This is great, Helen! I agree that vision is one of the defining characteristics of an experienced designer.

As much as I love the idea of designers as builders (just like engineers), it’s a shame our unique skill of making things visible before they exist isn’t appreciated as much as it should.

As a designer that’s not yet on a senior level, I could see how my team changed when another senior designer got on board: whenever he was involved in a discussion, more options would unfold before us, either because his previous experience would make them clear, or because he would have the ease to connect people to make them appear.