The Pragmatic Designers
The Pragmatic Designers
Podcast Description
Hi, we're Desai and Thuan, best friends from architecture school and early career designers on a journey to discover how to build creatively fulfilling and financially sustainable careers. We are super excited to share with you notes from our podcast, and hope you’ll subscribe for bi-monthly updates! thepragmaticdesigners.substack.com
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
Focuses on the intersection of architecture and technology, highlighting topics such as the democratization of design through AI, interdisciplinary learning, and personal motivation in unconventional career paths, with episodes featuring insights from guests like Alexander Kyaw on using AI to enhance design.
Hi, we’re Desai and Thuan, best friends from architecture school and early career designers on a journey to discover how to build creatively fulfilling and financially sustainable careers. We are super excited to share with you notes from our podcast, and hope you’ll subscribe for bi-monthly updates!
Hi, we’re Desai and Thuan, best friends from architecture school and early career designers on a journey to discover how to build creatively fulfilling and financially sustainable careers. We are super excited to share with you notes from our podcast, and hope you’ll subscribe for bi-monthly updates!
Why We Started
From Cornell studios to Rome apartments, we’ve always collaborated. The podcast began as a way to explore how design thinking applies beyond architecture—and to share those paths with students and early-career creatives.
The Wall We Hit
After 8 episodes, we’ve had 454 downloads and 14 subscribers. We’re proud of the start, but reaching our target audience—students and recent grads—has been tough. LinkedIn posts mostly reach peers and seniors, not the people who’d benefit most. Add demanding day jobs and 10+ hours to produce each episode, and momentum isn’t easy to keep.
How We’re Adapting
In this episode, we brainstormed ways forward:
* Slack community for listeners to connect. (Update: The Slack channel is live, join here → The Pragmatic Designers Community.)
* Live streams & workshops to share skills (cold outreach, navigating corporate culture).
* Practical solo episodes alongside interviews.
* Short-form content on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube Shorts to attract new listeners.
Why Share This?
We believe in showing the process, not just the polish. Building something from scratch is messy—and that’s worth talking about. As Thuan says: “If we were doing this alone, the podcast probably would have been dead a month ago. Doing it together keeps us excited.”
If you’ve been listening—thank you for sticking with us in our “ugly duckling” phase. Your feedback means everything. <3
Connect with usDesai → desaiwang.com & LinkedIn.Thuan → thuanla.com & LinkedIn.
Join our Slack channel here →The Pragmatic Designers Community.
Listen to this episode on Substack, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thepragmaticdesigners.substack.com
Disclaimer
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