Does design have an ego problem?

Does design have an ego problem?

Design is supposed to be about solving problems. Better outcomes for people and businesses. Empathy and inclusion. Innovation. Making things work better.

But spend enough time reading design discourse and you could be forgiven for thinking it’s mostly about designers – MY tools. MY process. MY methodology. MY role. What I should own. What I shouldn’t be responsible for. What other disciplines are apparently doing wrong.

We talk a lot about being human-centred, while sometimes being remarkably designer-centred. Maybe good design starts with a little less ego and a little more focus on the problems we’re trying to solve?