What kind of designer are you or want to become?
A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.
As the design landscape continues to shift, this quote becomes more and more important, challenging traditional notions of specializations and opening the door for a variety of journeys for designers.
In the world of AI where algorithms can analyze data with pinpoint precision and mimic creative intuition, specialized jobs become easily automated.
At the same time, the growth of AI gives generalists a space to grow. Numerous studies have shown that the most innovative ideas come from merging knowledge from seemingly unrelated domains. And only generalists can make those innovative connections.
David Epstein, author of Range: How generalists triumph in a specialized world puts it together perfectly:
There are many layers to thinking; we humans suck at individual layers; but we combine them to be more adaptive.
Our greatest strength is the exact opposite of narrow specialization. It's the ability to integrate broadly.
However, a generalist lacks the in-depth knowledge of any one field necessary to act on those insights and implement solutions as precisely as a specialist would.
Navigating the spectrum
Specialists are experts in their field. Their thorough understanding has been made possible by extensive learning and training through repetition. This is why they can ask for higher pay and climb the career ladder faster. At the same time, because of the narrow range of skills, specialists struggle to pivot through opportunities when they arise. If a specialist is also unfamiliar with the disciplines and challenges of their team members, they may find it more challenging to work together.
Generalists, on the other hand, have a wide variety of skills which makes them flexible enough to evolve and change careers over time. But they sacrifice depth for breadth. Most generalists won't be able to become proficient enough to be seen as experts. Their wide experience makes them strong team members because they can communicate across boundaries.
While the choice might seem binary, you have an option to become someone far more interesting.
Beyond generalists and specialists
In his interview with Chief Executive Tim Brown, CEO and president of IDEO, talks about hiring a certain type of talent to drive innovation — T-shaped people.
T-shaped people have two kinds of characteristics, hence the use of the letter “T” to describe them. The vertical stroke of the “T” is a depth of skill that allows them to contribute to the creative process. The horizontal stroke of the “T” is the disposition for collaboration across disciplines.
Companies like Apple, Facebook, and Google popularized this approach to hiring and shifted the industry. Being T-shaped became a standard not only for employees but also for freelancers. T-shaped freelancers found an advantage in being specialized generalists.
It gives them the power to provide holistic solutions for businesses where specialists would only be able to work on a single piece of the puzzle.
Specialized knowledge helps freelancers attract high-quality clients who want nothing less than the best, whereas generalist range gives a foundation of wide skills and cross-functional understanding that allows us to think creatively, cooperate efficiently, and evolve their services to suit the changing needs of clients.
Multiplying mastery
When a T-shaped professional develops skill or mastery in more than one specialty, their T might start looking like an M as their experience expands.
Nowadays, designers frequently use the term empathy, which usually relates to empathy with the users of your designs. What makes T-shaped designers so effective is a different form of empathy: a knowledge of your colleagues' and stakeholders' language and problems. It's empathy on your T's horizontal axis.
This enables shared interests and understanding connections amongst T-shaped team members from various areas of expertise.
A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects. — Robert A. Heinlein
You should be good in more than one thing
A lot of the most successful people in history were masters of multiple disciplines — multi-hyphenates or multipotentialites.
Ask any T-shaped professional how they became successful and they’ll tell you that being skilled at many things helped make them great at the one thing they’re known for. Expertise in one domain helps fuel excellence in another.
“Wisdom is fungible. The more you have of it — regardless of where you got it — the more places you can apply it.” — Ryan Holiday, The Case for Being a Multi-Hyphenate
That is the true strength of a specialized generalist: the breadth helps in the discovery of connections and insights that a specialist would not have discovered, and you can then channel those insights into the depth of your specialty to make truly meaningful decisions. You make finding new solutions appear simple since you recognize connections that others aren't even looking for.
Unleash your superpowers
If you're a generalist, the lack of focused expertise is holding you back from producing remarkable results. Pick one of your preferred strengths and commit to mastering them. Build a world-class skill from your passion.
If you're a specialist, you are missing out on exciting opportunities because of your narrow focus. Learn new skills that complement and enrich your existing focus to broaden up your range. Step out of your comfort zone to learn.