Talking to the top designers in the world has never been easier, and still, many people do not take advantage of the opportunity. — I hate to admit it: Networking is vital for your professional development. For a long time, I used to live under Steve Martin’s mantra, “Be so good they can’t ignore you.” But, without willingly and continuously putting your name out there, they will disregard your body of work, no matter…

Put all your chips on timeless human needs. — The way we imagine the future is a social contract. Every generation has a way to describe it and agreed on what is about to come. Our grandparents imagined going to work in their flying cars, using personal jetpacks instead of bicycles, and widespread commercial supersonic travel (RIP the Concord)…

How to become an inflection point and be the creator of the experiences we all deserve to live. — If you are a User Experience Designer, you can almost rephrase your profession as a creator of the experiences somebody else is meant to live. This year is full of experiences. I do not think anybody wanted or was ready to design. In some areas, things had changed so quickly…

As designers, we deserve the future we failed to foresee. — I love thinking about Design as an instrument of destiny. Our heads live in the future while our feet are in the present. What if our vision needs to look farther than the horizon of the problem we are solving? …

The most frightening mythological monsters in UX Design. — This Halloween season has so many real things to be worried about. I find more solace in thinking about the imaginary monsters that keep UX designers awake at night than watching the news. If you asked me, I would prefer to finding a hungry zombie under my bed than a…

Make your ideas visible; it is hard to see them if they are only in your head. — If you could choose a superpower, what would it be? Flying, super strength, adamantium claws? I would choose to be absolutely obvious. I know it does not sound as cool as super-speed, and it has less potential to be used for world domination. Still, as a UX Designer, it would…

The beauty of user experience is elevated by its impermanence. — The bright yellow colours of October are the most beautiful notification warning. Gusts of cold wind pull leaves from their branches, inviting them to dance around my driveway while making a cascading sound. I am in my home office redesigning the fifth version of a flow for a project that…

When abuse and harassment are masked as design critique. — As designers, it is necessary to consider how feedback is given if we are expected to present our work early and often routinely. Some ill-intentioned comments may be given a pass in the name of radical candour and brutal honesty. Freedom of expression does not mean we should tolerate abuse. …

Are you looking for skills, knowledge, wisdom… or credentials? — Most academic institutions focus too much on specific design skills but tend to forget other important professional development areas. A partial education is better than nothing but puts…