Leadership
Leadership
Leadership
What I Tell Designers Who Feel Invisible
Designers and researchers often don't feel heard or seen in group settings. This hurts morale and culture when it goes on and on.
Brandon Green
Jan 5, 2026
Every designer I've managed has told me some version of the same story. They're the ones talking to users, looking at data, being overly critical of their own work. They have strong convictions about where the product should go. And nobody seems to care.
It actually hurts. All that work, and you're not getting heard. Sometimes you're not even getting seen. Here's what I tell them, and why.
Listen First
You want to be heard. So does everyone else in that room.
When others share their ideas, actually listen. Not just hear them, but try to understand what they're trying to achieve. Ask about their goals, what they need to accomplish, and figure out how your thinking connects to theirs. This might seem obvious, but people tend to hear each other more than they really listen. It gets harder the more meetings you sit through each day, but it's how you find the people who will champion your position later.
When you take the time to understand what other departments are working toward, you start finding common ground. That builds trust. And when people trust you, they're more likely to have your back in meetings, ask for your opinion before decisions get made, and share data that supports your position. Listening isn't just polite. It's how you build the relationships that make you visible in the first place.
Earn the Room's Attention
If it takes you ten minutes to explain your idea, it probably means you haven't finished thinking it through. You're using their time to do your work. People stop listening.
Grab another designer or researcher first. Pitch your idea to them. Get their feedback and be open to it. It's your call whether you make changes, but check your ego at the door and use that time to build confidence in your concept. If they walk away confused about what you're proposing, there's no way a room full of stakeholders will get it either.
Every designer I've managed has told me some version of the same story. They're the ones talking to users, looking at data, being overly critical of their own work. They have strong convictions about where the product should go. And nobody seems to care.
It actually hurts. All that work, and you're not getting heard. Sometimes you're not even getting seen. Here's what I tell them, and why.
Listen First
You want to be heard. So does everyone else in that room.
When others share their ideas, actually listen. Not just hear them, but try to understand what they're trying to achieve. Ask about their goals, what they need to accomplish, and figure out how your thinking connects to theirs. This might seem obvious, but people tend to hear each other more than they really listen. It gets harder the more meetings you sit through each day, but it's how you find the people who will champion your position later.
When you take the time to understand what other departments are working toward, you start finding common ground. That builds trust. And when people trust you, they're more likely to have your back in meetings, ask for your opinion before decisions get made, and share data that supports your position. Listening isn't just polite. It's how you build the relationships that make you visible in the first place.
Earn the Room's Attention
If it takes you ten minutes to explain your idea, it probably means you haven't finished thinking it through. You're using their time to do your work. People stop listening.
Grab another designer or researcher first. Pitch your idea to them. Get their feedback and be open to it. It's your call whether you make changes, but check your ego at the door and use that time to build confidence in your concept. If they walk away confused about what you're proposing, there's no way a room full of stakeholders will get it either.
Document Everything
You might have all the metrics and feedback in your head, but that doesn't do much good when you're trying to make a point stick.
Organize your research. Who gave you the feedback? What questions did you ask? What was the goal? When did you collect it? Same with metrics. Pretty charts will always get attention with stakeholders, but you need to be able to back up the data and speak to it confidently when someone pushes back.
Sometimes you need to go further. I sat in a meeting once about a partnership between my company and a large telecom. It wasn't my meeting to run, but I kept hearing a word that makes me cringe every time: "easy." Engineers and sales people kept saying the customer experience and development would be easy. Every time they said it, I wrote down exactly what they claimed.
I built a rough journey map and validated it with people in the target audience. I assume any designer reading this can guess what I found. Yeah, it wasn't easy.
At the next meeting, I walked through the flow and highlighted the specific areas they'd mentioned before. The room froze. Both sides started asking each other what they thought would be easy. Came to find out everyone assumed it was the other company's problem to solve. Long story short, they paused the entire project because they had grossly underestimated the timeline and needed to redefine resources.
One journey map saved two companies millions of dollars. Not only that, but journey mapping became a priority for roadmap planning after that.
Document Everything
You might have all the metrics and feedback in your head, but that doesn't do much good when you're trying to make a point stick.
Organize your research. Who gave you the feedback? What questions did you ask? What was the goal? When did you collect it? Same with metrics. Pretty charts will always get attention with stakeholders, but you need to be able to back up the data and speak to it confidently when someone pushes back.
Sometimes you need to go further. I sat in a meeting once about a partnership between my company and a large telecom. It wasn't my meeting to run, but I kept hearing a word that makes me cringe every time: "easy." Engineers and sales people kept saying the customer experience and development would be easy. Every time they said it, I wrote down exactly what they claimed.
I built a rough journey map and validated it with people in the target audience. I assume any designer reading this can guess what I found. Yeah, it wasn't easy.
At the next meeting, I walked through the flow and highlighted the specific areas they'd mentioned before. The room froze. Both sides started asking each other what they thought would be easy. Came to find out everyone assumed it was the other company's problem to solve. Long story short, they paused the entire project because they had grossly underestimated the timeline and needed to redefine resources.
One journey map saved two companies millions of dollars. Not only that, but journey mapping became a priority for roadmap planning after that.
Get Better at Presenting
This is an area where people either know they're bad at it, or they think they're fine until they're in front of a group and start struggling.
At a previous company, my team worked on presentation skills every other week. They were just the UX team taking turns presenting and getting feedback. The most common issue was filler words. "Um." "So." "Like." We all use them to fill dead air while we think. The funny thing is we say them without realizing it. Transcribe yourself presenting and you'll see your patterns. Once you're conscious of it, you start cutting them out. Practice in front of a mirror, or record yourself on your computer. I know, I hate staring at myself too, but it's about getting better. Call it research if you need to.
