I’ve been in the design industry since +15 years. I craft digital products that are useful & enjoyable for the final users.
Born in Ethiopia but my mom smuggled me into this country at the age of 5 and I've been living in Maryland ever since.
I'm a first-generation Ethiopian American. So by default, I love spicy food and I know every word of Drake's verse from the song Poetic Justice by Kendrick Lamar (if you know, you know).
And ever since I was a kid, I thought that my superpower was my creativity. But as an immigrant being raised by a single mom, I never thought I would have the luxury of pursuing it. Thankfully, I found something I was just as deeply passionate about, advocacy work and organizing!
So how did I go from grassroots organizer to being a UI/UX Designer? Because of how I was raised and seeing my mother struggle to provide, it made me passionate about advocacy work that centered on uplifting marginalized communities. This background has helped shape me into a collaborative team player, comfortable working with a diverse range of skills & backgrounds. I am also able to listen, digest, & resolve creative feedback. I know when to advocate for design decisions & when to compromise. Empathy has always been my superpower, then as an organizer & now as a UI/UX designer. I am eager to see the world from the users’ perspective & create an experience that is seamless & enjoyable.
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Each project is different, but the process is pretty much the same each time. Here is how I tackle each new client's work
It’s time to accumulate the information gathered during the Empathize stage. First I analyze my observations and synthesize them to define the core problems I have identified. I then create problem statements. From there, I create personas, to keep my efforts human-centered before proceeding to the ideation phase.
In the ideation phase, I take all the secondary research and all the knowledge I have gathered from the define stage and concentrate on generating ideas. Using ideation methods such as mind mapping or co-creation workshops, these techniques are foundational to help spark innovative ideas.
During the prototype phase, I attempt to validate the ideas and design assumptions through model building.
During the testing phase, I try to follow a "show, don't tell" model. The only way to know whether a design is functional and usable is through usability testing. By testing a design, I allow users to experience the prototype. And through observing how a user interacts with a prototype and gaining feedback from users, I take their feedback and use it to improve my designs.
Even though, the iteration phase is the last phase in the design thinking process--in reality the design process just circles back to the beginning. There are always opportunities to improve and change a design. I view the iterative phase as a phase that never ends. As a designer, I think it is important to continue to push the envelope, by challenging assumptions, finding new ways to better users' experiences, and redefining problems. People are not static beings, and just like people, design should always be a process that is always evolving.
