Summary
Are you feeling overwhelmed, constantly busy, and that you never have enough time to focus on what really matters? Learn how to use the design process of divergence and convergence to make space for you and your key relationships in the organization. Learn how to turn difficult relationships into trusted partners as you build influence upwards, with your peers, and with your team. Lead at scale by focusing on people and most importantly, starting with yourself.
Key Insights
-
•
A relentless doing mindset without space for rest leads to burnout even in high achievers like Judy.
-
•
Using the double diamond design process to explore leadership helps find focus and create space for what matters.
-
•
Relationships are the lowest scored, yet most critical area many leaders neglect.
-
•
Leadership is more about being supportive and curious than commanding with answers.
-
•
Listening for the 10% truth in difficult conversations enables empathy and deeper connection.
-
•
Vulnerability and sharing personal stories are key to building trust in leadership relationships.
-
•
Titles are not required for leadership; quiet and craft-focused leadership are valid forms.
-
•
Humanism at scale means applying design thinking tools not just to products but to people and culture.
-
•
Ruthless prioritization can reinforce a punishment culture of doing more, feeling bad, and continuing without pause.
-
•
Intentional reflection tools like the Wheel of Leadership promote self-awareness to recalibrate leadership focus.
Notable Quotes
"I was running on fumes for decades, doing more and more, with no time to breathe."
"Being versus viewing is the most important point of my talk."
"People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
"Ruthless prioritization feeds into the punishment culture: do more, feel worse, keep going."
"Listening for the 10% truth means finding the small kernel of honesty beneath surface resistance."
"Sharing my story with him helped build a stronger, more trusting relationship."
"Leadership can be quiet, craft-focused, and does not depend on titles."
"We designers can use the same tools we apply to products to design our own leadership and culture at scale."
"The little girl I once was learned to slow down and trust her own leadership."
"Focus on relationships because people are the heart of leadership."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Math models don’t just provide numerical precision, they can be inspirational for thinking about UX spread."
Scott PlewesWhy Isn't Your UX Approach Going Viral?: A Mathematical Model
March 28, 2023
"We live in a biosphere that’s collapsing, so maybe we should try life-centered design rather than just human-centered design."
Alison Rand Sarah BrooksScaling Impact with Service Design
March 25, 2021
"Minimizing harm protects institutions, not people."
Rachael Dietkus, LCSWThe power to heal and harm
March 13, 2025
"People who understand the problem best are set up to do the best work."
Sheryl CababaLiving in the Clouds: Adopting a Systems Thinking Mindset
June 6, 2023
"Research is seen as an adjunct to design, often missed in road mapping and strategic planning."
Renee BouwensLanding Product Impact: Aligning Research as a Foundational Driver for Delivering the World’s Best Products
December 15, 2023
"We took a little bit more of an editorial approach and kind of trimmed down the tools to keep it legible and usable."
JP Allen Holly HoldenNavigating the UX Tools Landscape
October 1, 2021
"We have session notes, sketch notes, resource lists, videos, and decks — no need to take notes yourself."
Bria AlexanderOpening Remarks
November 18, 2022
"Even if you’re not doing facial recognition, storing face and voice data is under growing legal scrutiny."
Llewyn Paine[Demo] Deploying AI doppelgangers to de-identify user research recordings
June 5, 2024
"Customers can answer what the researcher wants to hear in surveys, making attitude only 28% predictive of real behavior."
Ricardo MartinsUnlocking the power of advanced quantitative methods
March 12, 2025
