Maybe I Didn't Waste My Philosophy Degree

I have to admit, I regretted my choice of major even before I’d graduated. But college had honestly been a tough 5 years for me, so in the end I just pushed through, despite my misgivings, so I could get the hell out.

Not the most inspiring story of having a passion for my field, is it? Why did I even choose philosophy if I ended up feeling like it was a mistake?

Because it was one of the first times in my college experience where I felt mentally engaged. The sorting through often complex and ambiguous ideas, the stepping out of your own mindset to try to understand how someone else sees the world, those moments of clarity where you can finally distill the muddled, complicated thoughts and ideas running through your head into one, clear insight or summary and then underline it emphatically and triumphantly in your notes.

This isn’t at all unrelated to what it’s like to be a UX designer, nor is it unrelated to why I love UX design. Once again, I’m engaged, and I’ve continued to stay that way. In UX, we’re often presented with a set of problems that we have to bring into focus in order to get to the real core of the issue. We also need to find a way to see the problem from the perspective of the user, rather than coming at the problem with presuppositions and an unwillingness to shift from our own ways of thinking.

In both philosophy and UX, the ability and willingness to release our grip on our own assumptions and preferences require a level of not only empathy, but humility.

Without humility, we’re tempted to create a product and thrust it upon the user and tell them “I’ve decided that this is what will meet your needs the best, now adapt your methods and preferences and around what I’ve built for you.”. This is not only an egotistical and inflexible approach, I would venture to say it is the very antithesis of UX design.

Through my journey further into UX design, I’ve gratefully arrived at the conclusion that the humility and flexibility of thought, as well as the ability to distill clarity out of ambiguity that philosophy has taught me have built a wonderful foundation for my choice of profession.

So, it’s taken me about 4 years, but I no longer regret my studies in philosophy. Seeking what challenges and engages me has ultimately led me where I need to go.