I took a 12-week UX Design course

I graduated from the UX Design Immersive program at General Assembly.

The 12-week intensive covers UX/UI foundations, research, design iterations, and development. Includes courses on working on a product team, the specifics of UX research, and career planning. This class has taken me out of my comfort zone, flipped and reversed me into a new career path, and given me a completely different perspective on design, and it's only been three months.

I've let my brain digest, and I've got some things to share!

Design?

I can't share too much about design as I'm still coming into my own as a designer, per se. But I can share what this growth process has been like for me. Andrea Mongolian says, "Design is about the rendering of intent" funny enough, that's the one thing I tried to avoid. I hated routine, and "the rendering of intent" sounds like routine to me.

So, this quickly became my first roadblock on the path to being a designer. Practice and performance stifled the magic of design, right? Great designs are born only from the ashes of chaos! Well, once I got over that idea and kept up with a routine, I realized its positive effects as a designer.

Successful routines provide you with the agency necessary to design within your environment. You could use your energy lamenting about your circumstances; the tide may be high, but hold on with a set of practices that ground you in the beauty of your present. This type of clarity is where the magic of design begins to form, and since it's a routine, it's repeatable. Okay, using words like chaos and magic is a bit dramatic, but for me, the reality was that a straightforward, repeatable routine gave my grandiose dreams actionable steps. Who would've thought that practicing who you would like to be is how you get to who you'll become?

I believe this. I’m not perfect at this. And I only get better at the things I do.

But what about the UX part?

UX stands for user experience. This could mean anything from the plates at your favorite restaurant to onboarding animations on your favorite app. A UX Designer’s job is to uncover ways to highlight and advance the beauty of everyday experiences. Good UX can be found in a designer's ability to listen closely and with all of their senses. With that comes a lot of trust and collective buy-in from everyone involved.

Let's think back to our routine; we created that for ourselves. It's a crafted, unique way for us to get through the day. It opens us up as a designer; provided us with the necessary clarity to create products specifically for our users. Good UX means I must trust the journey of discovering ways to solve someone's problem. UX doesn't require others to need my routine as much as it requires me to pinpoint and solve the needs of those around me innovatively.

"What we do on the stage is a slice of life." -Luther D. Wells

What did I learn after 12 weeks? As a UX Designer, the ability to “see a need; fill a need,” as my sister would say, is our most valuable skill. Helping others is the key to helping yourself.

Why am I a UX Designer?

UX allows me to combine my passions and collection of random knowledge with my career goals. I desire to create, and I can now tailor that desire to different people, businesses, and communities worldwide.

For me, the ideal career looks like delivering unique technology solutions and building tools and products that help businesses grow and provide users with the agency over their potential.

I aspire to create community-centered apps for niche groups and design fun, educational products for children. Okay, that sounds like a bunch of bs; at the end of the day, I could be graphic designing, building a website, developing a cookbook, or making toys for my nieces and nephews.

I’m designing to be baby bear’s porridge, just right for the people.