Prior to UX Design, I’ve worked in magazines, public radio, startups, nonprofits, and creative agencies.
Everything I’ve done has been in pursuit of understanding people more deeply and fostering moments of empathy—sometimes art.
As a designer, I’m interested in how to create experiences that are impactful, intuitive, and perhaps, even a bit delightful.
As a human, I’m frequently spotted smelling bread, baking bagels, staring at birds, and talking about butter.
I have always been inspired by people.
I think it was growing up as a second-generation immigrant that made me notice the nuances of everyday life that others may have missed. The differences between how families greeted each other, the arrangements of tetris-like lunch box meals, the ways people young and old seemed to struggle with both expressing what they really mean and then understanding what others truly intend.
It was this curiosity, this habit of noticing and not being able to un-notice that led me to a career in writing. I went to school for a degree in Journalism with a minor in Sociology. This education led me to work at a nationally-acclaimed food magazine. There I craved the humanity of human-centered narratives, so I went to work for a local NPR station, where I learned more than ever that we humans are terrible listeners. The good news I found? If we could just listen, really listen, then we might find more answers and connections in the world around us than we once thought.
Throughout my work and my interests outside of work, I saw a recurring pattern in myself of wanting to solve problems, to understand, and to share experiences of delight,
whether it may be in consulting with small businesses or baking bagels from scratch.
I’m in love with UX, because I’ve been in a variety of spaces that thrive off of telling people what they should want or need... and it can work, but it can also be better.
It’s with real human interactions, narratives, and perspectives that really everything can improve.
Design asks how to solve a problem.
UX asks how are people affected by the problem.
UX Design is when solutions reflect the context—
the problem, the persons, the product.
People inform design, designs inform people.
It’s a symbiotic relationship.
