"I am selling the wrong product: myself and my qualifications. What companies really want to see is a vision of their aspirational future: what is it the company wants to become? I have to represent their idealized version of 'where the puck was going to be' that they are skating toward."

Oh dear. It looks like I may need to prepare to do a simulated—but high effort—mock interview for a Senior/Staff or maybe even Principal level interview.

A few things: I haven't done this job in a long time. Any "interview" fodder I would have in the last 7–8 years would not be related to being a designer who works on screens/visuals/interfaces. And even when I did, I was not a good visual designer. Or designer.

However, I don't think that matters, because I was a good problem solver and good storyteller, which is what smart companies hire for. Can I convince you of that with an 8-year-old example, and arguably the last "UX" project I ever worked on personally?

I already have a case study in mind that covers the entire design process, from concept to customer, showcasing everything I need to demonstrate. It remains applicable today as ever, including the design field's recent shift into visual design and AI.

But more important than that, I want to give designers an example of how to conduct themselves when showing their work during interviews, whether it's a one-on-one or a panel. What does it even mean to be able to tell the story of your work regardless of how fancy it is? And if you do have the modern checkbox skills like visual, motion, and AI design, that's even better.

See, most designers fall into the trap of trying to show their work. But that is NOT what interviewers and decision makers need to see.

Notice I said "need" to see, not want. Need. What they need to see is a story that lets them understand how you can apply the same experience in the story to their problems, their teams, and their business.

It is not—in fact—about outputs. Or Outcomes. It is about Optics. Worldview, approach. You're not showing deliverables (outputs) or metrics (outcomes), but how your outlook aligns with theirs.

Why? Well, it goes back to something that Snoop Dogg said 27 years ago that always stuck with me: "da game is to be sold, not to be told." Wise words.

You are not here to "tell them what you did," you are here to "show them who you are."

Friday, Noon ET. Watch me bomb a live design case study interview.