The struggles of being a junior designer
Lately, I’ve been feeling kind of down at my job. It’s not the work itself, rather it’s this feeling and understanding that I’m still new to the design field and giving myself grace to accept that is something that I’ve been juggling with for the past couple days.
Recently, I stumbled upon this concept of IKIGAI, which roughly translates from Japanese to English as “a reason for being.” I found this concept by watching a bunch of videos from The Futur, and the whole concept got me thinking about where I am currently and how I’m feeling about it.
It’s one way to feel your feelings, but it’s another way to separate your feelings from the objectivity of what’s actually happening, and so I wanted to reflect on how my experience has been as a junior designer working in the UX industry for about 10 months.
You’re going to fail, a lot
Not to start off super negatively, but there’s going to be a lot of mistakes when you first start off in a new job. Coming into the field, I’ve made several mistakes, but from those mistakes were several lessons. It makes sense to feel frustrated and think to yourself “how did I not think of that before,” but the truth is we didn’t know any better.
There’s a quote by Kobe Bryant where he states that “failure does not exist,” and that’s the mindset you have to adapt especially early on your career. It doesn’t matter if you have the slickest UI skills or impeccable design thinking, you’re going to fail and learning from those failures is the first step of mastery.
You don’t know everything, so ask for help
One thing that I struggled with (and still struggle with to this day) is knowing when to jump in and ask for help. I made this rule for myself where if I work on something for 30 minutes and I still have no clue what I’m doing, I reach out to my co-workers for help.
It’s one thing to just rely on someone to do the work for you and another to ask for guidance when you can’t seem to crack the code. If you don’t have someone within your organization to help, ask someone else. ADPList is a great place where you can find someone to help mentor you early in your career, so use it to your advantage.
Assert yourself, don’t be shy
This is definitely the biggest struggle I’m currently dealing with at my job. There’s been many times where I could’ve stepped in and help lead a conversation, support a co-worker with explaining a design decision, or just coming off mute to correct someone’s statement. The truth is, there’s no reason to fear that because what you say is only going to help benefit the conversation.
I remember when I finally asserted myself in a conversation and thinking to myself “huh, that wasn’t so bad; why was I so scared to do that initially?” It’s okay to feel that way, but knowing that once you get over that hurdle, you’ll soon realize that you’ve had the power all along, so take those chances when you have the chance.
At the end of the day, be kind to yourself
UX is a tough industry. It isn’t the rainbows and sunshine that you were promised from the YouTube videos or the Medium articles telling you it’s the best thing since sliced bread. I love UX, but I know that it’s not going to be a perfect job. So give yourself grace because you’re working in an industry that is still growing to this day, and so learning and adapting is already a hard enough skills, so be kind to yourself.
Always remember your why: why did you get into UX? That answer is going to help drive and push you through the thick of your journey. As much as we look at our idols and think that had it smooth, that isn’t the case. Everyone struggled as a junior, and everyone has gone through the motions that me and you are experiencing, so don’t think that you’re the only one that is feeling this way in the world.
You got this, and so much more. Appreciate the struggle and the fruits of your labor will show. 🫰
If you found this article helpful, consider following me on Medium and connecting with me on LinkedIn.
Wanted to chat with me? Feel free to use my Calendly to schedule a coffee chat where we can talk about UX, my journey, or anything Marvel/Star Wars related.
Looking for a mentor? There’s this awesome platform called ADPList where you can find people to guide you. This is where I found most of my mentors in my life.
