How my diversified work experience helps in UX design
Becoming a good designer does not necessary mean to have a specialised design education. A lot of my colleagues, including me, don’t have a design degree. We switched to UX design from other fields of expertise. For example, I have background and experience in art, economics, copywriting, and administration. I am happy that eventually I have made my choice to pursue a career of a UX designer. However, I will be always thankful to my past jobs for all the opportunities I have had. It is these experiences that have brought me to where I am today and help me navigate my current challenges.
People who stepped into the profession of designer from some other non-design related fields, are what Jeremy Wilt calls UX Foxes. Usually such people are a valuable part of a team as they can apply a diverse set of skills to their work. They can easily adapt to new constraints and look at any problem from different angles.
Diving deeper into UX design, I have noticed how helpful is my diversified work experience. Let me share with you several observations about its impact on my current job.
Art then: Seems that my journey in design started from the very childhood when my mother spotted my talent for drawing. She took me to the art school where I spent six amazing years of improving creative skills and developing imagination. Since then, drawing has became one of my favourite hobbies. I love experimenting with different art techniques and turning my ideas into something tangible, like artwork on paper or canvas.
Art now: My drawing skills have a great implication in my daily job. It takes me less time and efforts to draw sketches and low-fidelity prototypes. I feel excited when I need to come up with new design ideas or participate in brainstorming sessions with my teammates.
Economics then: I have a Master’s Degree in Economics from Kyiv National Economic University. Besides learning about and getting acquainted with international economics and management, I have developed strong analytical, critical thinking, and presentation skills. In addition, I have also learned how to effectively communicate with people and constructively explain my point of view.
Economics now: My educational background in economics is very helpful when I have to create a competitive analysis or conduct a market research. I like analysing data and identifying patterns in it.
Copywriting then: At times I have worked as a content manager at several education companies. I really enjoyed creating a content strategy and then implementing it into corporate social media. I learned how to write fast, creatively, and logically. It was also my very first experience in running Facebook Ads campaigns and editing website using WordPress.
Copywriting now: My copywriting experience helps me to write meaningful text rather than simply using “lorem ipsum”. This is useful when I have to create some quick and dirty mockups. During one of the project, a client asked me to express their ideas in written form for a website. That turned to be a great chance to apply my copywriting skills. I also benefit from such skills when using storytelling in my work.
Administration then: My career in IT started from being a receptionist. Then I got promoted to the administrative manager and worked like that for about two years. I was communicating with managerial staff, employees, suppliers and guests. Multitasking became my habit. That job helped me to develop strong soft skills: networking, problem-solving, flexibility, teamwork, and time management.
Administration now: As a designer with administrative work experience, I have a good eye for details. I like organising data in the design documentation and keep order in my files. Soft skills play a big role in my current position as I communicate a lot with my teammates and stakeholders. Furthermore, sometimes I have to deliver designs in a very strict deadline and with pretty vague requirements. That’s a great time to apply my administrative skillset!
As you can see, my path to working as a designer was not at all straightforward. Before finishing several online courses at Interaction Design Foundation and Udemy, I had already tried different roles, had ups and downs. However, all my past experience helps me now to be a better expert and contribute to my customers’ success. If you want to pivot a career into something you are passionate about but are still hesitant — don’t be! Start today. Treat your experience as a valuable part of your personality and skillset, and think about how it can strengthen your new aspirations.
