My Journey from Recruitment to UX Design
Note: This was originally posted in January 2018 on Medium - link to the original article here
2017 was an amazing year for me professionally. I achieved my ambition to transition from being a long-term recruiter to becoming a UX Designer.
Having achieved one ambition, I decided to target another for 2018, writing. That is why I have written this article, to give people an insight in to my story, what made me decide to make the move in to UX and the steps I took to achieve it.
Well, let’s start at the beginning…
I started working in recruitment in 2011, firstly for specialised recruitment agencies and then as an internal recruiter for two wonderful companies.
Those two internal roles put me in very fortunate positions. Back in 2014, whilst at the Totaljobs Group, I got my first taste of recruiting UX Designers. It was only a few here and there, but I was having conversations and learning.
By this point I’d had fleeting interest in UX Design and had spent time reading articles. I also started an online course, but it was more of a hobby than a future career choice.
When I joined GFT in August 2015, I was tasked with looking after the Digital roles within the organisation. It is here where I really started to learn in-depth about what a UX Designer did, as well as the processes and tools behind it.
I was speaking to, and interviewing some of the best digital talent around. I was able to ask them questions, see their portfolios and build deep relationships. I was also privileged to be working with such talented hiring managers who were, and are, truly inspirational.
My interest was piqued and by January 2016 I had decided that I wanted to transform my career and become a UX Designer.
So what steps did I take next I hear you ask…
Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Like most people, I procrastinated.
I talked about my desire to change my career, I met up with UXers who gave me advice, I went to networking events and I bought books, lots and lots of books… that I never read.
Still, I genuinely believed that by the end of 2016 I would become a UX Designer. Somehow.
What was holding me back….
Doubt. Massive doubt.
Here I was, 31-years-old, nearly 6 years in recruitment. And now I wanted to be a UX Designer.
Is this a feasible career change?
Just because I know people in the industry, what right do I have to think I can become part of it?
Why would anyone take me seriously?
I had these crippling thoughts daily.
What changed…
I’m going to be completely honest with you here, I wasn’t suddenly hit by lighting. Don Norman didn’t appear in a dream telling me that it was my destiny.
I just decided that at the end of 2017, I could look back on the year, still continuing a career that wasn’t fulfilling me or I could work my hardest to give me the best possible chance to change my career.
So, what did I do next…
Well, firstly, I needed to retrain. I looked at the various options out there and spoke to a lot of Designers of differing levels of experience.
For my circumstances, I was not in a position to enrol on any full-time classroom based learning, so I had to find something that would fit around my day job in recruitment.
This is where I found the online courses put together by the Interaction Design Foundation. They worked perfectly around my schedule and from people I’d spoken to who had completed some of them, they were both informative and a good learning base to start from.
Some of the books I highly recommend reading.
I also read. A LOT.
There are so many fantastic UX related books written and so many awesome writers that I had a never-ending supply of reading material.
My next step was to decide, other than pen and paper, which UX tools I wanted to use to get my ideas down. I looked at Axure and Balsamiq first and took time to get an understanding of how they both worked. Then I found Sketch and haven’t picked up either of them since. I also started using Omnigraffle early on into my learning and a few other tools.
Once I felt confident in my abilities, I wanted to get my hands dirty as quickly as possible and got involved in projects free of charge to help build my experience up.
Then, on the 13th September 2017, I left recruitment for good and started my career as a full time UX Designer.
Since then I have worked on projects for an Asset/Wealth Management company, an e-commerce platform and even managed to offer my services for free in December as a trade-off to learn from some of the best UXers I’ve ever had the privilege to meet.
I have so many people to thank for the part they played in my transition. From giving me encouragement, their time and their experiences. This industry is one of the most supportive I have come across and I hope that one day I can inspire someone to achieve their dreams.
This is only the start of my UX journey, but it is a journey that I am incredibly excited to be on and can’t wait to see where the next few years take me.
My advice to anyone who has been thinking about making the move, either into UX, or anything else. Believe in yourself and go for it.
Reach out to people in the industry.
Go to networking events and speak to people.Read as much as possible.
Watch videos on YouTube of highly esteemed experts/companies in your chosen industry.
Leave your ego at home and ask questions.
Work hard, be tenacious and never give up, no matter what the knock backs.
