Brand

How to introduce yourself at a conference

Attended my first Grace Hopper Celebration after 20 years in tech. I'm sharing tips on empowering women and non-binary folks in our field. Learn to craft your story, showcase your value, and use diverse skills to stand out.

Members only

Burnout

Special voiceover episode - the good, the bad, the ugly

Communication

KISS: Keep it short, stupid

Navigating the challenges of a new team, I find myself caught in the crossfires of conflicting work styles, tackling issues of execution, culture, and politics.

Brand

Building your distinct brand

Define yourself and target audience to communicate your unique value

Members only

AI

AI-powered features in Figma

AI Featured

The AI-revolution in UX design

A new era on ways of working

Career Growth

Onboarding to a new team in thirty days

If you are starting a new project with a new stakeholder, a new job, or even a new team, what should you do in the first 30 days?

Members only

Leadership

Cultural challenge: innovation conflicts with operational efficiency

Leadership

The power of imperfection

Authenticity demands imperfection and vulnerability

Career Growth

Ten learnings from women leadership training

We are bold women.

Life

Greetings from Seattle

I'm writing to you from the PNW! Flew in on Sunday and had my first bowl of 🍜Ramen at Danbo. I've never heard of this place, went because of high ratings. Hit the spot for an introvert like me, eating noodles alone at the bar counter.

Writing Featured

Reflections on one year of writing

Learnings from writing for a year...

Paid-members only

Research Featured

Premium Edition: How to design innovation - video

84% of company leadership believe innovation is a high priority, but 94% of them are dissatisfied with the performance of the innovation. A great product and service is long-lasting, but how do we know the idea today will stick?

Frameworks & Mental Model

Speaking tips for complex topics

I presented a talk called "How do you design innovation" at the University of Chicago and SAIC, focusing on customer-centric design and exploring Jobs-To-Be-Done. I aimed to cover this complex subject in less than 18 minutes.

AMA

AMA: A word from my mentee...

As a personal project, I am working with Aaron to create a new Youtube series "Speedrun to Senior" where I will try to speed up his skills and fill the gaps.

Satire

There should be a course for being laid off

"Cat, are our jobs safe? Google is laying people off."

Burnout

The fallout of moving fast and breaking things

Breaking customer trust is easy. A company’s business and way of working dictates the limitations and boundaries in which designers manage, operate, and deliver for end customers.

Writing

Imposter syndrome for writing

Happy Tuesday. Last week's post "5 stories from two decades of design" took me two weeks to write. I wrote that 3 times, each time when I read it, I thought "what is this?" 🫣 I had imposter syndrome. I forced myself to post an

Career Growth Featured

5 stories from two decades of design

Celebrating two decades in design this February, I hope my story highlights the qualities that define not just successful designers, but individuals who thrive in an environment of constant change.

Career Growth

From good to great, don't be well-rounded

Surprise! An email on a Friday. Warm welcome to 5 new subscribers in January! Sxd4383, Pooja, Miyu, Lanre, and Emylie. You know what I do on Fridays? I briefly summarize: 1. What were my top 2-3 focus tasks this week? 2. What small wins did I achieve with these tasks?

Career Growth

What do I want to achieve?

Last Wednesday at the office was eerily quiet. Layoffs of 2024 happened with a few teams (Audible, Prime Video, Twitch).

Career Growth

Develop your growth themes in 2024

Before the end of the year, we had drafted our year-end summaries, including wins and growth areas. Last week, we had to turn in written descriptions for "above and beyond" actions, expectations exceeded from role guidelines.

Paid-members only

Career Growth Featured

Premium Edition: Career strategy and documenting accomplishments

🔒Paid members only content. Support this newsletter effort by buying me a coffee for $5/mo.

Life

Year-end reflections 2023

Reflective trip to Seattle. I was given the gift of clarity and broadened perspectives.

Frameworks & Mental Model

Season of job change, decision framework

I don't know what's in the air this past week, but my mentees were asking me about internal transfers and changing teams. Changing teams internally requires a smaller, less painful interview process...