A Little About Me:
It feels crazy looking back on the past few years that I’ve been working in the industry. For a little bit more background, I originally attended James Madison University as a Computer Science major. After being introduced to the university’s School of Media Arts & Design (SMAD) program, I quickly developed a strong interest in UX/UI Design Thinking. By the time I reached my third year, I wound up becoming a SMAD major and Computer Science minor. Before entering undergrad, I had naturally found myself gravitating towards building websites, whether it was through Visual Basic, a templated framework, or flat out HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. There’s something cathartic about the process of visualizing an interface, mapping out the placement of its content, and then actually developing it. I’ve never tried to think of myself as the best developer in the world, but rather someone who genuinely enjoys learning about the process. Currently, I work full time for a tech consulting firm over on the east coast while studying part time as a graduate student in Instructional Design and Technology for George Mason University.
Aside from my love of all things UX/UI and Front End Development, I’m a huge fan of anime and Sonic The Hedgehog (never seemed to outgrow these things). In addition to this, I’m pretty big on hiking/nature walks. Although I do need to work on getting outside more, there’s always something relaxing about long drives, fresh air, and exploring new places. A big goal of mine is to eventually hit some of the trails over in the Washington, Seattle area.. I need to see the Space Needle.
Why I Do This
Jakob Nielsen, a prominent figure in the UX/UI design community, once stated that: ‘Even the best designers produce successful products only if their designs solve the right problems. A wonderful interface to the wrong features will fail’. When I first started out in the industry, I used to believe that when, and only when, you were able to build a clean and responsive user interface you could call yourself a successful designer. Over time, I began to see that UX is so much bigger than the pixels that go on a screen.
Being at the forefront of crafting solutions that can truly lower the trials and tribulations an end user faces when interacting with complex applications is the biggest reason as to why I do this. I used to get so caught up in knowing the right buzzwords and using the most trendy tools, but lost sight of the true purpose of user experience. To create lasting solutions means both listening to and empathizing with your users, while leveraging the technical background you have to actively develop a product that can make their lives easier. I often times try to think of UX/UI as a selfless profession in the sense that every decision and every step of the process is geared towards serving the target audience(s) you’re building for.
It helps to know that the industry contains a vast array of disciplines ( from user research to user interface development to usability testing), that can give practitioners a chance to empower people to change the world. Rapidly learning new skills in an ever growing field like this is nothing short of fulfilling. Moving forward, I’d like to continue improving in the UX, UI, and Front End Development realm in order to make a more positive impact in the digital space.