How do I cultivate a mindset to learn things I don't enjoy and love the work I don't like?
I don't know if it's the company I'm working at, or the projects I'm working on or it's my ADHD but I feel I don't enjoy UI/UX. I feel I lack the trait where one gives tiny attention to details as I have 'chalega / chaltha hai' attitude. I also realized I hate sitting in front of the screen for long hours. I loved physical product design and had to switch to digital product design due to circumstances that were not in control. I honestly don't understand computers much. I neither enjoy designing app interactions, think about the business aspect of the UI / UX, metrics etc. I sometimes feel like this field isn't for me and I don't know why.
I neither have the privilege's to switch to a new field. I am a slow learner and I admit that I don't have a sharp mind - thanks to ADD. I am 30 YO and I feel like a 22 year old college grad. I have responsibilities on my shoulders and I can't take a break, be on a sabbatical, or resign. I have 4 YOE on the paper but I feel like I just have 2 YOE.
All I can do now is to learn things I don't enjoy and love the work I do as I have to work and bring bread on the table. I have been telling I will switch since 2-3 years and I am yet to do it. I've noticed that it's all about skills that's stopping me. I feel lethargic and bored to learn something new that I feel is though, boring or something that takes me lot of time to learn. Since the last 4 years, I haven't designed a since mobile app screen and I have been in the comfort zone of just designing for desktops. I feel intimidated by seeing apps screenshots in Mobbin and realizing that UI design is a craft that takes learn to learn, I just procrastinate learning app UI design.
My pay is low to live a comfortable life in a tier 1 city. I need to switch to a different company. I lack UI design skills and hence I lack confidence in myself. I regret wasting my time and at the same time, find the process of learning UI design tough. How do I overcome this?
Tbh, I’m younger and less experienced than you are - so, I’m not coming from a place of knowing better. Still have a lot to learn myself. But your post’s honesty did strike a chord with me, so sharing some thoughts I feel might help.
Firstly, recapping the major themes I’m seeing across your post (so only bother reading my suggestions if I understood your situation correctly):
- You’ve had to switch from physical product design (which you loved) to digital due to unforeseen circumstances, and it’s not as exciting or approachable as you would’ve liked. Also, you don’t appreciate long hours behind a screen.
- Your personal situation doesn’t allow for a break, and switching jobs is hard due to a perceived lack of skills.
- You feel ADHD has hampered your learning ability, and you’re unable to expand beyond the comfort zone desktop designs. Also, seeing great designs published online doesn’t help with motivation & confidence.
If I got those right, here are a few ideas to try:
- Try incorporating physical processes into your UX design work - paper prototypes, sketching ideas on real notebooks, visualising user flows through physical objects and spaces, and so on.
- Remember that certain aspects of product design (like user empathy, balancing form & function, defining constraints, affordances & signifiers etc.) are universal, and will translate seamlessly between physical & digital design. Focus on enhancing those in your work.
- Just to rule out your current company/industry as a factor, try taking on small personal projects for problem statements outside your current domain.
- (This one is a bit controversial) “Fake it till you make it” isn’t just words. It can genuinely help sometimes. So don’t indulge too much in the self-talk of lacking skills or being inadequate. Start reaching out to recruiters, keep iterating on your portfolio based on feedback. It’s a long game, but you gotta start somewhere. And it gets easier with time.
All the best! :)