If you want to lead, presenting to large groups isn't something you can avoid. In my experience, the only real way to get comfortable is to force yourself through it over and over until you can articulate your point and absorb questions without fumbling.
After a few months of this, something shifted. People on the team started volunteering to present in larger groups. Not just design reviews, but company-wide product demonstrations. I started getting direct feedback from people outside the team about how well my designers presented. A few times I was asked to have them present more because of how clearly they articulated their work. That kind of feedback doesn't come from talent alone. It comes from reps.
Get Better at Presenting
This is an area where people either know they're bad at it, or they think they're fine until they're in front of a group and start struggling.
At a previous company, my team worked on presentation skills every other week. They were just the UX team taking turns presenting and getting feedback. The most common issue was filler words. "Um." "So." "Like." We all use them to fill dead air while we think. The funny thing is we say them without realizing it. Transcribe yourself presenting and you'll see your patterns. Once you're conscious of it, you start cutting them out. Practice in front of a mirror, or record yourself on your computer. I know, I hate staring at myself too, but it's about getting better. Call it research if you need to.
If you want to lead, presenting to large groups isn't something you can avoid. In my experience, the only real way to get comfortable is to force yourself through it over and over until you can articulate your point and absorb questions without fumbling.
After a few months of this, something shifted. People on the team started volunteering to present in larger groups. Not just design reviews, but company-wide product demonstrations. I started getting direct feedback from people outside the team about how well my designers presented. A few times I was asked to have them present more because of how clearly they articulated their work. That kind of feedback doesn't come from talent alone. It comes from reps.
Know When to Push
This one surprises people sometimes. I don't recommend doing it with executives or large groups of stakeholders. But when you're working with your product and engineering partners and they keep pushing back on everything, stick up for yourself.
Be professional, but healthy conflict isn't something to shy away from. I understand many people don't like conflict, or worry about being seen as difficult. So this isn't an everyday strategy. But when you have your data, your feedback, and your position is solid, hold your ground.
The old idea that respect is earned, not given, is certainly true in the business world. You can't be seen if you back down from every disagreement. You don't get taken seriously by agreeing with everything. Push back with class, and do it at strategic moments. When done right, and for the right reasons, people start seeing you as someone worth listening to.
Know When to Push
This one surprises people sometimes. I don't recommend doing it with executives or large groups of stakeholders. But when you're working with your product and engineering partners and they keep pushing back on everything, stick up for yourself.
Be professional, but healthy conflict isn't something to shy away from. I understand many people don't like conflict, or worry about being seen as difficult. So this isn't an everyday strategy. But when you have your data, your feedback, and your position is solid, hold your ground.
The old idea that respect is earned, not given, is certainly true in the business world. You can't be seen if you back down from every disagreement. You don't get taken seriously by agreeing with everything. Push back with class, and do it at strategic moments. When done right, and for the right reasons, people start seeing you as someone worth listening to.
Speak Their Language
I worked in the ad agency world for years. My job was being the pitch person, going in and selling clients on ideas that would hit their goals. I got pretty good at it, and my best tricks are everything I wrote above.
During kickoff meetings, I'd let clients talk. I documented their key points and the exact words they used. We'd take that back, work up concepts for a week or two, then return for the pitch. I'd present our ideas using the same language and context they'd given me. Most of the time they wouldn't remember saying those things. They'd just feel like we understood exactly what they needed.
But what about when they were wrong and I had data to prove it? I came ready for a fight. Not my opinion about their customers or their industry. Hard data that made them understand my point and respect that we'd done the work to find it.
These tactics worked most of the time. On rare occasions I'd have a client who wouldn't listen no matter what. Then I had to decide if the juice was worth the squeeze.
The Work Behind Being Seen
You might feel invisible now. Getting outside your comfort zone can change that. But listening and presenting only go so far. They don’t fix leadership that has already decided design is just UI. You have to decide whether that culture is worth staying in.
Speak up in meetings, and make sure what you’re saying is worth hearing. Build goodwill with other teams by supporting their work. They remember it, and they often return the favor. At the same time, understand that some rooms are rigged. Knowing when you’re in one is a leadership skill.
Most people aren’t ignoring you out of spite. They have their own goals and pressure on their shoulders. Be the one who listens, understands, and then stands apart.
Speak Their Language
I worked in the ad agency world for years. My job was being the pitch person, going in and selling clients on ideas that would hit their goals. I got pretty good at it, and my best tricks are everything I wrote above.
During kickoff meetings, I'd let clients talk. I documented their key points and the exact words they used. We'd take that back, work up concepts for a week or two, then return for the pitch. I'd present our ideas using the same language and context they'd given me. Most of the time they wouldn't remember saying those things. They'd just feel like we understood exactly what they needed.
But what about when they were wrong and I had data to prove it? I came ready for a fight. Not my opinion about their customers or their industry. Hard data that made them understand my point and respect that we'd done the work to find it.
These tactics worked most of the time. On rare occasions I'd have a client who wouldn't listen no matter what. Then I had to decide if the juice was worth the squeeze.
The Work Behind Being Seen
You might feel invisible now. Getting outside your comfort zone can change that. But listening and presenting only go so far. They don’t fix leadership that has already decided design is just UI. You have to decide whether that culture is worth staying in.
Speak up in meetings, and make sure what you’re saying is worth hearing. Build goodwill with other teams by supporting their work. They remember it, and they often return the favor. At the same time, understand that some rooms are rigged. Knowing when you’re in one is a leadership skill.
Most people aren’t ignoring you out of spite. They have their own goals and pressure on their shoulders. Be the one who listens, understands, and then stands apart.
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