40 days in Liminal Space
A liminal space is the time between the ‘what was’ and the ‘next.’ It is a place of transition, a season of waiting, and not knowing.
This is the documentation of the my 40 days following these goals.
- I will complete a 36 Days of Type letter.
- I will read one chapter of my Information Architecture textbook.
- I will workout once a day.
- I will complete a step in the journey of finding my next role in UX Design.
- I will fill out the daily questionnaire and document everything.
DAY 01
February 10, 2020
How are you feeling?
Rainy and productive Monday. Feeling motivated.
How was your day?
I woke up to a gloomy rainy day. I made my way to the gym, and went on a run. Got home, made myself breakfast consisting of my current go-to of eggs over easy and sausage. I showered and did some laundry then looked at the time and realized half the day had gone by. I went to my favorite local coffee shop/brewery to get some work done. It was a productive day.
Did you exercise?
I have been following a weight lifting plan for the past month. Today’s focus was arms — Push Day. I had a 35 min run scheduled for today that I was not looking forward to because of the rain. My roommate/running coach reminded me “Can’t choose your weather on race day! Grab a hat.” I went on my run and was happy I did not allow myself to make the weather the excuse for me not following my plans and making my goals.
What article did you read? What did you learn?
I read an article about the Design thinking process utilizing the Double Diamond structure. The Double Diamond concept was introduced to me in my General Assembly UX Design class last fall and I really like the diverging-converging way of thinking about the life cycle of design. In preparation for having to talk through my design process in an interview tomorrow I created an interactive documentation connecting each of the steps back to steps I took in the process of designing some of my past projects. I am hoping to have some time to refine this visualization and add it to my portfolio soon.
What did you learn about Information Architecture?
Much of the first chapter of the book looked into the definition of information architecture- what it is, what it isn’t. I liked the comparison of bad buildings to bad websites:
“Architects don’t inhabit the structures they design. They don’t fully understand the needs of their customers, and they are not around to suffer the longterm consequences of poor decisions.”
Would you change anything about today if you could do it again?
I would have woken up earlier and moved a bit quicker through the first half of my day. I have lately been getting into a good habit of working out in the morning, however sometimes the process of getting ready afterwards can be stretched out to longer than I should be.
Did you learn anything about yourself?
It took me a while to finally get to a place where I can commit to this challenge. I have spent the last month focusing mostly on my mental and physical health, having created a sustainable routine of daily workouts and meal prep. Today being the first day of this 40 day challenge I recognized the relief I felt in having even more structure in my days. I love challenging myself and enjoy the satisfaction in getting things done.
Did you learn anything new about the world or the people around you?
It’s awesome to see the drive and hard work that my friends put into excelling in their work, jobs, and hobbies. And I appreciate the support they give me in working towards my goals.
DAY 02
February 11, 2020
How are you feeling?
Great, anxious, optimistic? This time of transition between careers while exciting can also be stressful at times. But today I am cautiously optimistic and hopeful that I can soon be in a role where I can learn and thrive.
How was your day?
After an early morning workout I made my way to the coffee shop to start prepping for an interview I had later that afternoon. I am very excited for this role and hope the interview went as well as I think it did. For dinner I tried using the Instant Pot for the first time to make a beef and vegetable stew. It turned out pretty great, would definitely make again.
Did you exercise?
I woke up before the sun to make it to the gym in time to get my weight lifting in before the 6:15 am yoga class. Today lift was focused on legs, including many leg presses and goblet squats. Going straight to yoga after was a great way to stretch out and relax. I was excited to see the improvement in my flexibility week to week as I have added yoga to my weekly routine. It was nice to get my workout done all before 7:30 am (before I had even woken up yesterday).
What article did you read? What did you learn?
The focus of the articles I read today was organization and design systems. The first article expressed the importance of putting in the initial effort to create symbols and a pattern library prior to placing anything on a page, especially in a high fidelity prototype. Thinking of designs similar to object oriented programming, every element has a set of properties that make it up. You can use inheritance to build a hierarchy of properties. This helps with consistency and can make the maintenance of massive design projects much easier.
The second article dove further into design systems. It discussed the importance of not only pattern/style guides but also recognizing the design system of the team. Teams should define purpose, shared values, design principles, and brand identity alongside the components and patterns.
“A Design System is the single source of truth which groups all the elements that will allow the teams to design, realize and develop a product.”
What did you learn about Information Architecture?
TBD
Would you change anything about today if you could do it again?
Not exactly something I wish I could change about today as much as what I wish I could change about January. Some of the things brought up in the interview I a have been working on and learning. I just wish I had been as focused in January as I am now. But it doesn’t matter where/when you start, it matters where you end up and the work you put into reaching your goals moving forward.
Did you learn anything about yourself?
I know my worth, I just gotta show it and never forget it.
Did you learn anything new about the world or the people around you?
It was exciting talking with the interviewer about what she loves about her job. As cliche a question that is, it is always great getting an answer that is based out of passion, innovation, and fun.
DAY 03
February 12, 2020
How are you feeling?
