Dive Club 🤿 Kathy Zheng - How to make the jump to staff designer
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Jun 26, 2024 
Head of design at Optimism, Kathy Zheng, discusses traits of senior designers at Github, giving ideas a chance to become memes, avoiding conversational spinout, identifying opportunities using systems thinking, and techniques for storytelling. Mentions key figures including Max Schoening and Jack Conte.
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Kathy's Promotion Journey
- Kathy Zheng wanted a promotion based on workload but was told she wasn't ready.
- She realized that seniority involves proposing ideas, not just executing multiple projects.
Framing Ideas for Stakeholders
- Frame ideas to appeal to different stakeholders, showing them the relevant 'side of the Rubik's cube'.
- Tailor your communication by using user anecdotes, pixel-perfect mocks, or metrics.
Bookmarking Repositories
- Kathy and Brian Lovin proposed a bookmarking feature to separate social signals from saved repositories.
- They expanded its scope by linking it to custom feeds and thought leadership, demonstrating broader impact.