Navigating the World of Design by Establishing Community
The start of my design career brought about the familiar struggles that most face when trying to break into the tech industry. One doesn’t simply apply to 10 jobs and magically start working at Google or Apple. There exists a multitude of variables that ensure someone’s hire-ability at a big tech company, but arguably the most common ones are notable university degrees and 7–10 years of prior experience. These variables in themselves are problematic because they create a nearly unattainable goal for most people of color who don’t have the money or access to astute universities, and much less the access to being a junior 7–10 years ago when most of the tech population was white. Nonetheless, understanding the situation I was in was a hard lesson learned for my ego. Initially I was confident, some might even say slightly overconfident in my skills and connections to big tech. The 5 people in my friend group who worked in the tech industry paired with my raw self-taught design potential were all I thought I needed to earn a contract. But as time went by, a continuing cycle of rejections crashed into my hopes and naive mindset of achieving a product design job swiftly. This obliterated my ego and confidence.
While slowly becoming more accustomed to an onslaught of rejection, something I constantly interacted with to keep my spirits up was a community of designers known as Design x Us. Together we shared our experiences, knowledge, and advice, constantly reminding each other that we aren’t facing this struggle alone. Being around folks who listened as well as exchanged resources tenderly reminded me of how connected I was to folks who are as determined as I am. Having a group of like minded designers greatly affected my mindset to continue on my journey no matter how long I had to wait to reach success. For those who don’t know Design x Us, we are a community of designers from various walks of life, who give light to the experiences of design leaders so that their stories and knowledge can be shared across the furthest reaches of the web. We reveal to our audience how different and similar the beginnings of design journeys are to regular everyday folks. There are some who used to design rave flyers back in the 90s (Ammon Haggerty), others who come from an illustration background (Pablo Stanley), and a few found their way through an existential crisis (Hareem Mannan). Interview after interview showed that a desire to design experiences and products comes from many rivers of origin that an abundance of people find their way to.
I began my design journey when I noticed that all the flyers to the music events I was going to and sometimes DJ’d constantly lacked quality and an understanding of what it meant to put love into a simple graphic. For me quality was about attention to detail and visual hierarchy within color, type, and copy. Putting love into a design personally meant that the digital asset would ignite the interest of the electronic music community to a point where they would feel excited to attend an event regularly. Utilizing my interest in experimentation, love of the unity that electronic music has provided to oppressed people over the years, and a natural eye for design, I quickly found success in the graphic design world. Fast forward about 5 years and countless underpaid projects later, I’ve earned a Product Design position for an incredible company known as Smith.ai, a startup that helps generate profit for local businesses all over the U.S. through AI and 24/7 live receptionists. Needless to say I wouldn’t have arrived at this point without the knowledge and support I’ve gained from working with Design X Us.
In my time with Design x Us, I have been able to meet impressive designers like Ammon Haggerty, who taught me that it is okay to learn by doing, and Bonnie Kate, who has shown me countless new strategies to get the attention of higher-ups in the design world. The funny thing about these two specific bits of advice is that they aren’t the most unique pieces of advice. The real weight of these words is that they came from someone I admire and respect at a point in time when I really needed to hear them. Joining the Design x Us team provided the foundation to these precious moments in time.
As the years go by, breaking into the tech industry becomes increasingly more difficult. Most people who earn these design positions are people who have a strong network or applied their life away until they earned a job offer. I used to hear countless stories from peers about how 5 years ago they took a UX bootcamp and became a UX designer. In today’s climate, especially for people who never grew up with these types of connections, achieving an entry-level design position is increasingly laborious.
The biggest key to my, and other people of color in tech spaces, success has been community. It’s why historically oppressed people are so driven to help one another out to improve their surroundings. Tech Communities like Women in Tech, Where are the Black Designers and Techqueria have continually connected individuals with connections they didn’t previously have the access to. Design X Us, in many ways, does this by providing an avenue to interview a design leader and establish a genuine connection with them. A serendipitous connection is often what can lead to an unforgettable opportunity or a new perspective. These instances that DxU lays the groundwork for is an example of power in coming together.
My name is Sebastián Ortega. I am a Product Designer who would not be here without the people who I’ve met and who have supported me along the way. It’s their voices and thoughts that energized my repeatedly drained body. I can’t wait to see where my newly attained access will take me and the people around me.
Eternally thankful to:
Nikkole, Grzegorz, Austin, My mom, and my ancestors.
