would be a problem — both for me and for them. What I don’t like, and I don’t know any designer who does, is when you feel that you’ve done the right work and then it gets rejected, for whatever reason