UXjam

Looking for love: A portfolio story

I’ve been agonizing for months trying to get my portfolio together, getting little bits done here and there and always being derailed by schoolwork, The Triangle, and general overextension of myself. I thought for sure I’d get it done before Interaction11, but even skipping sleep the night before and working through most of the plane and bus rides, I just couldn’t get it to a satisfactory place. I’d hammered out the aesthetics (which I really need to transfer into a template for this blog), but the important pieces just weren’t fitting together. My central concept just felt so flat, so cookie-cutter.

As a UX designer, I am naturally prone to prioritize the needs of my users over my own; I did a lot of research and competitive analysis. I looked at company sites and other students. I looked to an IxDA list convo from a while ago for inspiration in making the portfolio itself a UX exercise (uber meta).

I think my biggest problem was being too concerned with what other people might be expecting or looking for in a portfolio. This is my portfolio. It has to reflect me and my strengths and passions, not fill in the blanks of what I think prospective employers might want to see. Sure, they’re my target audience and they have their own goals — but those vary depending on the type of company and the individual. Even though I know I want to do UX research and design work, preferably in some space that allows me to “save the world” (ex: healthcare, government, education), I feel like I don’t have a focused enough goal to target my audience well (that’s what cover letters and conversations are for).

Plus, based on the amount of IxDA/IAI/Twitter discussions and blog posts I’ve seen, no one really seems to know what a UX portfolio “should” look like anyway. I’m still certainly open to critique and commentary, but I hit a point where it just needed to be done…for now, anyway.

Meg Metz’s comments at our last UX Book Club meeting about Storytelling for User Experience really resonated with me. As a recruiter, her job is effectively to help people tell their stories to potential employers. It’s not just about fitting criteria; it’s about real compatibility.

So, this is my story. Take me as I am — I like to use words with my pictures, and I prefer not to wear shoes (according to Amy Cueva at PhillyCHI last year, this is a trait of real designers). But I do clean up well when needed.

And I love this profession more than I would have thought possible.

If you think we’re compatible, definitely get in touch. I’ll try not to ignore you like I do most people who’ve contacted me on OkCupid (sorry about that guys, I’ve been busy).

But just like OkCupid, I’m looking to stay near the city — or rather, most major cities. Philly, New York, San Francisco, Boston, DC, Seattle, etc… No offense suburbs and middle America, I’m just in love with car-free living.

I graduate in mid-June, but my timeframe is flexible. I’m really tempted to take some time off after graduation, daydreaming about doing Code for America next year, and considering working at DUCA (aka computer camp) again through July. But if the right thing comes along, I’ll make it work.

Are you the right thing?