Design Is More than Problem Solving

"I'm a problem solver."

It's a common phrase on junior UX designer's Linkedin profiles. I get it. It's a catchy little phrase that shows hiring managers that you can do more than "make stuff pretty."

But designers are more than problem solvers.

UX designers have to be concerned with the problem, but in the early days of your career, your work might be more solution-focused. You might even find yourself with a UX title but doing the work of a UI designer. That's ok; Solving problems is the gateway drug to more advanced work. Problem-solving and solution-work is an easy place to start a design career.

However, solutions shouldn't be your main focus.

Understanding problems may not get as much airtime, but it's key to good solutions.

Too many solutions in this world aren't based on a real problem.

For example:

Take the Amazon Fire Phone. You may have forgot Amazon that tried to design a phone once. It had its own app store and lots of fancy 3d-rendering technology. This was Jeff Bezos' pet project, and he was sure it would be a success...but it was a total failure. The phone was a great solution to a non-existent problem. The Fire Phone a total failure that cost Amazon $170,000,000.

As your career progresses and you tackle more complex problems, you will get the opportunity to work on problems, not just solutions. That's when you will become more than a problem solver.

It takes skill to solve problems, but it takes experience to find and frame problems. Problem-finding and problem-framing is a way to set yourself apart from the never-ending supply of design graduates ready to "solve problems" for anyone that will hire them.

Problem-focused skills are very strategic career skills for any ambitious designer. Here are some ways to use these skills at tech startups.

Finding Problems

Gather inputs for future design outputs.

Many companies naively think they can design great products through their own expertise. These companies might have great ideas, but they don't always check these ideas against the external.

A little bit of discovery can go a long way. It can save weeks of building the wrong thing.

Finding the time and permission to talk to customers is really hard. What super-specific ways can you find problems when you're low on time?

Some specific ways to find problems:

• Talk to customers.?Get a?Calendly?and send that link out!
• Gather existing knowledge.?Desk research whenever you can.
• Get access to user data.?Just ask your PM.
• Observe the context.?The setting can provide clarity.
• Scope research into projects.?(try this UX Research Canvas for planning)

Framing Problems

Form clear and conquerable problems from customer data.

The way that problems are formed and articulated is extremely important in UX design. There is a power to the way that we talk about the problem we're trying to solve.

The common misconception with research is that we can stop discovery when we hear the same problem from a few customers. There is an entire phase after the interviews that most UX designers skip.

This missing phase after gathering research is all about examining the data more closely. It allows us to break down what was said (analysis), and It allows us to connect with the bigger concepts and ideas (synthesis). This abstract mental phase is known as design synthesis.

This stage helps you to connect the research input (usually observed data on a customer) with the application of that research (often a visual such as a wireframe).

Some specific ways to frame problems:

• Gather & edit insights.?Do this throughout any research project.
• Analyze & synthesize research data.?Know the difference?and do both. Take the time to work with data, not just gather it.
• Create concise problem statements.?Narrow down to the final problem through editing and collaboration (one of the most underrated skills in UX).

Check out these?10 specific methods?you can use to frame (and reframe) problems.

You can be more than a problem solver.

Solving problems can be the gateway to more advanced work.

If you're only a problem solver, and you want to be more, check out this?free course on UX research. It's a great way to get a start in problem-finding and framing.

Jeff Humble is a Co-Founder of the Fountain Institute and former Head of Design at CareerFoundry. He writes about design from a generalist perspective and loves talking about advanced UX, product strategy, and emerging trends.

This article was originally posted in Beyond Aesthetics. Get design resources and exclusive access to events by signing up for Jeff's free weekly newsletter: