10 Signs Indicate You Are a Senior Designer

When I was a junior-level designer, I had been wondering how to advance in my career. Reflecting on my earlier way of working, I have come up with ten signs which indicate that I am getting more senior. This article might help the designers who are trying to improve but are uncertain what to do.

1. Don’t only do what you are asked to do, but understand why you have to do it.

My supervisor once said, “when you grow more senior, you have to choose projects where you feel you can grow.” It is a valuable quote to me. Like many other very kind designers, I don’t want to turn people down by saying “no”. Thus, I have in the past accepted projects that I don’t feel particularly enthusiastic about. However, saying no is a very critical skill to have. Especially when someone asks you to build up some features instead of solving a problem, it is a sign that it might not be an enjoyable or impactful project to take on.

2. It is not only about the design; it is a people business.

It is essential to understand and weigh the wishes of different stakeholders. When I was a junior designer, I only focused on completing my task. Now, I have learnt that building good relationships and understanding stakeholders’ wishes are crucial. A project could fail if we forget to involve a key stakeholder at the beginning of the project.

3. Do the research and understand your users as much as possible before doing the actual design.