Embracing Failure: How Product Designers Can Learn and Evolve Like Product Managers
擁抱失敗：產品設計師如何像產品經理一樣學習和發展
As a product designer, you may have experienced moments of frustration and disappointment when your designs don’t meet expectations. I know I felt frustrated and disappointed when a product iteration didn’t meet my expectations. It took time and practice to shift my perspective so I could embrace failure as an opportunity to learn and evolve. Now I see failure as a stepping stone towards improvement, and I’ve learned to leverage setbacks. As product designers, you can do the same to both enhance your skills and create exceptional designs. In this blog post, we’ll explore how product designers can adopt a product manager’s mindset when it comes to failure, turning it into a catalyst for growth and innovation.
作為一名產品設計師，當你的設計未達到預期時，你可能會經歷過沮喪和失望的時刻。
我知道當產品迭代沒有達到我的期望時我感到沮喪和失望。我需要時間和實踐來改變我的觀點，
這樣我才能將失敗視為學習和發展的機會。現在，我將失敗視為進步的墊腳石，並且我學會了利用挫折。
作為產品設計師，你可以這樣做來提高技能並創造出卓越的設計。
在這篇文中，我們將探討產品設計師如何在失敗時採用產品經理的思維方式，
將其轉化為增長和創新的催化劑。1. Reframe Failure as a Learning Experience:
Failure is an inherent part of product development. I didn’t immediately understand this. The first time I took a brand new product to market it was a spectacular failure. We were over budget, it took too long to build, it wasn’t to spec, it didn’t sell, and it didn’t meet user expectations (which is part of why it didn’t sell well). I thought I was going to lose my job. It was a dark and turbulent time. As a way to cope, I bleached my hair blonde.
1. 將失敗重新定義為一種學習經歷：
失敗是產品開發的固有組成部分。我沒有立即明白這一點。
我第一次將一種全新產品推向市場時遭遇了巨大的失敗。我們超出了預算，
建造時間太長，不符合規格，沒有賣出去，也沒有達到用戶的期望（這也是它賣得不好的部分原因）。
我以為我會失業。那是一個黑暗而動蕩的時期。作為應對的一種方式，我把頭髮漂白成金色。Ultimately, I didn’t lose my job. Instead, I remade myself from the outside in, learned to embrace failure, and developed an expensive addiction to bleach. I focused on the lessons I could learn with my team. We analyzed what went wrong, identified areas for improvement, and figured out how to pivot the product. The trick is to stay open and present during the turbulent times so you don’t miss the gifts (a/k/a the learnings). You need to find the learnings, pick them up and incorporate insights into your future endeavours.
最終，我沒有失去工作。相反，我從外到內重塑了自己，學會了擁抱失敗，並對漂白劑產生了昂貴的依賴。
我專注於我可以從我的團隊中學到的教訓。我們分析了問題所在，確定了需要改進的領域，
並找出瞭如何調整產品。訣竅是在動盪時期保持開放和活在當下，這樣你就不會錯過禮物（又名學習）。
你需要找到經驗教訓，吸取教訓，並將見解融入到你未來的努力中。2. Cultivate a Growth Mindset:
Product managers must possess a growth mindset. If we, and the products we support, are not growing, we are dying (let’s hear it for capitalism!). It helps to know that our abilities and the products we support can be developed through dedication and hard work. You can adopt this mindset as a product designer by viewing each setback as an opportunity for personal and professional growth. Embrace challenges, seek feedback, and be open to evolving your design approach. Over time, your resilience and adaptability will set you apart from others.
2. 培養成長心態：
產品經理必須具備成長心態。如果我們以及我們支持的產品不增長，我們就會消亡
（讓我們聽聽資本主義的說法！）。知道我們的能力和我們支持的產品可以通過奉獻和努力來發展，
這很有幫助。作為產品設計師，你可以採用這種心態，將每次挫折視為個人和職業成長的機會。
迎接挑戰，尋求反饋，並樂於改進您的設計方法。
隨著時間的推移，你的韌性和適應能力將使你從其他人中脫穎而出。3. Iterate and Improve:
Product managers understand the importance of iteration in the product development lifecycle. We rely on learnings to inform product strategy. We learn to be comforted by the build-measure-learn cycle because it teaches us that we don’t have to have all the answers. We only need to ship an iteration that buys us more learnings and we can figure out what to do next. Rather than being discouraged by a failed design, use it as a starting point for improvement. This is where you can partner with your PM. Together you can break down the design, analyze its strengths and weaknesses, and figure out how to iterate on it. By incorporating user feedback, conducting usability tests, and refining your designs based on real insights, you will help bring your team closer to a successful solution.
