Newsletter issue: #156
Read time: 1m 23s

Welcome my friend... I'm Chris the Wise™

You: I need help…
Chris: Speak it.

You: Should I work at a product company or design agency?
Chris: Mmmm… I see… two paths.

You: Two paths?
Chris: Silence! Your words are disturbing my vision…

Product companies are like getting married.

You're settling down, deep commitment, long-term expertise growth, occasional boredom, and that cozy feeling of truly knowing each other's quirks.

→ Full lifecycle experience (design to launch)
→ Actually seeing your work live
→ Deep user understanding
→ Better team chemistry
→ Believe in the mission

Agencies are like speed dating.

You love a bit of chaos, multiple partners, intense highs, constantly pitching, limited project stability, and the constant thrill of "what's next?"

→ Chance to work with big brands
→ Project and portfolio variety
→ Wider-industry experience
→ Fast-paced skill building
→ Pitch, pitch, pitch

You: But Chris, which one makes more money?
Chris: Ah, you capitalist creature!

I went from agency → product → agency → product and quit

I made the most money at a product company. But that’s just me.

Most designers pick a company based on salary alone. But that's like choosing a life partner based solely on their credit score.

The best environment isn't about prestige or pay, it's where YOUR unique brain works best. Different strokes, different folks.

So here's my simple framework:

1. Do you prefer stability or variety?
2. Are you better at depth or breadth?
3. Would you rather optimize one product or create many?

This depends on the season of life. There's no right answer (actually, there is. The right answer is wherever you thrive.)

Still not sure which path to go for?

I've built a decision framework with scorecards to analyze your perfect fit. Check out the full article and examples from real designers who made the switch. 💜

Product Company or Design Agency?

🔥 NEW

The goings ons

Happenings & shenanigans in the (design) world and beyond

Brett from DesignJoy, the $1M solo design agency founder, just made his course 100% free. For anyone looking to productize their skills, it's a no brainer. Instant signup.

Chief Design Officer @Shopify, Carl Rivera, just announced that they "just dropped UX as a title" and says "if you design, you're a Designer". Here's why. That's the second company that decided to get rid of the term UX. What's your reaction? Am I outdated?

Last week was a packed week in London; the UserTesting.com conference, meetups, rooftops parties, BBQs, and maybe too much beer. ​

Greetings from Türkiye 🇹🇷 Now I'm in Istanbul for a few days before heading to stay in a cave somewhere 🧘‍♂️ (no joke, I'll send pics). But before I say goodbye to decent wifi, is anyone from this city? Let's go for a coffee, Shisha, or hangout somewhere cool. Hit me up!

This is new addition to this newsletter.

Let me know if I should keep writing this (or nah)