It all happened so quickly. Three days before the precourse was due, my husband convinced me to enrol in the UX design program. He’d been talking about Lambda School for months now. Initially, he was asking my younger brother to enrol in UX Design at Lambda. Here’s where I stepped in. I wanted to be a support system for my younger brother and thought that if I joined as well, we’d go through the journey together. But while I was able to get through the precourse and get admitted, my younger brother decided he needed some more time and will try for the next cohort.
My first week at Lambda School has come to an end. It’s been an entirely new experience. As someone with a literature and sociology background, learning about UX design has been interesting. A virtual classroom setting, learning in the comforts of your home, having a support system on Slack is something a traditional school can never offer. I was hesitant in joining Lambda School because I thought with the rigorous curriculum the school has to offer it would be near impossible to cater to my marriage and a five-month-old baby. I was wrong. This week has been awesome.
This week I’ve learned an array of things regarding UX. I’ve learned of the different career paths a UX designer can take such as UX writer, usability tester, UX engineer, etc. I’ve learned that UX designers are professionals whose priorities revolve around pleasing the user. They are empathetic professionals who strive to create products that people enjoy — products that people actually want and will actually use.
I learned about the difference between UX (user experience) and UI (user interface). UX encompasses the entire experience one may have when interacting with a product. The way someone interacts with a product and how they feel upon interacting is mainly what UX is about. On the other hand, UI is considered to be more digital in nature which requires designers to focus on a products visual/graphic nature. It also deals heavily with creating interfaces which are deemed to be interactive with the user. Together, UX and UI are components of creating a digital product.
I learned that UX and CX (customer experience) are similar. UX and CX both deal with how people interact with a particular product. However, while UX deals with the experience people have with a product by means of metrics (success rate) CX includes specific interactions such as overall experience, likelihood to recommend a product, etc. Overall, UX can be considered to be a broader part of CX.
I also learned that the relationship between UX and product management is somewhat interconnected. UX and product management both require designers to understand the needs of a user and be empathetic towards users problems. By working together, UX designers and product management drive a team in businesses. While product managers work towards executing specific goals, UX designers work on making sure the product is nothing short than perfect.
This week, I was able to brainstorm how to develop a UX mentality. I learned that a UX mentality requires growth. That designers must be curious and user-focused as well as empathetic. These qualities help UX designers to be successful in the product they are creating. Moreover, UX design is a mindset and worldview.
To get us to challenge ourselves, the UX students complete a Daily UI challenge. This has really been pushing me to explore the different aspects of Sketch and channel my creativity in the designs to be created.
As far as the atmosphere at Lambda — I’ve been pleasantly surprised. The community is so supportive and willing to help. Checking in with my team leader every evening really assures the fact that Lambda is here to make sure you are successful. Lambda School is literally at your fingertips — with a send of one message on Slack you can be sure that all your problems will be solved! The constant want of your instructors to make sure you’re not confused, to ask anonymous questions on sli.do so that everyone is comfortable, team leaders checking in with how you’re doing are all components of a healthy learning environment.
I know the weeks to come will get tougher. I understand that a curriculum as rigorous as Lambda is put in place to test our focus and grit. I also know that nothing worthwhile comes easy. But I’m willing to put in the work. I think after a really long time, I’ve enjoyed learning something. While in the past, school seemed forceful and dreadful now it’s enjoyable. I’m really looking forward to completing my journey at Lambda.
I’ll post a summary of my week at Lambda every week. Be sure to check it out!
