February 11, 2022
Going through levels of designer competence is kind of a game: the player goes through battles and earns achievements to move to the next level. Let's watch!
A designer can watch this stream to understand where they are in their journey and which aspects they need to work on. A client can find here an overview of what to look for in the players they want to hire.
Below I’m using a third-person pronoun “she,” though everything I say applies to all genders.
The journey starts. The player is full of hope and energy. In her sleeve, she has some student projects that are beautifully executed. She dives headfirst into real work projects applying the principles she learned. She faces clients' feedback and the limitations that don't always allow her to get the result she saw in her head initially. She does a lot of technical stuff. The drill is "get the task from the superior >> ask technical questions understanding >> execute >> get feedback >> repeat".
Super-power: a fresh take on the problems.
Ways to unlock achievements: listen to feedback, observe and talk to more experienced colleagues.
Potential cause of death: inattentiveness, not aligning the result with technical requirements.
Our player successfully upgrades herself, and she starts to be more confident. She asks the clients and the managers more specific questions at the beginning of each project. Questions become more strategy-oriented, work process – more structured. As a result, design products are more on-point and mindful. Visual look&feel follows current trends and is in accordance with technical requirements.
Super-power: attentiveness to the projects' needs.
Ways to unlock achievements: get to know the adjacent fields like marketing, copywriting, business development, etc.
Potential cause of death: detachment from business goals and adjacent fields.
The accumulated experience leads our player to the top of the mountain. She enhances the process using interactions with all the stakeholders and team members. Her priority is to be business-oriented and engage in all aspects of the project (business, marketing, content, product) to produce the most cohesive, scalable, and hand-off-friendly design product. Visual look&feel prioritizes brand needs and not the current trends.
Super-power: business orientation, process effectiveness, ability to manage the team members.
Ways to unlock achievements: delegate and focus on top-level tasks, take on and guide mentees.
Potential causes of death: burnout, not delegating tasks.
Independent, versatile, and effective creature. She incorporates in her process adjacent fields knowledge on the high level: can plan business and marketing strategy, write content, develop. Teaching previous-levels designers becomes a big part of the day-to-day work process. She delegates and manages employees, taking on consulting, directing, and inspiring roles.
Nothing can stop our player now. Samsara is reached.
I’m open to work in a product team in-house or become a part of an agency. In both cases you will get a hard-working and creative designer. Do you want to continue getting to know me here or are you ready to meet and talk?
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