Thank you for writing this post. As a new UX designer it lets me know that I’m doing the right things to get my foot through the door. Sometimes the resilience waivers and I’m left stuck feeling uncertain not about my career choice but if I can make it in UX. Those moments are honestly a gift hidden in a curse because I challenge myself to dig deep and embed myself with the passion that made me find UX.

I had a non traditional background coming from ethnomusicology (music anthropology) but as you stated I have two things: a passion to help people and their problems as well as a resiliency to life’s harsh circumstances. I appreciate your experience with how travel helped you become better at your craft. I find myself asking countless questions on culture, people and their ideologies. Sometimes people subconsciously forget that everyone in the world has not lived the same life as them or have had the different experiences which have shaped the way they think. I grew up in a very diverse neighborhood and as an Afro-Caribbean, I’m very open to multicultural design and it’s simply amazing what you can find when you just open your eyes!

I have been lucky to find amazing mentors in UX like Jennifer Aldrich or Nancy Douyon who are literal God-sends to me and I probably would have never meant them if it wasn’t for putting myself out there on Twitter. Your words and thoughts in this article is appreciated and I thank you for giving direction and inspiration to us, new designers, who question if the paths we’ve chosen are the correct ones for ourselves.