How Listening (Not Talking) Saved One of My Favorite Projects
It started like most good creative projects: fast-paced, high expectations, and a whirlwind of ideas. The client was excited, we were energized, and our kickoff call ran long because everyone was full of vision. But three weeks in, we hit a wall.
The project was for a government-funded initiative focused on youth entrepreneurship. The challenge was building a digital experience that spoke both to funders (buttoned-up, metrics-focused) and to 17-year-olds (scroll-happy, emoji-literate). My team had strong ideas for a vibrant, animated interface. The client responded with... silence.
Silence is feedback. We just didn’t listen closely enough.
When Talking Makes It Worse
In creative teams, it’s easy to respond to client hesitation with more explanation. More slides. More talking. That’s what we did—justifying our use of color theory, motion principles, and why the splash page needed to “feel like a dopamine hit.” But all it did was widen the gap.
The client wasn’t disagreeing with the quality. They were unsure if we understood the assignment.
And to be honest, they were right to wonder. We were designing what we thought young people would love. But we hadn’t built in space to hear what those youth—our actual end users—thought.
The Pivot: Shut Up and Listen
I remember the moment clearly. We were on a follow-up Zoom, and instead of leading with Figma files, I asked: “Can we pause for a second? What are you worried we might be missing?”
The client exhaled (literally). Then they started to share. Their funder had flagged some content as too informal. One youth partner felt overwhelmed by the animations. And there was concern the site would load poorly on budget phones—a reality for many in their audience.
None of this had come up before. Why? Because we hadn’t left room. Our energy had bulldozed their hesitations. Once we stopped performing and started listening, the project came back to life.
Listening Is Not a Weak Move
There’s a myth in creative leadership that the loudest person in the room is the most confident. But real confidence is quiet. It doesn’t need to win the room. It just needs to tune into it.
When I stopped trying to sell, and started trying to hear, everything changed. Our revised direction kept some of the animation—just toned down. We reworked typography for better legibility. And we tested on low-end devices early. Engagement went up. Friction went down. And the client began actively championing the work internally.
Build Listening Into the Process
Since that project, I’ve made intentional listening part of my workflow:
- Midpoint Pause: Before the first big design reveal, schedule a listening session. Ask the client to share what feels risky or unclear.
- User Voice Sampling: If you’re designing for a group (students, seniors, donors, etc.), talk to a few. Don’t assume.
- Reflective Feedback: After every call, take 5 minutes to write what was said—but also what wasn’t. Silence is data.
A Soft Skill That Solves Hard Problems
Listening isn’t a warm-and-fuzzy skill. It’s a strategic one. It can prevent costly missteps, protect relationships, and unlock better creative solutions. The project I almost lost became one of my proudest—because we didn’t just pivot the visuals. We pivoted the way we engaged.
So if your next project starts to stall, don’t rush to add another deck or make the logo bigger. Try listening instead. There’s a good chance the answers are already in the room—waiting for the volume to drop.