When I'm hiring, I don't look for credentials, I look for knowledge.
To the user, the interface is the product.
You can never let your data dictate design. If you do, you end up following what people currently do and never innovating.
Find a faster way to fail, recover, and try again.
Your first try will be wrong. Budget and design for it.
When you are solving a difficult problem re-ask the problem so that your solution helps you learn faster. Find a faster way to fail, recover, and try again. If the problem you are trying to solve involves creating a magnum opus, you are solving the wrong problem.