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I'll try not to be too long winded here.
"can people do that kind of work if they can't even sketch or doodle?"
2 answers here - Yes, you can do the basic to intermediate stuff which, a lot of times, just involves a lot of typography. There are a lot of graphic designers that can't draw. To rise above that level though, you need to know how to draw. You might not actually draw anything for 95% of the projects but learning to draw helps you "see" differently.
"I have always been on the other side of the desk trying to get my ideas across to someone but I can't draw it"
To this i would say to start reading some magazines about design. Maybe
Communication Arts or
Print magazine. After reading about it you will learn how artists/designers think and how they express certain concepts. When you speak in their terms, communication is much easier. It's kind of hard to explain.
Think of it this way. A musician can say to another musician "That mix sounds a bit bright and the guitar is way out front"... now to most non musicians that makes no sense. But to any musician that has recorded, it makes perfect sense. It's in their "musician speak"... the same holds true for graphic designers and artists.
did you go to art school first?
Actually no. But i have been drawing obsessively since i was little. To learn motion graphics i took 1 year off and literally bought every book i could find which wasn't many because back in 1997 motion graphics was in its infancy. But i studied design. i think i purchased over $1000 worth of design books and still have them all to this day. I studied all the best designers and learned all the concepts of design as well.
Motion Graphics is like photoshop with the added element of time. So learning design was essential. I got up everyday and studied and experimanted AS IF it were a real job from 9-5...every day! I basically taught myself. After about 8 months of studying i started showing my work to friends and the started hiring me. Then one of my clients offered me a position on staff.
Graphic design, editing, and motion graphics are all careers that depend more on your "portfolio" (or in editing we call it a "reel") than where you went to school. There are people with design degrees but still cannot conceptualize and be creative.
You obviously can't do this with most careers like doctors, lawyers, accountants, etc.