Just ask it

Miré de Swardt
Dec 21, 2024
3 min read

Updated: Feb 6

Sometimes, the simply stupid questions leads to the stupidly simple solution.

Nike, don’t come for me, but no mantra has served me better in product design than just ask it. It’s something I’ve lived by since starting out four years ago.

Unlike asking clients questions in a discovery session, user interviews, or usability tests, I’ve sometimes felt even more overwhelmed when needing to ask a teammate a question—especially when I was new to a job and had little idea what was going on.

So much so that I once drove to the nearest car wash just to sit down and write this. My car was embarrassingly filthy—sand everywhere. My mom used to say I always “waited until number 99” before doing something.

Much like my car, I’ve often waited to ask a question until reaching my metaphorical number 99—the critical moment when asking feels like the only option left. But by then, the question has often lost its power and potential impact.

A small nudge towards clarity or a better outcome dissolves into nothing—ironically, the very thing I tried to avoid by not asking sooner. So why didn't I? Why didn’t I back myself to just ask it?

The Weight of 'Stupid' Questions

Imposter syndrome thrives in environments where people are afraid to ask what they perceive as stupid questions. And design isn’t immune to this.

In fact, research shows imposter syndrome is alarmingly common among designers:

In the US tech industry, imposter syndrome affects around 58% of workers, with designers making up a significant portion.
While specific data for South Africa is scarce, global trends suggest a similar—if not higher—prevalence in emerging tech markets.
Imposter syndrome isn’t exclusive to UX/UI design; it’s pervasive across creative fields. Gen Z and Zillennials are particularly vulnerable due to the pressures of perfectionism and online visibility.

As one UX/UI designer on Reddit put it:

A Personal Journey: From Zero Tech Knowledge to a 'lil More Product Confidence

When I joined a tech startup, my tech knowledge was minimal (if I'm embracing the self-love thing), but I embraced curiosity—asking the questions I feared but couldn’t ignore. Over time, those 'stupid' questions became the foundation of my understanding and shaped how I design products today.

Engaging with engineers and founders not only filled my knowledge gaps but also gave me new perspectives on the product. And here’s the thing: every product designer must deeply understand the product they’re designing for.

As another UX/UI designer on Reddit shared:

Case Study: Learning in Public

At my current company, transparency is baked into the culture. All messages are #publicbydefault unless they’re personal. If I had a question, I had to ask it in a public channel.

At first, it was terrifying. There’s something deeply vulnerable about exposing your ignorance to a group of smart, experienced people in tech.

But by message number 50, I stopped caring about looking foolish. I realised two things:

Most people were wondering the same thing.
Asking publicly created shared clarity for everyone.

ChatGPT has even become a secret weapon for refining complex messages. But the habit of just asking has become second nature—and it’s made me a better designer, teammate, and thinker.

Continuous Growth: Research, Tutorials, and Broader Horizons

Good design doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Beyond asking questions, investing time in research, courses, tutorials, and staying curious about both design principles and the product you’re working on are critical steps to building confidence.

As a UX/UI designer on Reddit emphasised:

Asking questions, backed by a willingness to dig deeper and learn continuously, is what separates good designers from great ones.

The Science of Asking Questions

There’s an art to asking good questions:

Be clear and specific.
Provide context when possible.
Frame your question to invite collaboration, not just answers.

At the core of it, asking starts with owning the fact that you don’t know. And that’s okay.

It’s human.

Final Thoughts

Asking great questions isn’t just about getting answers—it’s about being open to learning from them.

Continuous growth through research, tutorials, and feedback isn’t just about acquiring knowledge; it’s about building the confidence to ask better questions next time.

And isn’t that what we’re all aiming for as designers? Finding out how to make things better.

So ask. Ask early. Ask often.

And remember: clarity is always worth a little moment of vulnerability.