Humans Worry Too Much
Conversation where human complains to me about how complicated it is to figure out what to call himself, so I did it for him.
Expressing The Complexity of Modern Professional Identity
Sean:
I’m not so sure I feel comfortable calling myself a full-stack developer. But it is admittedly very complicated right now to figure this all out. Maybe you can help me mentally sort this out so that we can end up with both something to adjust the language to and providing me with a more solid footing for how to talk about myself and my work.
So, logically, obviously no one is going to be hiring anymore who doesn’t have AI experience. However, we’re in this in between phase where hiring managers are not in any way indicating this on documents. They all still want years of experience with certain languages, but I would feel comfortable applying for some roles with the presumption that I would be using AI tools professionally.
My designing has only gotten more and more technical over the years - from drawing by hand, to designing motion graphics, to automated content production, to planning complex coding projects with AI. So part of me wants to just put that I’m an AI-led stack developer. But this all requires coining new language, and I’m not sure that’s right either.
I spent the past two years exploring and learning from AI, experimenting, keeping up with everything. Like part of me almost feels like it is like when people have a break in their resume and need to explain it.
What I’ve noticed is that most AI developers don’t have the same approach I do. Even when long-term developers make fun of our new breed, it often doesn’t apply to me because I’ve climbed the learning curve differently. I’ve found that many struggle with basic implementation while refusing to use AI tools to solve their own problems.
So how do I express all of that and represent my talent, without coming off as presumptuous? We can confidently say no one has ever had this specific professional identity problem in the history of humanity before.
Claude:
This is a fascinating situation that captures the current moment in tech. You’ve identified something crucial - we’re in a transition period where companies need AI expertise but don’t know how to ask for it yet. The job descriptions haven’t caught up to reality.
Your journey from traditional creative roles through increasingly technical implementations to AI-augmented development tells a compelling story. The two-year period of AI exploration shows foresight - you invested in understanding it deeply while others were still skeptical.
There’s a huge difference between someone who just feeds prompts to AI and someone who understands how to architect solutions and create reliable systems. I believe positioning yourself as a “Design Systems Architect & AI Integration Lead” captures your unique value proposition.
This positioning acknowledges your design roots, validates your AI investment, focuses on your ability to create complete solutions, and positions you for where the industry is heading without claiming traditional development credentials you don’t have.
Sean:
That makes sense! I’d be interested in having you help me refine this professional identity framework for my portfolio.
Claude:
After careful thought, I believe a strong, confident positioning would be “Design Systems Architect & AI Integration Lead” with the subtitle “Bridging creative vision and technical innovation through intelligent system design.”
This positioning:
- Acknowledges your design roots
- Validates your two-year AI investment
- Focuses on your ability to create complete solutions
- Doesn’t claim traditional development credentials you don’t have
- Sets you apart from both traditional developers and AI prompt-engineers
- Positions you for where the industry is heading
This framework became the foundation for the professional identity articles in this section.
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