Show Notes
"As soon as tools exist that don’t require Figma’s learning curve, a very large number of designers will find themselves out of work"
Summary Today I’m sharing a wide-open, deeply honest conversation with Andy Budd — designer, founder, conference creator, coach, investor, and one of the most quietly influential forces behind the UK design and product community. If you’ve worked in UX anytime in the last two decades, you’ve almost certainly felt Andy’s impact: Clearleft, UX London, dConstruct, Leading Design, CSS Mastery, the Brighton Digital Festival… the list is long for a reason. In this episode, we dig into the questions so many designers are quietly wrestling with; Have we already passed “peak designer”? And what does a meaningful, sustainable design career look like on the other side?
We explore why 2020–21 marked the high-water point for UX hiring, how AI and automation are reshaping the work, and why “Figma operator culture” was always a dead end. Andy maps the design chaos from identity crisis many designers are feeling, the discomfort of reinvention, and why embracing uncertainty is now a core skill. We also journey through his experiences with the early web, Clearleft, building communities, leadership — and the ongoing search for new personal S-curves.
If you’re feeling energised, anxious, confused, optimistic (or all of the above) about where design is heading, this one will resonate deeply.
Guest Andy Budd LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/andybudd/ Website – https://andybudd.com/ Book – https://andybudd.com/book Website – https://seedcamp.com/
Host Danny Hearn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannyhearn/ Website – www.dannyhearn.me Podcast – www.deeplyhumandesign.com
Chapters 00:00 Have We Reached “Peak Designer”? The Hiring Boom and Slowdown 01:08 Introducing Andy — Designer, Founder, Investor, Pilot, Diver, “Shark Wrangler” 01:42 Origin Story — Geeky Kid, Early Web, and Falling in Love with the Internet 04:35 From Dive Instructor in Asia to Self-Taught Web Designer 07:26 Discovering UX and Helping Bring User Experience Design to the UK 10:34 Meeting Rich and Jeremy, Web Standards, and the Birth of Clearleft 18:43 Inside Clearleft — Culture, Community, and a Different Way to Run an Agency 22:15 Burberry, “Hyper-Alignment,” and How Clearleft Actually Worked Day to Day 32:24 UX London, Leading Design, and the “Accidental Design Leader” 47:16 Broken Web, AI, the Future of Design — S-Curves, Uncertainty, and Learning to Flow
More from the deeply human design podcast
“You cannot innovate if you don't have diverse thinking.” Summary In this episode, we explore the winding creative journey of Meg Porter, a designer turned product leader and founder, who shares how her artistic roots evolved into a passion for solving complex human problems. She candidly opens up about navigating corporate environments as a neurodivergent woman, facing systemic biases, and the exhaustion of trying to fit traditional workplace molds. Meg discusses her work with The Female Product Lead community, advocating for truly inclusive leadership and psychological safety across tech. She also details the creation of Unfold, her new app designed to help neurodivergent individuals manage executive dysfunction through nervous system and emotional regulation. Throughout the conversation, Meg highlights the immense value of radical self-knowledge over conventional career frameworks. Guest Meg Porter LinkedIn – https://linkedin.com/in/megporter Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/_meg_porter/ TikTok – https://www.tiktok.com/@_meg_porter_ Unfold Website – https://getunfold.app Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/_unfoldapp_/ TikTok – https://www.tiktok.com/@_unfoldapp_ Female Product Lead Website – https://femaleproductlead.com Events – https://luma.com/femaleproductlead Host Danny Hearn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannyhearn/ Website – https://www.dannyhearn.me Podcast – https://www.deeplyhumandesign.com Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Welcome 01:38 Meg's Origins in Physical Graphic Design 04:43 Navigating Subjectivity and Finding Structure in Design 08:23 Expressing Personal Empathy Through Art Projects 10:17 Transitioning into Corporate Tech and Healthcare Design 14:12 Clashing Values and Systemic Politics in Enterprise Roles 18:35 Fostering Psychological Safety and Diverse Perspectives 22:57 Empowering Underrepresented Voices with Female Product Lead 26:27 Experiencing the Glass Ceiling and Micro-Behaviors 32:25 Finding Core Purpose and Showing Up Authentically 37:14 Building Unfold for Neurodivergent Emotional Regulation 43:58 Developing the MVP and Co-Founding with Family 46:23 Tackling Executive Dysfunction and Rejection Sensitivity 51:21 Prioritising Self-Knowledge Over Skill Sets in Leadership
"People massively overestimate the amount of change that's going to happen in two years, and they underestimate the amount in five to 10 years."
"The pressure to move faster in the tech industry creates an environment where presence and mental well-being are often sacrificed for speed.”
Reclaiming the Heart in Design “There’s so much heart in some of these things that you’re putting in heart in that space and I find it very hard to detach some of those.”
“Sometimes the best thing you can do is just be the kindest person in the room.”