This is what happens when you tell a young designer “no one’s going to listen to you.”
Jen Jones was on site at a Construction project when a man in his 60s told her she was “just a silly little girl.”
She was in her early 20s. One of the only women on site.
Trying to prove she belonged.
And instead of shrinking, she responded the only way she knew how:
“Here. Let me show you.”
By the end of the build, they were best mates.
He even told her he saw his daughter in her.
It wasn’t just a turning point in their relationship.
It was a turning point for how she saw herself.
Designers—especially wāhine and creatives from underrepresented backgrounds—get talked over, second-guessed, and left out of the conversation.
Still. Today.
But what if that’s exactly what makes you powerful?
What if the thing people once misunderstood about you… is the thing that makes your work essential now?
That’s what Misunderstood is about.
The podcast for creatives who see the world differently—and don’t wait for permission to change it.
Episode 1 with Jen Jones now on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/FqblgcSzN5s?si=2s6TTxqA7mRhaw1G
Watch the full kōrero with Jen Jones and share this with someone who's ever been underestimated.
Let’s rewrite what “leadership” looks like in design.
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