From my experience, working on personal projects helps you figure out what you want to say as a designer.

Designers should keep their heads down and work, and hustle, but come out for air.

Being able to build isn’t the same as building everything all the time. It doesn’t imply that you shouldn’t work with other people who might be master builders. Nor does it mean becoming a dilettante at the expense of expertise.

The translation from idea to believable idea can be done really well with design.