Accomplished! I feel really great both mentally and physically today!
How was your day?
I started the day with a great workout and run. I then spent a ton of the last half of the day learning some Adobe Illustrator features and working to build my skills. I am excited to see what I learn and how my work improves over the course of the challenge.
Did you exercise?
Today’s weight lifting focused on arms as a Pull Day. Even though it wasn’t in the program I added assisted chin ups to the end of the workout and was super excited to realize I could do double the amount I was able to do early January. I then drove out to Falls Church for my run. I had a 35–40 minute run scheduled and I wanted to try out the Custis Trail. I decided to make it a goal to get from the trailhead to Theodore Roosevelt Island. It was such a great trail and I felt so good that when I reached my destination I decided to just keep going! I ended up running a little over 7 miles in 90 minutes, my longest run year to date!
What article did you read? What did you learn?
Organization is something I strive for in my life. I thought this article was useful in seeing how an experienced designer in a collaborative team organizes the massive amounts of files and assets that go into each of his projects. He keeps an organized accumulation of information for projects including before/after screen captures.
“For redesigns, it’s important to document the existing website to reference in a future case study or portfolio presentation.”
He keeps a history of work by keeping exports from each iteration, documenting the progress of the project.
“I categorize my exports by UI page type. The directory names correspond 1-to-1 with the page names in my master Sketch file. Within each page type directory, I number every iteration sequentially.”
I am interested in looking into other organization techniques used by other designers. With my next project I want to follow an organizational structure like this.
What did you learn about Information Architecture?
TBD
Would you change anything about today if you could do it again?
TBD
Did you learn anything about yourself?
I can
Did you learn anything new about the world or the people around you?
TBD
DAY 04
February 13, 2020
How are you feeling?
Tired but focused.
How was your day?
Had the workout trifecta this morning, taking up a lot of my morning.
Did you exercise?
Leg Day at the gym — So. Many. Squats. It felt great to stretch out afterwards at the Root Yoga class, although the chair pose was killer after those squats. Then I finished the morning with a nice easy 20 minute jog through the rain.
What article did you read? What did you learn?
I was thinking about my journey as a designer and today’s article focused on the communication of that story. Coming from a technical background in a different career expressing the story of my transition into a UX designer has been something I have worked hard to create.
“If we can’t talk about ourselves, how would anyone know about how we work and whether we are able to validate the kind of work we have been doing?”
My design mentor’s were extremely helpful in working with me to form an elegant narrative of my design career. Now when asked about myself I proudly say:
I am a designer who took the path of a software engineer for the most of first three years of her career. I am the fusion of an analytical data-driven designer and visual developer.
What did you learn about Information Architecture?
TBD
Would you change anything about today if you could do it again?
Probably should not have eaten the Mac & Cheese my roommate offered as I am trying to eat healthy. But sometimes you have to treat your self.
Did you learn anything about yourself?
I can’t resist the offer of Mac & Cheese.
Did you learn anything new about the world or the people around you?
My roommate makes great homemade Mac & Cheese.
DAY 05
February 14, 2020
How are you feeling?
Got a ton of work done and accomplished my goals for today, so feeling pretty darn good.
How was your day?
I keep forgetting today is Valentine’s Day! Being a rest day from the gym I got to start my work nice and early. Got a ton of work done, and feeling accomplished wanted to see if some friends wanted to do something tonight, forgetting that it being Valentine’s Day the majority of my friends had commitments. So tonight will be a nice movie, wine, home spa kind of night.
Did you exercise?
Today is my rest day from the gym so I decided to do a long walk as my exercise for the day. I have been in need of some new workout pants so I decided to walk to the local Marshalls to see what I could find.
What article did you read? What did you learn?
As I write these daily thoughts out I wonder — what does someone reading this think about me and my writing skills? Writing truthfully has never been my strength, but it is something I am very interested in improving. I appreciate designers and teams that can concisely write engaging case studies and briefs. I found this article about developing effective writing habits in support of your design work. One piece of writing the article points towards is a letter from Tim Cook. This example of writing shows the effectiveness of clear, jargon free writing when trying to communicate a complicated issue.
What did you learn about Information Architecture?
TBD
Would you change anything about today if you could do it again?
TBD
Did you learn anything about yourself?
TBD
Did you learn anything new about the world or the people around you?
TBD
DAY 06
February 15, 2020
How are you feeling?
TBD
How was your day?
TBD
Did you exercise?
TBD
What article did you read? What did you learn?
TBD
What did you learn about Information Architecture?
TBD
Would you change anything about today if you could do it again?
TBD
Did you learn anything about yourself?
TBD
Did you learn anything new about the world or the people around you?
TBD
DAY 07
February 16, 2020
How are you feeling?
TBD
How was your day?
TBD
Did you exercise?
TBD
What article did you read? What did you learn?
TBD
What did you learn about Information Architecture?
TBD
Would you change anything about today if you could do it again?
TBD
Did you learn anything about yourself?
TBD
Did you learn anything new about the world or the people around you?
TBD
