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Your Ego is Hurting Your Career

Your Ego is Hurting Your Career

Design whydesignishard.substack.com
Designers hurt their careers by expecting to be creative heroes in their organizations when in reality most specialist roles trade value for money with limited autonomy and authority.
What: An essay by Scott Berkun responding to frustrations about designers' lack of workplace authority, arguing that most jobs have limited autonomy, many businesses function fine without designers, and companies often prioritize low costs over good design.
Takeaway: Designers should pursue power by moving into decision-making roles, build influence as advisors, or develop self-awareness about organizational constraints rather than expecting authority from their title alone.
Original article

Designers fall into an "ego trap" by believing they should be creative heroes in their organizations, when in reality, most jobs involve trading value for money with limited autonomy. Many businesses function without designers, and good design is often less important to companies than keeping costs low. Designers need to accept their role as specialists rather than expecting the authority that comes with more general organizational responsibility.

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