That last paragraph got me, especially the bit about watching people with no experience at all in design make big decisions. Heart wrenching stuff but I do think you’re right to point out that we ‘expect’ design talent to lead to control and success. It obviously doesn’t. Alas it is often decisive people who get to make design decisions and you just have to hope they are open to taking advice.
I'm convinced the expectation is much of the problem but it's a hard one to shake. In most organizations it's generalists who get to make many of the decisions and design is seen as a specialization - and we treat it that way too sometimes.
The argument we're making in the book is a person with ideas either needs to have power or influence. And this is true for everyone. If you're not powerful, then the fate or your ideas is about your skills at influencing others. And that's really the whole story. The trap is design culture has a wish for a third path that no one else has.
This piece really hits home for me right now as I'm feeling pretty down about the reality of my UX design job.
Asking myself 'What am I ready to change?' is daunting, considering all I've put into getting here. It's making me question why I, as a designer, feel so self-important. Like my craft is above everyone else’s. If they don’t get design, I don’t get business.
Maybe it's time to check my ego and aim for a better balance in the corporate world - not as the one calling the shots, but as a team player.
Sorry you're feeling down about work. That's not a fun feeling to have.
It's not just you - many, if not most, designers have similiar feelings. That pride is part of what makes designers good at what they do. But it also gets in the way in most organizations that aren't design-centric (which is most of them).
One trick is to think of coworkers as users - do research on them. Figure out how to design your role, and your advice, so it's "usable" for your coworkers. We actually have a lot of the skills we need to be happier and have more impact, we just need to reframe them.
In this book we're providing lots of answers to that question - as we post ideas from the book here you can tell us what helps and what doesn't :)
I think it’s especially true for those who, like me, made the move from a smaller company/freelancing to a corporate setup: The direct influence I had as one of the few designers in my past roles made me feel more useful (still not a true decider, but I absolutely had more weight than I have today).
While the change may have thrown me off a bit, it's all part of the learning curve.
I’ll definitely check your book out! I'm loving your posts here - they're totally speaking my language.
Thanks for sharing your insights; they're super relatable and helpful as I navigate this new chapter.
That last paragraph got me, especially the bit about watching people with no experience at all in design make big decisions. Heart wrenching stuff but I do think you’re right to point out that we ‘expect’ design talent to lead to control and success. It obviously doesn’t. Alas it is often decisive people who get to make design decisions and you just have to hope they are open to taking advice.
I'm convinced the expectation is much of the problem but it's a hard one to shake. In most organizations it's generalists who get to make many of the decisions and design is seen as a specialization - and we treat it that way too sometimes.
The argument we're making in the book is a person with ideas either needs to have power or influence. And this is true for everyone. If you're not powerful, then the fate or your ideas is about your skills at influencing others. And that's really the whole story. The trap is design culture has a wish for a third path that no one else has.
Definitely!
This piece really hits home for me right now as I'm feeling pretty down about the reality of my UX design job.
Asking myself 'What am I ready to change?' is daunting, considering all I've put into getting here. It's making me question why I, as a designer, feel so self-important. Like my craft is above everyone else’s. If they don’t get design, I don’t get business.
Maybe it's time to check my ego and aim for a better balance in the corporate world - not as the one calling the shots, but as a team player.
Sorry you're feeling down about work. That's not a fun feeling to have.
It's not just you - many, if not most, designers have similiar feelings. That pride is part of what makes designers good at what they do. But it also gets in the way in most organizations that aren't design-centric (which is most of them).
One trick is to think of coworkers as users - do research on them. Figure out how to design your role, and your advice, so it's "usable" for your coworkers. We actually have a lot of the skills we need to be happier and have more impact, we just need to reframe them.
In this book we're providing lots of answers to that question - as we post ideas from the book here you can tell us what helps and what doesn't :)
Thank you!
I think it’s especially true for those who, like me, made the move from a smaller company/freelancing to a corporate setup: The direct influence I had as one of the few designers in my past roles made me feel more useful (still not a true decider, but I absolutely had more weight than I have today).
While the change may have thrown me off a bit, it's all part of the learning curve.
I’ll definitely check your book out! I'm loving your posts here - they're totally speaking my language.
Thanks for sharing your insights; they're super relatable and helpful as I navigate this new chapter.
Thanks Delphine - that all makes sense.
Do you have a question or specific topic you'd like us to cover in a future post?
I’m specifically designing for enterprise UX. Challenges aren’t the same as for consumer UX (and add to the frustrations of not being a decider).
If you have any insights on promoting the value of enterprise UX, resources…etc or even just stories: I’d love reading it.