Episode 455: UX designer without a mentor and I get bored too easily and stressed too easily

<p>In this episode, Dave and Jamison answer these questions:</p>

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<p>A listener named Dakota asks,</p>

<p>I’m a UX designer, and I’m constantly looking for growth opportunities. I’m having trouble finding mentors to help challenge me, as every time my boss/senior designer leaves the company, I assume their work and we don’t backfill their spot or my old position.</p>

<p>This leads me towards podcasts like this as I’m trying up-skill and to learn how to be a better team member and support other roles.</p>

<p>I’d love your perspective on working with product/ux designers. What have the challenges been? What makes you love working with a designer? Have there been times where you’re both arguing for the best user experience, but fail to agree on what experience is best?</p>
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<p>Hey guys!</p>

<p>It seems like lately, I only work in two modes:</p>

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<li>Stressed and tired</li>
<li>Bored and disengaged</li>
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<p>I often get to own large, urgent initiatives. I spend weeks or months on them. This work is fascinating! I end up being stressed, tired, and counting days until my next vacation.</p>

<p>When they finish, I go back to regular tickets - ones that take a day or two, maybe a week to complete.</p>

<p>And its great! For a few days. Then the boredom sets in. I pick through the tickets, trying to find something interesting. I finish a ticket and realize there are another 4 hours before the end of the day. I start to miss the rush of working on a complex puzzle, even though it’s terrible for my work/life balance.</p>

<p>A month or two pass, and a new complex and urgent initiative comes in. The cycle continues.</p>

<p>So my question is: Is this a common feeling? Are there ways to find a “easy-work/hard-work” balance? Do you have any advice on not overworking when urgent tasks come in, and not dying from boredom when there is no interesting work?</p>
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