Growth, especially in the fast-evolving world of design, requires more than just mastering new tools or trends. It’s about navigating the uncomfortable spaces of leadership, collaboration, and influence, where discomfort pushes you to stretch beyond the familiar.

In design, as in life, growth comes from friction. It’s in those moments where you feel completely out of your depth that you evolve. But most of us don’t want to go there. We tend to avoid projects that feel too complex. We often resist learning new tools because it makes us feel like a beginner again. And let’s face it, that sucks. We cling to what we know instead of exploring what could be.

In his article “Reflections on leadership, growth, and design: Lessons from my journey at xccelerate,” Kaleb cardenas Z shares insights from his tenure as Service Design Lead and UX Instructor, highlighting the continuous growth he experienced in these roles.

For a long time, I was no different. Until I wasn’t. I haven’t fully solved it yet, but I’m trying hard to have faith in what life throws at me. I intentionally put myself into uncomfortable situations so that I get better at adapting… not coping.

My journey of transformation began when I deliberately sought the unknown:

• Challenging my limits 30 feet underwater, holding my breath
• Sharing vulnerable content before millions (including haters)
• Embracing new sports despite initial incompetence
• Venturing into unfamiliar territory — moving my family to Mexico, learning a new language, opening a dropshipping store with my kids…
• Testing my physical and mental boundaries through ancestral medicine, cold exposure, breathwork practices, and rigorous training regimen
• Trying to abandon the “safe” path and follow my intuition
• Doing daily ice baths

And, just as importantly, I began taking risks in my design career:

• Designing in styles I had no prior experience with
• Starting having different conversations
• Pitching bold ideas in rooms where I felt unqualified
• Adopting new design tools forced me back into a beginner mindset
• Saying yes to projects before I felt “ready” (this is big)
• Challenging industry norms instead of playing it safe

These experiences taught me something fundamental: growth is never comfortable. But comfort is a slow death for creativity and innovation.

Fear isn’t concrete reality — it’s a protective narrative generated by your ego.

But here’s the paradox: safety and growth cannot coexist.

If evolution is your goal, discomfort must become your compass.

This is exactly what’s shaking many of us right now. The design game has changed and I sometimes don’t know where I fit anymore. With the speed at which tech evolves, AI, the great unknown in front of us is challenging us all to rethink our next step and move.

This applies to design just as much as it applies to life. If you want to stand out in your field, stop playing it safe.

• Safe ideas are forgettable
• Safe designs blend into the noise
• Safe careers stagnate
• Safe gets you knowhere

And here’s what most people don’t tell you: advancing in your career isn’t just about perfecting your craft. The difference between junior and senior designers — or senior and principal — isn’t just skill. It’s soft skills. It’s how well you navigate relationships, how you influence decisions, and how you bridge the gap between design, engineering, and product.

Your pixel-perfect design doesn’t matter if you can’t get buy-in from developers and PMs to bring it to life. Once I realized that, the game changed.

The best designers aren’t just great at designing. They’re great at leading, persuading, and collaborating. That’s what sets them apart.