Empathy is one of the abilities that allowed us to evolve thus far as a society; the lack of it also led us to some of the most devastating events in history. But what is the role of kindness in a design process?

Between the demand of our own expectations, the responsibility of making things work, the struggle to keep up with the latest tools while fighting our imposter syndrome, we might sometimes feel overwhelmed – and, in that loop, forget that we’re all just human beings trying our best to work together.

How often do we forget to see the humanity in others? Whether it’s a client that can’t understand the difference between two fonts or a fellow designer who is not as proficient in our specific field – we’ve all felt like being less than kind in some situations. But clients don’t need to have design skills (that’s why they hired us in the first place!) and our colleagues don’t all need to excel at the same things (that’s why we work in multidisciplinary teams). We can – and should – make ourselves clear, guide the people we work with to the best of our ability and absolutely pull the Andon cord if needed; but we can navigate all this while being kind.

Bringing empathy to the design table is definitely worth it in the long run: we get to know the people we work with better and, sometimes, that’s just the key to elevate our work. People won’t forget kindness and a smile can open us doors to exciting opportunities.