🤫 The Silent Career Killer #26

How invisibility stalls your career + a downloadable cheat sheet to start changing that | Unmasking 50 hidden threats to your UX career | part 26 of 50

There’s a mistake I see all the time.

But we don’t talk about it enough.

👉 Staying invisible.

Not on purpose.
Not because you lack skill.
But because you’ve believed - like many of us were taught - that “doing good work” should be enough.

And for a while, it is.

You get hired.
You do great work.
Maybe you even get promoted once or twice.

But then… something shifts.

You start to notice peers getting invited to speak.
Tapped for juicy projects.
Promoted to roles you didn’t even know were open.

And suddenly, it hits you:

• You’ve been building skills, but not a reputation.

• You’ve been seen as capable - but not essential.

• You’ve been doing the work - but not owning the space.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth:
People can’t value what they don’t know you bring.

If no one knows how you think, what you stand for, or where you shine - opportunities can’t find their way to you.

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🤯 Why This Happens

Most experienced UXers weren’t taught to show their thinking.

We were taught to be humble.
To collaborate.
To put the user first.

So we stay quiet.
Keep our heads down.
And hope someone eventually notices our impact.

But that strategy has an expiration date.

At senior levels, the game changes.
You’re no longer just hired to do the work.
You’re expected to shape how it’s talked about, understood, and prioritized.

And if you're not in the conversation?
Someone else defines it for you.

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🔎 A Better Way to Think About It

You’re not trying to become “famous.”

You’re trying to become findable.

• When a peer is wrestling with a gnarly UX problem…
  ↳ you should come to mind.

• When a recruiter is filling a strategic role…
  ↳ your profile should stand out.

• When a junior designer is seeking guidance in a sea of noise…
  ↳ you should be the one they trust.

None of that happens if you stay silent.

So what does showing up look like?

• Leave one thoughtful comment that adds something useful.

• Share one internal UX insight per week - safely anonymized.

• Say yes to the panel. Write the post. Pitch the talk.

• Document your thinking like it matters - because it does.

You don’t have to be loud.
You just have to be clear and visible.

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Here’s the framework I use when my students want to build presence ↴

🌟 The “3P Lens” for Building Visibility

(without selling out)

→ Perspective