NOW, WHERE WAS I:

Let me apologize for my lack of posts recently. I’ve needed to focus my energies on school as well as researching which school I’ll be attending next to finish my undergraduate degree. I’ll explain further next week when I begin to discuss the next major step in my pursuit: education.

But before I end this update I thought I'd share a video with you. This should help answer a question some of you might have; what is UX design?

This video was made by UX Mastery, an online training resource for user experience designers run by people who also want to create better experiences for your users.

BACKGROUND: I CARE ABOUT DESIGN – I CARE ABOUT PEOPLE

Before I continue I feel I should give a little bit of background info. As I said in step one, I began my college career pursuing a degree in interior architecture. Early in my studies I discovered that a career in architecture wasn't for me, but I do see that time as formative.

I discovered that I really enjoy problem solving. I like to step back, look at a problem, and see how it can be creatively addressed. (Lately this has been through the lens of technology.) I discovered that I am a person that cares about the details. I like things neat and organized. (My wife and I have a running joke of how “OCD” an action we take is. As in, I rearrange the silverware drawer to have small forks to the left of the large forks: OCD-7.) Ultimately I discovered that I care about design; thoughtful, clean, pleasing, good design. (I realize this is a pretty huge and ambiguous statement but at this point I’m going to leave it at that. I know I’ll dive into this deeper in future posts.)

I discovered that I thrive in a collaborative environment. During my time in school and through talking to practicing architects I learned that the architecture career is typically an isolated one and not steeped in collaboration. (My most enjoyable work has been at organizations centered around the principle of collaboration, where each team member brings value to the work the organization as a whole.)

For a brief time I pursued a few different career types; facilities management, audio-engineering, and public radio/journalism but none of these seemed to fit.

Luckily during this time of not knowing what I wanted to do, I was working at my community church discovering the impact of creating great experiences. I was able to engage people and grow relationships. I discovered that I care about people. At it’s most basic level I learned the importance of hospitality, a quality I think I crucial in user experience design.

Looking back I can see how these experiences have set the foundation for my pursuit of a UX career.

STEP ONE: A UX PURSUIT

Realizing what you want to do, at least for me, has been a long, drawn out process. But over the past year and a half I have realized the answer to this somewhat daunting question.

I want to be a UX Designer.

At the beginning of my college career my path seemed clear. I was to spend five years at Kansas State University studying Interior Architecture & Product Design and then start practicing. Around the halfway point in my studies that path started to become unclear. I was realizing that architecture wasn’t the career path for me. From that point until recently I have struggled to pinpoint where my knowledge, talents, and passions would take me.

I have always had a passion for creating great experiences for people. This has been evident in much of my work since leaving school. Working at my community church striving to exude hospitality and inclusion has shown me how creating great experiences fosters growth and meaningful relationships. Assisting customers at The Apple Store with their technical questions and problems has shown me how great experiences create lifelong customers. And, most recently, working at a user experience research and design firm (in downtown Seattle, WA) has shown me how creating great user experiences leads to enriching lives.

My most recent work managing usability labs and the technology needs of my colleagues has brought clarity to my career path. I want to be a user experience designer. Seeing the day to day work of a UX designer and getting to collaborate on several projects has helped tremendously with that once daunting question. I know with the right education and training in conjunction with my talents and passions I can excel in a UX career.

As I pursue the goal of becoming a UX Designer I’ll be documenting my steps along the way.

Step one: a ux pursuit.

[UPDATE]

The more I dig into user experience the broader the scope of a UX designer has become. See this post for a little more context.