I’ve been doing Martial Arts since I was 8.
I know, I certainly don’t look like that. My friends call me “a bullie’s nightmare”.
I’ve done Karate, Krav Maga, 3 years of Tae Kwon Do, then 13 years of CMA which is a combo of the full-contact martial arts: Karate, Muay Thai, Krav Maga for self defence, and some BJJ. I now train in the fascinating art of Shaolin Kung Fu.
So you see, I can take a punch in the face from a fairly big fellow without falling to the ground. I can kick someone higher than me in the head with no problem.
But why am I sharing all this with you? And here is my opening statement: I still would not want to fight anyone who has more than 3–5 years experience in MMA.
What’s this whole MMA thing?
MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) is all about making you the ultimate fighter.
It combines different techniques that each can be studied individually for decades in order for one to master.
But still – MMA fighters know enough Muay Thai (Kickboxing) to stand up and fight hard, enough Judo to take down an opponent, and enough Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to handle the ground fight featuring arm locks, chokes, etc.
Each MMA fighter has his/her strengths,but they all have to be good at all of these in order to handle a fight in the cage.
I’m really good at fights standing up. But if I get thrown down to the ground – I’m doomed. So you see, I can do Karate, Muay Thai, and Shaolin Kung Fu for years and be a master at it, but I will never be an ultimate fighter. Simply because if someone is good at take downs, and then can follow through the fight on the ground, has an advantage over my skills, even if he’s no master.
MMA has another fascinating thing about it. When you learn ground work in MMA – you actually start improving in your standing up work. When you are doing Muay Thai work and in any given moment you know you could be taken down – you’re less likely to fall for that. See where I’m getting?
So what does this have to do with the ‘should designers code’ issue??
Takeaway #1
You may not want to learn how to code as a designer, and these days you don’t have to. Hell I even wrote about this myself. It’s OK, and you can be a killer product designer, and improve your product management skills as well while you’re at it. It’s just as valuable as well no? Yes. This also brings us back to MMA.
Plus, just know… Designers that know code, while they have the same years of experience than you and even less sometimes, will always be better designers than you. Don’t take it personal, it’s a simple matter of fact.
Takeaway #2
If you’re under the impression that nobody can be good at all things – ‘A jack of all trades but a master of none’ and all that… See MMA as a living proof that different set of skills can be mastered and combined to create a monster.
If you want more proof about it – open up youtube and search for videos like “Muay Thai vs. MMA”, “Karate vs. MMA” and the like.
Summary
If you’re in the product design industry, and want to progress in the best possible way, know this:- Coding is a valuable skill to learn, and will boost your career.
- Code is indeed possible to learn and be good at, even if you are focused on designing, and no matter what anyone else says.
- You are super likely to improve your product design skills while you’re doing code.
- Still have that fear to learn something new? Read this. It will help.
“If a developer comes up to you and says he can’t implement your designs, you should be just dangerous enough to say ’OK, then I’ll do it myself’.”
- Ben Blumenfeld