Beyond UX Design

Designers love talking about empathy… Just not for the people they work with. This week, we talk about why empathy has to extend beyond users and how you can apply familiar UX research techniques to better understand your teammates, PMs, and stakeholders.

If empathy is such a core UX skill, why are so many designers bad at applying it to the people they work with?

Designers love talking about empathy for users. But if your re...

Not all prejudice is loud or obvious. In this episode, we explore the quiet kind: the one that hides behind gut feelings and culture fit. We'll break down how implicit bias shapes team dynamics, hiring decisions, and everyday interactions, even in well-meaning workplaces.

What if the biggest barrier to equity on your team isn’t hate, but habit?

In this episode of the Cognition Catalog, we dig into the subtleties of prejud...

Think all you need is a polished portfolio and perfect case study to land your next job? Trevor Alexander says otherwise. In this episode, we challenge the traditional career advice designers are given, and talk about what actually leads to long-term success, resilience, and trust.

What if everything you’ve been told about how to build a successful design career was wrong?

If you’re still clinging to the idea that a polished ...

In this throwback episode, I chat with Jason Ogle from the User Defenders Podcast about something we don’t talk about enough: self-care for UX designers. We explore how taking care of ourselves is essential to be truly empathetic.

Could self-care be the most overlooked tool in a UX designer’s toolkit?

How can we expect to fill our users’ cups if our own is empty? What if taking care of yourself is the most user-centric design...

What’s stopping your work from shipping? It’s probably not the design itself. This week, I chat with Guy Segal about the soft skills that make the biggest difference—giving feedback, earning trust, and aligning with your team when things get tough.

What if the biggest reason your designs aren’t making it to production has nothing to do with design?

You know your work is solid. You’ve put in the hours, iterated on the flow, an...

Understanding how power works might be the most underrated UX skill. Thomas Wilson shares ways to navigate power, bridge generational gaps, and influence decisions, even when you don’t have direct control.

Why do some designers influence major decisions while others get ignored? The answer might come down to how well you understand power.

You can’t influence what you don’t understand. In this conversation, I sit down with Tho...

Freelancing doesn't have to mean chaos and burnout. In this episode, we explore how to scale your freelance business without hiring a team by getting smarter with tools, strategy, and specialization.

What if you could scale your freelance business without hiring a team, just by using the right tools?

Most freelancers hit the same wall: they think going solo means doing it all. But today’s guest, Maciej Konarzewski, shares...

What if becoming a manager isn’t the upgrade you’ve been led to believe?

What if you could grow your influence and your impact, without giving up the work you actually love doing? In this episode, Filippos Protogeridis shares why traditional UX career ladders don’t always work and how he carved out a leadership path that didn’t require a team of direct reports.

A lot of mid-level and senior designers assume the only way to ad...

Tired of stressing over your UX portfolio? Discover smart ways to showcase your value clearly, even if you’re buried in NDAs or complex enterprise projects. Learn how to simplify your story, prioritize content strategically, and confidently communicate your UX expertise without falling into portfolio overwhelm.

How do you turn years of complicated UX work into a clear, concise story that hiring managers actually want to read?

Explore how psychology drives effective UX design. Learn practical methods for integrating psychological principles into your design process and gain insights into ethical considerations and storytelling techniques.

Why do some apps just "feel right," while others completely miss the mark?

Maybe psychology is the missing ingredient in your UX toolkit.

Today, I sit down with a UX veteran who has spent years decodi...

Building a design system is the easy part—getting your team to adopt it is the real challenge. We dive into the hidden elements that make design systems truly successful.

What if the real blocker to your design system isn’t tooling or design, but trust?

This week, I talk with Justin Crews, a senior product designer with a background in film, systems thinking, and complex enterprise UX. We dig into what it actually takes to build desi...

In this episode, I chat with Thomas Wilson, a veteran service designer, who challenges the conventional product-first approach in software and highlights the importance of broad, strategic thinking in design.Is the software industry focusing too much on products?

Thomas Wilson thinks we’re ignoring the value our core services bring.In this episode, I chat with Thomas Wilson, a seasoned design veteran with a deep understanding of hum...

This week, Edward Chechique joins me to discuss rethinking design careers, ditching outdated career advice, and learning how to survive (and thrive) in 2025’s chaotic job market. We talk layoffs, AI, content creation, side hustles, and redefining what it means to be a UX pro today.

What if your job title doesn't define your career? What if your "career" wasn’t the point at all?

We were told that if we worked har...

Discover how Stefon Towler's 5/15/5 framework transforms stakeholder relationships by understanding what truly drives decisions. Learn a systematic approach to uncovering stakeholder priorities and crafting messages that resonate with decision-makers at every level.

What if you could predict exactly how your stakeholders would respond to your ideas before you even present them?

Stefon Towler brings deep insight into the psychology of...

Explore how one successful project can create an unrealistic aura of perfection around team members, leading to skewed judgment and potentially risky decision-making in professional settings. Understanding the Halo Effect helps teams make more objective assessments.

Have you ever wondered why some team members seem to get a free pass on everything after one big success?

In this episode of 'The Cognition Catalog,' we dig into the hal...

This week, I have a candid discussion about the disconnect between UX design education and real-world practice with Joe Natoli. Joe shares insights on why traditional UX education falls short and reveals what it really takes to succeed in corporate environments beyond just following design processes.

What if everything you learned about UX design in school was only 40% of what you actually need to succeed in the real world?

Joe Natol...

Learn how strategic writing can transform your decision-making process and save your team from investing in the wrong ideas. Discover Amazon's PRFAQ framework—a powerful framework that helps identify potential failures before they happen.

What if you could identify doomed projects before wasting months of effort and resources?

This week, I chat with Marcelo Calbucci, an entrepreneur, technologist, and author with over 25 years of exp...

A practical exploration of how teams can avoid the pitfalls of misremembered information, told through a revealing story of two confident leaders who remembered the same research differently—and were both wrong.

What happens when you're absolutely sure about something that never actually happened?

Picture this: A heated debate between two senior leaders, each absolutely certain about different user requirements. Both spok...

Explore the profound impact of mindset on your UX career. Discover how shifting from fixed to growth thinking can transform not just your skills but your entire approach to challenges and opportunities.

What if your biggest obstacle isn't your skill level, your portfolio, or the job market?

What if it's the way you think about your own potential for growth?

Nick Mann shares his journey from a fixed mindset that limited his opportuniti...