5 Empowered Mindsets to Build a New Career in Design

You may have forgotten how much personal power you have.

The truth is, no matter where you are in life, this very moment is a chance to move in a new direction.

You can learn new skills, make new connections, and build a brand new career that makes you come alive, like one in UX/UI design.

It may not be easy, but when you change your mindset, you change your life.

Here are 5 empowered mindsets to catalyze that change.

1) Hold a Bias for Action….and just start designing

How did you learn to ride a bike? You hopped on and tried to ride it. Well, same goes for ANY skill, including UX/UI design. Just start designing and see what happens. The worst thing is you fail at first. And failure equals learning.

Don’t get stuck in thinking mode. Avoid analysis paralysis. Take on the action bias mindset, take action daily, and learn to adjust as you go.

“You can’t be that kid standing at the top of the waterslide, overthinking it. You have to go down the chute.”
— Tina Fey

2) Empower yourself with the World Wide Web – start a free trial on a design tool

The world wide web is an infinite amusement park of opportunity…The question is, will you take advantage of it?

For instance, there are many design tools out there to get you a taste of UX/UI design. Getting started is as easy as starting a free trial of a tool and playing around. The possibilities are endless. So pick something small to start with. You could try creating a multi-step user flow in Figma, for example.

This is a great way to tinker, test, and experiment, and build creative momentum. Think of yourself as a little kid stepping into a sandbox for the first time. Just have fun, (even if your sandcastles break in half at first).

Once you’ve got a little taste of UX/UI, that’s when you might want to take it a step further, and enroll in an online course or design bootcamp. 🙂

“The challenge, it turns out, isn’t in perfecting your ability to know when to start and when to stand by. The challenge is getting into the habit of starting.”
– Seth Godin

3) Let go of the stories about your past

The past is over. But the future is not yet written.

Those old beliefs, stories, and assumptions about who you are and what’s possible for you? You can let them go. Why not? Why not begin anew?

When it comes to UX/UI design, you might think “I’m not qualified to work in tech” or “I’m not creative enough,” or “I’m bad at learning new skills.”

All of these are stories.

Let them go.

There is a blank page in front of you, ready for you to write your script. Will you take the pen?

“For what it’s worth: it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be. There’s no time limit, stop whenever you want. You can change or stay the same, there are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it…..I hope you live a life you’re proud of. If you find that you’re not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again.”
― Benjamin Button, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Designlab has helped more than 1750 people transform their careers…will you be next? If you’re ready to pursue a more fulfilling career in UX/UI design, why wait? Get started today.

4) Invest in yourself

Don’t get in your own way. Take the leap and invest in yourself and your growth. The key is to be aware that parts of you might feel scared or hesitant. You might want to hold back and “play it safe.” But what greater risk is there than preventing your own growth? Not to get morbid, but at the end of life do you want to arrive at the grave with your own creative treasure left buried inside?

When it comes to a self-investment of time, money, and energy (be it with learning new skills, building a portfolio, or committing to a design bootcamp), it can be hard to take the leap. But bet on yourself, open your wings, and allow yourself to fly.

“The best gift you can give to yourself is to invest in yourself.”
― Pooja Agnihotr

“The wealthiest place on the planet is just down the road. It is the cemetery. There lie buried companies that were never started, inventions that were never made, bestselling books that were never written, and masterpieces that were never painted. In the cemetery is buried the greatest treasure of untapped potential.”
— Dr. Myles Munroe

5) Build community

Like Designlab alumnus Penina Levy told us about changing into a design career, a key ingredient in her career transformation was surrounding herself with supportive people, which she got through her bootcamp experience. “The best part was the people.”

We often underestimate how this impacts our confidence and career growth.

If you want to become a ballet dancer, surround yourself with ballet dancers.
If you want to become an entrepreneur, surround yourself with entrepreneurs.
If you want to become a UX/UI designer, surround yourself with UX/UI designers!

Obviously this won’t replace the work you need to do on your own to build skills, a design portfolio, etc. But immersing yourself in an environment absolutely will give you the support and influence that can funnel you towards a trajectory of success.

And of course, you’ll build contacts and connections that may help you get a foot in the door for your first job, or a job down the line in your career.

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

― Jim Rohn

“Show me your friends and I’ll show you your future.”

— Dan Pena