UX Mindsets: Not a just a designer’s, but a human’s superpower.
How a “growth” mindset can not only change your design process, but even your life?
The last year of my life has been chock full of “self help”, understanding, and personal growth. However, the last two months have been filled with unparalleled realizations that in order to grow, you must first be nothing.
Not actually nothing in the physical sense but rather a blank canvas, awaiting for the next interaction you have to be the paint and brush to your soul. Going into anything new, you must be open to the concept that you have no clue what you are doing, and thats ok. Yes, people will know, and yes, they will most likely make judgements but, if you live your life in that space you are forced to live there forever. Or until you choose not to, and in that moment you may of adopted a “growth” mindset.
Having a growth or UX mindset is not specific to UX designers. In fact it’s not specific to anyone and a super power for the people at large. Honing these mindsets and bringing them out in the real world benefits everyone and truly paves the way for others to see things they may not of otherwise known. It offers us the chance to experience others pain, learn something deeply life changing, or conceptualize something entirely new.
Have an open mind
Consider the possibility that perhaps you know less than you think you know. Consider the fact that the person sitting next to you on the train has something that they can teach you or something that can shift your paradigm. This is something I had to get present to every morning for myself.
Allowing yourself the space to grow is a necessary part of building much like the blank canvas is to create. For me, this was not a natural mindset to have as it was hard for me to understand that what I had learned was potentially one of many ways. Being patient with others, understanding their own process, and taking something from all of that is one of the most important things you can do for yourself. It is very easy to let our egos get in the way of progress and often this simple fact is what keeps up from growing.
Hold onto curiosity
I remember being a child and constantly wondering what happens if “x” happens to “y”. These questions were the foundations of my actions, constantly motivating me to find out, sometimes ending with a trip to the hospital and other times a new understanding. As I grew older I realized those questions grew more and more scarce in my mind and my acceptance of what “is” became easier and easier.
UX design has brought me full circle to ask “why?”. Why would someone want an app that does this? Why did you feel that way? Why did you cancel your subscription to Netflix? When you get to the why, you understand so much more about what is actually occurring for the user. It’s not just that the color bothered them, it’s that in the third grade, that color was on the wall in the principle’s office at school. Then you see just how much of a human lies on the other side of “why?”.
Practice humility
In my last project, I knew my team and I had put in the work, found valuable insights, and put together deliverables we would put our money behind. After our presentation, many things I had thought were clearly communicated were clearly not. My natural response is to feel embarrassed about this sort of result, however I realized just how much there was to learn from this entire experience.
Having humility and being humble allows you to understand that no matter the result, there is room to learn and grow.
Have empathy — A UX designers superpower?
An instructor of mine often states that empathy is a UX designers superpower and I believe him. Initially, at the start of my education I recognized that empathy is huge part of anything in regards to your relationship to others. being able to put yourself in someone else’s shoes is the key to connection. How does that translate to UX though?
Sure, I recognize that this button was a pain point for you and this interaction was less than desirable for you, thats an iteration of all but 5 minutes. No, true empathy is designing for the user in a way that you understand their situation on a level far deeper. Maybe your user finds your app to entertain them when they feel pain, maybe they open it on a walk to add ambiance, maybe they are seeking to change their life or the world around them.
As a UX designer empathy may very well be your most powerful superpower. After all, if you use it for good and embrace the users hopes and dreams, foster them, and put them in a better place you may quickly see the world changing for the better.
