Design Philosophy: Become an Expert

We are at an interesting inflection point in product design / UX/UI design / whatever we call ourselves. I have had several interviews recently where the job appears to be more production designer than I am used to. The work of defining the problem has been handed over to Product Owners. The vision is no longer needed. The ask is to be an expert at simplifying experiences to their core. To have a list of metrics to show how your work directly impacted a number.

I have also been defining what my design philosophy is. One core aspect is to “become an expert.”

Great design solutions emerge from deep domain expertise fused with user empathy. While solid fundamentals like visual communication, information architecture, and interaction patterns form a foundation, designers must level up their subject matter credentials to create genuinely impactful solutions.

This starts with rigorously researching the problem space and stakeholders when entering new terrain. I love to consume relevant readings, data, and trends to grasp intricacies. When I joined Wall Street on Demand, a company focused on making retail investing more transparent, I opened a trading account, subscribed to the Wall Street Journal, dove into investing books like The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham, A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Burton G. Malkiel, and The Snowball by Alice Schroeder. I started to consume a new group of podcasts focused on finance. I began to build my knowledge in a new area. I love this aspect of design. We get to learn and explore worlds that we then get to shape.

The best designers, developers, and engineers I have worked with have a similar level of curiosity. It can be difficult to foster an environment that encourages this level of autonomy. In large organizations, decisions must happen slowly. Decision points are centralized, and approval processes are put in place. Having an idea becomes a very tricky thing to get moving. In an agency world, the domain may shift every month, not allowing time to learn and truly become an expert. It is unique to be able to build domain expertise and have the autonomy to act on that expertise. Our world isn’t made for creativity. We speak about creativity as a value, but we don’t work like it is a value. The product design world in big companies has been formalized and standardized to the point that it feels similar to my school experience. You can now use a rubric to define if someone is a good designer. As a dyslexic kid growing up, I was terrible at school in all of the traditional ways. Yet I loved to learn, read, and explore. I luckily found teachers who encouraged creativity and exploration. Now, I am in search of a company that also values creativity. That is looking to build a team that loves to solve problems and collaborate—a surprisingly hard ask.

From a company perspective, bringing creative folks onto the team can be a risk. They are going to question decisions. Creative folks will look at solutions and ideas with unique perspectives that may have yet to be considered. Creative folks are going to challenge decisions. This can be scary and intimidating for some leaders, yet if you embrace creativity and that act of thoughtful questioning, you will build a more substantial business.