🤫 The Silent Career Killer #8

Forgetting to leverage allies within your org | Unmasking 50 hidden threats to your UX career | part 8 of 50

👋 Hi UX friend, Marina here!

Welcome to Wednesday’s “Secrets to Career Success” 🔒 subscriber-only edition 🔒 of UX Mentor Diaries.

This newsletter series is my attempt to share what I've learned - often the hard way - about the silent career “sins” you may not even realize you’re committing and show easy ways to fix them to propel your career forward - as soon and as fast as possible. (What you get as a paid subscriber)

Let me share a hard truth I learned too late in my career:

The best UX work in the world won't succeed if you're pushing it forward alone.

I used to think that if my research was thorough enough, my designs pixel-perfect enough, and my presentations compelling enough, success would naturally follow.

I was wrong.

The Lonely Designer Syndrome

You know the feeling.

You're advocating for user needs, armed with data and beautiful designs, but somehow your initiatives keep stalling.

Your voice feels like it's getting lost in the organizational noise.

You're wondering why "they just don't get it."

Here's what I've learned:

If you're fighting these battles alone, you've already lost.

Why We End Up Solo

1. The Self-Reliance Trap
   As UXers, we're problem solvers by nature. We often think we need to figure everything out ourselves. This mindset can isolate us from potential allies.

2. The Expert Shield
   Sometimes we hide behind our expertise, unconsciously creating distance between ourselves and non-UX colleagues who could be powerful advocates.

3. The Process Prison
   We get so caught up in our UX processes and methodologies that we forget to build relationships outside our immediate sphere.

The Real Cost of Going It Alone

When you don't have allies in your corner:

• Your great ideas die in committee

• Your research gets questioned or ignored

• Your design decisions get overruled last-minute

• Your career growth stalls, despite your technical excellence

The Strategic Ally Network

Success in UX requires a deliberate approach to building organizational relationships.

Here's how to create your ally network ↴