Do you have the skills to be a UX (user experience) designer?

Over 20 years ago, UX wasn’t much of a common term. Even today, we still struggle with which label to use when talking about the types of user experience roles that exist in the design industry. We use titles like UI/UX Designer, Experience Designer, Interaction Designer, Strategist, Content Designer, Conversational UI Designer, etc. The list goes on and on. Regardless of the title, every one of these roles (should) apply design thinking methods as part of their day-to-day job responsibilities.

You may be thinking to yourself, “I’m a graphic designer, I don’t apply design methods. So, where does that leave me?” Guess what, as designers, we are in the job of solving problems using design. We start our process by asking the question “why”? Without understanding the reason we’re designing something, we risk creating something that doesn’t provide any value or fulfill a need for the end-user. Regardless of whether we’re designing a technical product for a hospital, a platform for trading investments, or even a new brand or corporate website, there are a few questions that we should always ask:

• Who is the audience / end-user? (e.g. The people that will interact with the product.)
• What is the goal of the end product? (e.g. The outcome of using the product.)
• What behaviors do you want to drive? (e.g. The impact that the product will have on the user.)

Shifting your perspective and mindset

Being a designer doesn’t require you to be an artist. Yes, the design field attracts creative & artistic people, but a great user experience relies on more than just the look and feel of something. User experience is very much rooted in your mindset and the perspective you have toward the end-user. To design a product experience, you need to put yourself in the shoes of the user. It’s critical to remember that you, the designer, are not the user.

Approaching your design with the user in mind will force you to think about things differently. It will make you question every interaction, word, step, and process that you apply to your design. Anyone designing an experience regardless of their role should consider following the steps of the design thinking process:

1. Understand the user through research & insights.
2. Define the problem.
3. Ideate potential concepts.
4. Prototype & test the concepts.
5. Deliver, learn, improve.

Your environment makes a big difference

Where you work, who you work with, and what your company values all play a key role in your growth as a user experience designer. It’s important for someone entering the UX field to surround themselves with other talented, seasoned designers, as well as people from different backgrounds and experiences (e.g. race, age, ethnicity, disability). If you surround yourself with people that share the “user” mindset, you’ll be more likely to start adopting that behavior as well. Lean on your peers for support, knowledge, and mentorship. Without other designers around to bounce ideas off and challenge you, you risk creating designs with a single perspective.

The type of problems you are challenged with will also make you a better designer. Designing a simple 10-page website for a small business may not present a lot of difficult problems to solve. However, working on a complex accounting system to optimize internal workflow will most likely force you to ask tough questions and work through more complex solutions, mapping information architecture or understanding technical requirements.

Regardless of the problems you’re solving, a company’s focus on the client will make or break the success of their products and experiences. If you’re working somewhere that doesn’t value the client or have their best interests in mind, the end-product experience will reflect it. You’ll also find yourself spending more time selling your leaders on the value of user experience vs. designing great experiences. Companies that value good design based on user insights and data, will be more willing to invest in the experience, as well as their resources. Though, even without a dedicated team of user researchers, getting feedback from users is a valuable step in the design process.

Access to the right tools

Every designer has a toolkit of design tools, methods, frameworks, and processes. To be successful as a designer, it’s important to perfect your craft and know how to leverage your toolkit efficiently for each project. Your tool of choice may change throughout the design process. There are no right or wrong tools to use. However, the design industry tends to gravitate to a few select tools and it’s important to be skilled in them if you want to play in the space.

Here’s a list of some top tools of the trade:

1. Paper, pen, sketchbook (down & dirty sketching)
2. MURAL, Miro, Invision Freehand, FigJam (Real-time whiteboarding)
3. Sketch/Craft, Figma, InVision, Adobe XD (Design & prototyping)
4. Axure, UXPin, Principle (Robust prototyping & animation)
5. Treejack, Usertesting.com, userzoom (Usability testing)

Applying for a UX role

Ready to leap into UX? Your portfolio, presentation, and job experience will be critical criteria for selling your skills. It’s understood that everyone starts somewhere and you won’t be a master in UX right out of the gate. With that said, it’s important to show your work in the context of the design process vs. simply displaying screen mockups. You’ll be expected to provide the rationale for your design decisions and talk about your specific role on a project. Delivering the end product involves collaboration, teamwork, stakeholder partnerships, and a strong voice. Be prepared to discuss your point of view.

You should keep a few things in mind when applying for your next role:

1. Try not to follow the same templates every other designer uses on the web to show their work, which can feel generic. Be unique.
2. Highlight your expertise with great examples and interactive prototypes so hiring managers can “feel it”.
3. Be clear on what part of the design process you are most passionate about.
4. Communicate your superpower and the impact that it will have on your new team.

Focus on your passion

Mastering UX takes time like all career paths. It takes discipline, domain knowledge, empathy, and passion. You may not choose to be an expert in every part of the design process, but it’s important to be mindful of each of them. In some cases, you might be a generalist or what some might refer to as a hybrid or unicorn designer. Either way, put the client at the center and think about their needs when designing the experience.

Just like any job, you must enjoy what you’re doing, believe in it and have a passion for it. Pair that with a strong desire to solve problems and making things simpler and useful for users, and you’re golden.