Christoph Foulger

I am xoph—short for Christoph. Pixel pusher, button flipper, investigator, tweaker, watcher, Lego fan, he/him #neurodiversity #ux #productdesign @klaviyo

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

I was recently interviewed about being a Product Designer on the Spectrum. Check it out https://t.co/q94gcBtURa
I talk about my strengths and challenges as I learned about being Neurodiverse in the workplace and imposter syndrome #productdesign #Neurodivergent #autism

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@KingFayemi @disco_lu How about scroll left and right in the layers panel?

[Joe Natoli @joenatoli]

One thing I know to be true: the people who have intense imposter syndrome — folks who have that relentless internal dialogue which makes them feel very unsure of themselves — are typically people who are *wildly* beyond competent at what they do.

Their mediocrity is everyone else’s standard of excellence. They have a relentless lens they use to look at everything and say, do I think this is good enough?

There's a streak of perfectionism that runs through anybody who's truly good at anything.

This is a big part of what makes us good at our jobs.

Researchers in particular have this in spades: think about the level of detail of what you do; think about the level of rigor that's necessary, the ability to apply yourself to that effort in a very intense way.

That brutal self-examination, that insistence on a high level of excellence you impose upon yourself is part and parcel of the job. It comes with the territory.

But you need to understand: you don't ever get RID of imposter syndrome.

You MANAGE it.

You put it in its place; you develop mechanisms to deal with it when it comes up.

You are driving down the road with this annoying passenger in the car, who you're forced to ride with. That's reality — but at some point you have to start imposing rules:

The impostor has to sit in that passenger seat and TAKE ITS HANDS OFF THE WHEEL.

It's allowed to sit there, but it is not *ever* allowed to drive this car.

That's what I've done for myself; that’s what I’ve taught other people to do. It can be done, I promise.

You start by identifying WHERE that crippling doubt comes from in the first place.

What its origins are; getting clear on what areas of your life it has the most influence and/or control over.

Is this specifically about professional capability, or is it something else that colors *everything* in your life?

Here's my way of starting to figure that out; a question I ask myself when that voice pipes up, or I start feeling that growing tightness in my chest.

One of the first questions I ask myself is this:

Is this old shit or new shit?

In other words, is it about right NOW, or is it about something that occurred in the past?

Something I’m afraid might happen in the future?

I find asking and answering this goes a LONG way in taking my temperature down. When you're aware of something, when it comes in clear, it has a lot less power over you.

Try this today. Call it out into the light.

Let me know how it goes in the comments.

. . . . . . . . . . .

P.S. I offer private, one-to-one coaching for UXers and Designers. I help designers and UXers reclaim their power, rebuild their self-confidence and do better work — in that order.

Whatever it is you’re dealing with, I can help you overcome it.

​​Learn more and sign up for UX coaching with me here: https://t.co/OgoZpX1URZ

[Dr. Emily Anhalt @dremilyanhalt]

Stop trying to calm the storm - calm your mind. The storm will pass.

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@tonypittman @alexlindsay That was my first guess.

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@__imranashraf @lazyappHQ @linear @Cron Did you sign up on the waitlist? How long did you have to wait?

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@nickf Not that it is where I am going but I am looking for a Blue Sky invite.

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@joenatoli Crap! I slept in. I hope you do something like this again.

[Joe Natoli @joenatoli]

Inner Strength Dept:

If you were able to take the first step — which is the hardest — you can absolutely handle the rest.

[Nick Finck @nickf]

Another weekly reminder to be kind to folks. The folks around you might be going through a lot emotionally &/or physically. You don’t know what folks are going through on any given day & folks don’t always surface the shit they are dealing with. So please, I ask… just be kind.🙏

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

Problems can be difficult to solve and we get stuck trying to address them in the same way. Albert Einstein noted – the same level of thinking that created the problem won't be able to solve it. Use creative approaches to tackle issues. #problemSolving #Aigenerated

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@AdhamDannaway Right. 'nuff said.

[Joe Natoli @joenatoli]

“Making the simple complicated is commonplace. Making. The complicated simple, awesomely simple, that’s creativity.”

— Charles Mingus

#UX #Design #ProductDesign

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@joenatoli I love that porch.

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@BenWinslow @UtahDNR @fox13 This feels like my Dr just told me “good news, you’re not going to die in 6 months. You’re going to die in 7 months.

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@ArcInternet Please ship it!

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

My little build got some love at @nwbrickcon 2022. It almost didn’t make it. It fell apart in travel so I rebuilt it on-site. It even won an award in the fantasy category. #brickcon #brickcon2022

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

Be, where you are not supposed to be.

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@eduardinho30a @4erepawko And they sold that community to an old abusive partner.

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@sdgates It's got to be a algorithm issue. The title is a combo so it may be just and average for Door Dash in general.

[Christoph Foulger @xoph]

@nickf @kartooner @nickf, that other guy looks a lot like you. 🫠