I notice things.
My background in content strategy and digital marketing, gave me a fancier way of saying I've spent years figuring out how to get the right message to the right person at the right time. Turned out, that's most of UX too. I recently graduated from DePaul's MS in Human-Computer Interaction, and I'm now pointing that same instinct at product design.
I bring three years on tech and SaaS product teams, plus a UI/UX internship at an automotive service marketplace startup.
I leaned towards UX because I wanted to bring more creativity into solving people's actual problems, and now I get to blend that with research, data, and (increasingly) AI.
Why UX? A few reasons:
I will stop mid-walk because I spotted a bird and need to identify it. A nature nerd. Turns out "notice the small thing everyone else walked past" is a decent skill to have in UX.
I people-watch. What someone's wearing, how fast they're moving, whether they're late for something, and all that. A little creepy, yes. But also user observation with extra steps.
I like to cook and bake, and I check the recipe about a thousand times per dish. Basically usability testing, with more butter involved.
I picked up crocheting recently and I'm already in love. There's something satisfying about a process where every step builds toward the thing you're making. Feels familiar.
I love mystery thrillers, and I will recommend a good watch whether you asked or not. A skill that's come in handy in design reviews and decision making.
I really like trivia. YouTube game completions, TV shows, all of it. I just really like knowing things. A career involving research was probably meant to be.
