Feeling undervalued, misunderstood, & unheard are common narratives often expressed by folks in design roles—though not exclusive to design. There’s often a sense that the value of design is not fully recognized, leaving many feeling stuck & dissatisfied.
Many believe that things could be better, that their companies could operate differently, & that they could have a larger impact.
Yet, a few things often surface when folks express these issues:
- Not many are open to stepping up to be an agent of change
- Folks don’t know how to address the issues to turn things around
- there’s a fallback to “well, I’m just a [insert role], that’s not my job.”
I say “maybe” to the third point, BUT there’s tremendous opportunity for folks who choose to go beyond their defined scope & take on big challenges.
In fact, what’s typically valued everywhere are individuals who embody boldness, ownership, & a bias towards action; folks who strive for the collective good of their company, team, and customers to make things better.
Now, I want to acknowledge that becoming a driver of change isn’t easy. You don’t just show up, say stuff, & things magically transform just because.
It requires:
🤔 Thinking and Operating Like an Owner: Embrace a mindset that goes beyond your assigned role. Understand that everything matters, not just what you do. Aim to contribute in ways that support the overall business health.
✋ Volunteering to drive initiatives: Don’t just wait for opportunities; seek them out. Take the lead on issues or projects you care about. Change often happens when someone who deeply cares about an issue is willing to drive improvements.
🔎 Spotting opportunities & acting proactively: Always be on the lookout for improvement areas (low lights are a good place to look). When identifying an opportunity, don’t just talk about it— explore pathways & bringing others along.
🫡 Being dependable & accountable: Build trust by being reliable & owning your actions & outcomes. Learning from both successes & setbacks to continually improve.
🗣️ Communicating Effectively: Articulate vision & ideas clearly. Engage in storytelling to depict a better way. Keep in mind that your voice & opinions are valuable; find ways to drive them home so it’s heard & considered. Repeating never hurts.
🚀 Delivering results & showcasing them: Focus on getting things done & visibly demonstrate the impact of the work.
Doing these things will start to untangle the themes of feeling undervalued, misunderstood, & unheard. If you notice, the steps have very little to do with a specific function & everything to do with mindset & behavior. That’s intentional because it shifts to a holistic approach that factors the whole, and not a narrow functional view.
Oh, some upside, this also neatly aligns with Dan Pink’s theory on motivation being about Autonomy, Mastery, & Purpose. Operating like an owner can provide a sense of purpose, taking the initiative offers autonomy, & being dependable and results-driven is something to master over time.
PS, designer’s, craft is still VERY important, so it isn’t an either or. Be great at understanding business AND design. All I’m saying is be business minded when approaching topics, then filter the inputs through your functional len when moving on outputs for outcomes.