From Zero to UX/UI Designer: My Journey with No Experience

Knowing how to navigate your career in the early stages can feel overwhelming, especially in today’s world. In this video I am going to share with you how I got started in design, and the steps I took along the way that lead me down the path from Graphic designer to UX/UI designer. I hope my experience can inspire you and provide clarity as you begin your own journey.

2016

My design story beings when I enrolled in community college with the intention of majoring in psychology. After struggling to find motivation, my passion for education was reignited after my husband installed Photoshop on my computer and I enrolled in graphic design classes. During the time that I was attending school, I worked as a coordinator in the Sales and Marketing department at a local boutique hotel. One day, I overheard my boss discussing the need for a flyer for an upcoming event, and I offered to create it myself. This led to me taking on all the graphic design work for both the hotel and its restaurant.

I was thrilled that I was gaining real world experience, and wanted to find ways I can continue to grow so I started networking on LinkedIn. This led to me find two mentors, one of whom offered me an internship to work on a couple UI design projects for a small startup. The next couple of years, I sent majority of my time working full-time, attending classes part-time, and taking on various projects for both graphic and UX/UI design.

2020

After losing my job at the hotel due to COVID-19, I had to put my education goals on hold and find new ways to make money. Despite searching for three months straight for junior designer roles I had no luck. However, when I found a job posting at GoPro seeking a junior designer I knew I had to go above and beyond to get their attention. I reached out via LinkedIn to better understand what they were looking for in this role. With this information I spent the entire night creating a concept project for their app that I could send along with my resume and cover letter in the morning. Unfortunately they ended up changing the role to a senior designer position. Nevertheless, the concept project helped me secure opportunities later down the road. I stopped looking for a full time role and decided to freelance to gain more experience and work my way up from a junior to a mid-level designer.

2021

From 2020 to 2021, I worked on a range of exciting projects, including designing websites, mobile apps, and marketing collateral for print and digital. In order to keep gaining experience, I accepted lower-paying projects, a strategy that some may advise against, but I believe can help open doors, as it did for me.

• Example: For instance, I took on a low-paying project where I created social media ads for a woman who was launching her own side business. A few months later, the wellness company she worked for was in need of a designer, and I was able to leverage the work I had done for her to secure a higher hourly rate, resulting in a long term opportunity.

2022

In 2022, I moved to Europe and continued to work with US clients as a freelancer. For the first part of the year, I was primarily working on smaller projects and found myself constantly looking for enough work to pay the bills. Eventually, I landed two projects that had an impact on my career, experience and overall confidence. The first impactful project was a month long project with Zendesk, the other was a 4 month project with a design agency, whom I still work with to this day. Collaborating with the teams on these two projects made me realize that I missed working in a team setting. This led me to pivot my focus towards partnering with an agency instead of solely freelancing on my own.

2023

Fast forward to today, I find myself holding several long-term opportunities with various agencies. Within my primary agency, I have worked my way up to a Lead Designer, a role that has unlocked a whole new level within my career. Here, I actively contribute to the the success of the company, that has included introducing UX strategies, creation of SOPs and design templates that streamline our workflow. Additionally, I offer support and feedback to our team of Support Designers. As I progress in my career, my primary objective is to actively seek opportunities where I can leverage my expertise as a strategic designer to positively impact the workplace, and others, fostering growth and development within the design community.

Reflecting on my journey, I can confidently say that success in this industry comes from a combination of hard work, dedication, and a willingness to learn. If you are just starting out in this industry, keep in mind that there is no one-size-fits-all path to success, and more importantly, there is not a timeframe that can be promised to find your first opportunity. To achieve your goals, it is crucial to practice, gain experience, and never give up.