Nope.

For years, I saw myself as "just a designer" ... and I marketed myself as such. Clients would come to me with requests, I’d deliver what they asked for, and they’d pay me. Simple, right?

But at some point, I realized that in order to charge more, to grow, I had to start asking why. Why were clients coming to me? Why was this project even necessary? Why did any of it matter?

The more I asked "why," the clearer it became that my real value wasn’t in simply executing design work. It was in the thinking behind the work. It was in the decisions I helped my clients make—decisions that could make or break a project’s success.

Looking back, even when I was just starting out and didn’t fully understand the value I was providing, it was never just about making things “look cool.” My clients hired me because I was an advocate for their success. I helped them see what was in their best interest, and I used design as the tool to bring that vision to life.

But here’s the thing: If I hadn’t started asking “why,” if I hadn’t taken the time to dig deeper and define the core of what I was actually offering, I’d probably still be “just a designer.” I’d still be taking orders, charging hourly, undervaluing myself, and staying stuck.

When you don’t know what makes you truly valuable, it’s easy to let others define it for you. And when that happens, you almost always end up selling yourself short.

Don’t let others dictate your potential. Get clear on it. Define it. Own it. Show it.

Then you can let the value you bring to the table speak for itself.