Thread by @GK3

okay here is a thread on how to think about your next team/project/role

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caveat: this is likely most applicable to product designers at medium to big companies, but hopefully it is helpful to all.

this is also just based on my experience which is certainly full of its own biases!

when you’re thinking about changing it up, there are three aspects of a new situation you can optimize for:

👯‍♀️ people
📲 product
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 manager

sometimes you can line up all three of these at once, but from my exp that is very rare and also outside of your control.

you may have everything and then you get re-orged to a new manager or your product gets cut. not much you can do about that except ride it out or leave...

im also sure there are more than these three areas but i think these are most broadly applicable and also ones that i have experience with.

🤔 so when do you optimize for what?

that depends on what you want out of your career at this moment in time.

optimize for 👯‍♀️ people when you feel like you need to grow and develop your skills. imo there’s no faster way to level up as a designer than working around people that are way better and more experienced than you.

optimize for 📲 product when you feel like you have the skills you need but you’re not working on the kind of things you are passionate about. it’s very true that you get the kind of work that you do, so this is a great way to change lanes.

optimize for 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 manager when you want to make a transition or get new types of responsibilities. want to get promoted? your manager is key. want to mentor more? a manager will find those opportunities for you.

if you are feeling stuck and underserved in one of these areas there’s always other things you can do. connect with other talented people outside of work, work on side projects in the lane you want to be in, or ask other managers to mentor you.

i hope this is helpful!!!

and please remember that this is not the entire picture. my experience is only one of many and im sure there are other really important aspects to consider

also i probably absorbed a lot of this from living with @OhThatMeagan so extra special thanks to her for helping me be a better person! 😍

some people have pinged me on the side with some additional things i think are worth adding:

this whole thread is based on the presumption that you’re clear on what you want out of your career. this can sometimes be obvious, but sometimes takes a lot of deep introspection before you’re sure. don’t rush it!

perks can also play a part in this, but usually something to weigh between jobs not teams. but, maybe the teams are in offices in different locations and you’re feeling burnt out by the commute...

dont feel bad about prioritizing your own mental health over these other 3 areas!