Letters From a Designer

Dear Designer,

You have a beautiful soul and a gentle heart. You are kind. I love and appreciate these qualities. 

However, it pains me to see that you might be holding yourself back from reaching your full potential. It frustrates me to witness how you're wasting your career and life by being overly accommodating and not standing up for yourself.

I know that you have so much more to offer and achieve, and it hurts me to see you settle for less. 

So, here I'm using the pages in this book to pour out my inner screams to help you unlock your full potential as a Designer, gain new perspectives and break free from self-limitations.

This is not a place to be offended. 

This is the time to reflect on your actions and be honest with yourself.

You have the power to break free from the limitations you've set for yourself and become a stronger, braver designer. So, please take this as a reminder of your potential and a call to action to start living up to it.

Unlock your full potential as a Designer, gain new perspectives and break free from self-limitations with the collection of inspiring and honest letters born out of Tough-Love 🖤

Read the first letter

Letter 1 (Comfort Zone)

Dear Designer,

Don’t be lazy! 
Get the fuck out of your comfort zone! 

Make the most of your workplace.
Seek opportunities to learn, contribute, make connections, grow…

Are you a UI designer? 
Don’t limit yourself to the responsibilities of that title! 

1. Go and talk to Developers. Learn how they’re implementing your designs and what technologies they are using.

2. Go and talk to Sales. Learn how they are selling the product you’ve been designing.

3. Go and talk to …

Find people with different experiences and skill sets in the workplace. Chase them! Learn from them! Help them!

I interviewed a lot of designers from large, top tech companies very recently and to my surprise, I saw how little they did despite the vast opportunities they had in such privileged environments. 

Don’t be satisfied with the minimum level of effort to save the day. 

Get the most out of your company and the people around you while you are there.

All these efforts, connections and learned skills will greatly be in your favour in your next role and the rest of your life.

It will make you stand out in the design industry as a valuable designer and people/companies will appreciate that value. Regardless of what happens in the job market, you will be in demand.

Don't play in survival mode, 
Play the Growth game!

After posting this letter on Twitter, I received feedback from both experienced designers who had already had this wake-up call and advanced their careers, as well as from other designers who were just coming to this realization. 

Some of these designers have reached out to me via DMs and email to discuss their next steps and how they can advance their careers. I'm staying in touch with as many of them as possible to provide support and follow up on their progress.

Who is this book for?

This book covers the human skills that any designer can benefit from, from junior designers who want to have a strong start in their design careers to senior designers who want to advance to leadership roles.  

You as ___ (please let me know what your goal is.)

Wait! A Friendly Warning!

This book offers straightforward advice without any fluff or BS.

You may disagree with some of the advice from the very first line, but I encourage you to read the entire letter to understand the reasoning behind it.

Some of the advice may go against the trendy culture, but rest assured that they are timely and long-term proven methods with 25 years of experience.

I invite you to keep an open mind and genuinely consider the advice presented in this book. 

Wait, Oykun! Who the hell are you?

I'm glad you asked.

I've been in this tech world professionally since 1999! Damn, time flies!

I started my career as a full-stack developer and designer, then I decided to fully focus on Design. I also took my role in marketing, managing and more. Today I'm a full-time Designer with experiences from those various roles in my belt that helps me to understand and feel for all these parties' roles in product development cycle.

I worked in any environment you can imagine from 1 man start-up as a Sole Designer & Developer to the world's largest investment bank as a Senior Vice President of Design + Design Manager and everything in between. 

I have been through a lot and I have seen a lot!

I mentored a lot of designers at any level from Juniors to Seniors. 

Now I want to widen my circle and help more designers in their career journey via online efforts like my newsletter, ebooks and courses.

OK! Now you're ready for a wake-up call that will help you advance your design career

Unlock your full potential as a Designer, gain new perspectives and break free from self-limitations with the collection of inspiring and honest letters born out of Tough-Love 🖤

Still have questions?
Shoot me a message on X at @oykun.