3. 迭代和改進：
產品經理了解迭代在產品開發生命週期中的重要性。我們依靠學習來製定產品策略。
我們學會對構建-測量-學習循環感到安慰，因為它告訴我們，我們不必擁有所有答案。
我們只需要發布一個迭代，讓我們學到更多的知識，然後我們就可以弄清楚下一步該做什麼。
不要因失敗的設計而氣餒，而應將其作為改進的起點。你可以在這裡與你的產品經理合作。
你們可以一起分解設計，分析其優點和缺點，並找出如何對其進行迭代。
通過整合用戶反饋、進行可用性測試並根據真實見解改進設計，您將幫助您的團隊更接近成功的解決方案。4. Leverage Failure to Enhance Customer-Centricity:
Product managers, like designers, need to prioritize customer-centricity. Failure always provides valuable insights into customer needs and preferences. Remember when I said my first product failed? I learned why when I started talking to customers (and analyzing the business model hypothesis). When a design falls short, take the opportunity to delve deeper into user research and talk with your PM about how the business measures success. Ask your product team for funding to seek feedback from customers (and users too!) and conduct surveys or interviews so you understand user pain points and expectations. You can count on these insights to drive your design decisions and create solutions that truly resonate with your target audience.
4. 利用失敗來增強以客戶為中心：
產品經理和設計師一樣，需要優先考慮以客戶為中心。失敗總是能提供對客戶需求和偏好的寶貴見解。
還記得我說過我的第一個產品失敗了嗎？當我開始與客戶交談（並分析商業模式假設）時，我明白了原因。
當設計不盡如人意時，請藉此機會深入研究用戶研究，並與你的產品經理討論業務如何衡量成功。
向你的產品團隊尋求資金，以尋求客戶（以及用戶！）的反饋並進行調查或訪談，
以便你了解用戶的痛點和期望。
你可以依靠這些見解來推動設計決策並創建真正與目標受眾產生共鳴的解決方案。5. Embrace a Data-Informed Approach:
Product managers heavily rely on data to inform their decisions, and designers can do the same. If your company can afford it, and the opportunity is great enough, ask for user tests and A/B tests. Don’t be shy, ask for access to analytics tools — or to the analytics team — to gain a comprehensive understanding of how users interact with the product as it is now. Use this data to identify patterns, validate assumptions, and make informed design choices. This work may add on to the time needed for solution design but a data-informed approach enables you to iterate based on evidence, reducing the risk of failure in future designs. These investments often create a cost savings.
5. 採用基於數據的方法：
產品經理嚴重依賴數據來做出決策，設計師也可以這樣做。
如果你的公司負擔得起，並且機會足夠大，請要求進行用戶測試和 A/B 測試。
不要害羞，請求訪問分析工具 - 或分析團隊 - ，以全面了解用戶現在如何與產品交互。
使用這些數據來識別模式、驗證假設並做出明智的設計選擇。
這項工作可能會增加解決方案設計所需的時間，但基於數據的方法使你能夠根據證據進行迭代，
從而降低未來設計失敗的風險。這些投資通常可以節省成本。6. Foster Effective Collaboration:
Product managers must excel in collaboration, and designers benefit from this skill as well. Seek feedback and input from cross-functional teams, including engineers, marketers, and product managers. Embrace diverse perspectives and actively listen to feedback. Collaboration not only improves the quality of your designs but also helps you learn from others’ experiences and expertise.
6. 促進有效的協作：
產品經理必須擅長協作，設計師也可以從這項技能中受益。
尋求跨職能團隊（包括工程師、營銷人員和產品經理）的反饋和意見。擁抱不同的觀點並積極傾聽反饋。
協作不僅可以提高您的設計質量，還可以幫助你學習他人的經驗和專業知識。7. Emphasize Post-Failure Analysis:
Fall in love with post-mortem, a/k/a the retro! This ceremony helps everyone analyze why a product iteration failed and how to avoid similar pitfalls in the future. Apply this concept to your design process by conducting post-failure analysis. Reflect on the design’s strengths and weaknesses, evaluate the decision-making process, and identify any gaps or blind spots. This introspection will enable you to refine your approach and make more informed design choices going forward.
By adopting a product manager’s mindset towards failure, product designers can transform setbacks into opportunities for growth and evolution. Reframe failure as a learning experience, cultivate a growth mindset, iterate and improve continuously, leverage failure to enhance user-centricity, embrace data-informed insights, foster effective collaboration, and emphasize post-failure analysis. Remember, failure is not the end; it is merely a stepping stone on your journey to becoming an exceptional product designer. Embrace it, learn from it, and let it propel you towards innovation and success.
7. 強調失敗後的分析：
愛上後設，又名復盤！這個儀式幫助大家分析一個產品迭代失敗的原因以及未來如何避免類似的陷阱。
通過進行失敗後的分析，將此概念應用到你的設計過程中。反思設計的優點和缺點，評估決策過程，並
找出任何差距或盲點。這種內省將使你能夠改進你的方法並做出更明智的設計選擇。
通過採用產品經理對待失敗的心態，產品設計師可以將挫折轉化為成長和進化的機會。
將失敗重新定義為一種學習經歷，培養成長心態，不斷迭代和改進，利用失敗來增強以用戶為中心，
擁抱數據洞察，促進有效協作，並強調失敗後分析。請記住，失敗並不是結束；
它只是你成為傑出產品設計師的踏腳石。擁抱它，從中學習，並讓它推動你走向創新和成功。👉 想要確保自己理解設計職涯、全面破解求職嗎？
📩《設計時代》全面徵稿中！如果你也有故事想分享，歡迎來信至 admin@unblock.team
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