If your confidence is at an all-time low in design, try this

"Due to shrinking budgets and layoffs, more designers are being forced to work solo. In The UX Team of One, Leah Buley identifies confidence as a survival skill for solo designers: when you're the only designer in the room, you can't afford to stay silent or let others present your work. The problem is, many designers are effectively forced into high-stakes situations because of this."

""You know, having those conversations early on, reaching out to people in different departments ...that was really hard when I didn't have much confidence." A VP of Design brought this up recently, reflecting what many designers are facing. There's been a crisis of confidence in design, and it's happening all across the career ladder. Due to shrinking budgets and layoffs, more designers are being forced to work solo."

A crisis of confidence affects designers across career levels. Shrinking budgets and layoffs have pushed more designers into solo roles, increasing responsibility for design outcomes. Confidence becomes a practical survival skill for solo designers because they must speak up, present their work, and represent design choices without teammates. High-stakes interactions with executives and office politics place interpersonal communication at the center of a designer's ability to influence decisions. Many designers face difficulty adapting to these demands, and lack of confidence can undermine collaboration, visibility, and career advancement. Developing communication skills and assertiveness is essential for designers operating independently.

Read at Medium