Advice for New Designers

A quick pep talk for those feeling lost or discouraged

I just moved back to Seattle after eight years in San Francisco. It feels really great to be home. And it reminds me that I’ve been a designer for a while.

In Seattle, phantoms of my earlier life are everywhere. The University of Washington campus, where I stubbornly majored in painting, while slowly realizing I loved computers more than oils. The bus stops where I commuted to my first design jobs. The coffee shop where I scratched the schedules for what would go on to become the first Design Sprints in a spiral notebook. I’m in that just-moved honeymoon stage combined with some serious nostalgia. It’s fun.

While I’m looking back, I thought I’d share something I wish I’d heard when I was in school — not studying human computer interaction, computer science, or business — and in my first few years (and many times after!) as a designer, when I felt like I didn’t know what the hell was going on. If you’re just starting your own product design career, or are feeling stuck, listen to this:

You belong here

I say this because most designers have a secret inferiority complex. I sure do. Maybe you think you didn’t study at the right school, or didn’t study the right thing. Maybe you think your colleagues or…