How to find your unique value proposition as a user researcher even when you don’t feel unique
An incredibly powerful framework to frame your career
Hi, I’m Nikki. I run Drop In Research, where I help teams stop launching “meh” and start shipping what customers really need. I write about the conversations that change a roadmap, the questions that shake loose real insight, and the moves that get leadership leaning in. Bring me to your team.
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Scroll through ten random UX researcher LinkedIn profiles or portfolios. Now read their first sentence.
“I turn insights into impact.”
“I help teams make data-informed decisions.”
“I bridge the gap between users and business goals.”
“I’m passionate about understanding people.”
“I create human-centered products.”
They all sound identical. You could swap the names and nobody would notice.
That’s not because these people lack skill or originality, most of them are damn good at what they do. It’s because somewhere along the way, our field decided there was one “right” way to sound credible.
And that “right” way?
It’s safe, forgettable, and painfully generic.
How We Got Here
Research is one of the few jobs where humility is baked into the culture. We’re trained to center others, not ourselves. So when it comes time to talk about us, our work, our value, our strengths, we default to method.
We say things like:
“I ran a diary study with 12 participants.”
“I conducted a thematic analysis.”
“I helped prioritize roadmap decisions.”
Unfortunately, that’s not a story. That’s a report.
Hiring managers aren’t looking for a walking method manual. They’re looking for someone who solves real problems in ways that matter to the business.
They want to know what happens when they drop you into chaos. What you notice first, what you fix first, what you never let slide.
That’s what makes you different, not how many frameworks you know.
Why You Sound Like Everyone Else
You’ve spent years trying to prove research is valuable so, naturally, you’ve learned to speak the company’s language: value, impact, ROI, decision-making.
The problem is, everyone else learned it too and now every resume sounds like a press release written by ChatGPT.
Here’s a quick test.
Pull up your LinkedIn headline or the intro on your portfolio and ask yourself:
Could another researcher copy and paste this, and it would still make sense for them?
Would a PM instantly know what kind of researcher you are, not just that you “do research”?
Would a hiring manager reading it think, “I’ve never met someone like this before” or “Ah yes, another empathy-builder”?
If you’re hitting yes on 1 and no on 2 and 3, congratulations, you’ve officially joined the Sea of Sameness.
But don’t panic. This is fixable.
How to Spot Your Generic Patterns
Before you can sound unique, you have to know what’s making you blend in. Here’s a quick, 15-minute exercise you can do right now:
Step 1: Copy the intro section from your resume, portfolio, and LinkedIn About.
Throw them into one document. Don’t edit yet.
Step 2: Highlight every phrase that could apply to almost anyone.
These usually sound like:
“I’m passionate about understanding users.”
“I help teams make user-centered decisions.”
“I collaborate cross-functionally.”
“I use mixed methods to uncover insights.”
“I translate data into actionable outcomes.”
If you can find those phrases on ten other researchers’ pages, they’re not helping you.
Step 3: Circle every phrase that sounds like you.
These are rare, the lines that make someone pause and think, Oh, that’s interesting.
Maybe it’s:
“I’m the researcher teams call when they’re completely stuck.”
“I turn vague ideas into testable experiments.”
“I specialize in getting stubborn stakeholders on board.”
Those are the lines worth keeping.
You’ll probably end up with a page covered in yellow (generic) and three sentences circled in green (specific). That’s a good sign because you’ve just found the starting point for your unique story.
The UXR Sameness Checklist
If you’re not sure how “blendy” your self-presentation is, run through this list.
Every “yes” answer means you’re still too safe:
I describe my work using frameworks instead of outcomes.
I talk about empathy more than decisions.
I summarize projects like case studies, not stories.
My portfolio could belong to a dozen other researchers.
My headline sounds professional but says nothing new.
If you nodded along to at least three, you’re probably underselling yourself.
Why This Matters
Being a great researcher doesn’t automatically make you memorable. When a hiring manager screens 50 candidates, they’ll all have similar skills. What makes someone stand out isn’t what they do, it’s how they think and what problems they instinctively solve first.
That’s what you need to uncover and then communicate. And no, you don’t need to “personal brand” yourself into some loud influencer. You just need to show your research fingerprint, the unique way you bring order to chaos.
Below, I walk you through the full framework to stop sounding like every other UXR and start sounding like the person teams remember:
The 3-layer “uniqueness” model (so you can name what you do that actually changes outcomes)
The Career Audit Sprint (your evidence-first method to uncover repeatable patterns)
The Researcher’s Value Equation (a simple way to translate your work into business value without corporate robot language)
The 3-sentence core message formula (the version you can paste into LinkedIn, your portfolio, and interview intros)
The Uniqueness Map (a one-page artifact that becomes your resume/portfolio/interview cheat sheet)
Paid subscribers get the full walkthrough, fill-in-the-blank templates, and the exact rewrites that turn “generic” into unmistakable.
Exclusively for paid subscribers
