Storytelling for UX Careers: HCDE Professional Development Series

sound familiar.

Angel Vuong: This meeting is being recorded for me consent.

Angel Vuong: So, most recently before Google, I was at nordstrom where I used to work on the core customer shopping journey and product page.

Angel Vuong: If it was if it was easy for or enjoyable for you to evaluate items and purchase anything digitally from nordstrom over the past year.

Angel Vuong: I was responsible, I was part of the team that was responsible for making that happen, so I sincerely hope that it was a pleasant experience for you, I love nordstrom to.

Angel Vuong: i've also designed for trust at airbnb designing internal tools that help keep the platform safe and i've also worked on updates for the translator experience for the translator APP at Microsoft.

Angel Vuong: and have a handful of experience, designing enterprise tools to help companies develop applications or modernize and scale.

Angel Vuong: But before I became a designer working at these mostly tech companies let's take a step back, thank you Jerry.

Angel Vuong: This is where I spent almost all of my time in undergrad, this is a print shop it's the print studio at my undergrad.

Angel Vuong: And, as a former printmaker I really just loved how this medium had historically connected humans to the written language in forms of books or signing or or signage.

Angel Vuong: And I think that printing what printmaking did or what printing did was helped make information widely available.

Angel Vuong: reproducible accessible and when executed really well with proper communications design it made information, really, easy to understand and I particularly love siregar fee, which is also known as silkscreen or.

Angel Vuong: screen printing because it's really unpretentious it's really flexible and there is a very DIY or do it yourself approach to this particular type of printmaking.

Angel Vuong: And in many ways, I think that ux design is like printmaking we design experiences that are intentional and informative to influence how.

Angel Vuong: People are going to engage with your work we're communicating information.

Angel Vuong: So this evening dory and I will share resources that we both hope are really useful in helping you to tell a story that really honors your background and your values.

Angel Vuong: to your prospective employers and thanks again Melissa and hdd for having us having me back tonight i'll what jory take it away.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Okay that's a hard act to follow Angela great.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So okay let's see how I do here.

Drory Ben-Menachem: What do I want to start a see hi my name is rory it's spelled Dr Roi there be a quiz at the end if you can pronounce it you win.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And I just love scary big problems i'm currently head of ux at zonar systems where we make sure that we are keeping people safe around big rolling pieces of metal.

Drory Ben-Menachem: The focus for our organization is commercial fleet, logistics and management so anything that's involved with getting things from one location to another on ground, be they packages or people that's really what we focus on.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Previously, I also work here and i'll start here and here.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I have my own design studio in the 90s, for a couple of years and then I got acquired by a.com startup in January 2000 which didn't really last that long because we all remember summer of 2000 right yeah.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Anyway, moving on i'm a graduated from U dub school of business god's.

Drory Ben-Menachem: A mentor and guest lecturer here and i'm on the Advisory Board here.

Drory Ben-Menachem: i'm in my 50s which means I was born in the 70s i'm a child of the 80s and i've been designer designer of some form or the other night and less my book boyish good looks deceive you that's my actual departments, the picture, do you throw it on.

Drory Ben-Menachem: My spare time I like to read as much as I can it's one of the ways that i've learned to really keep my.

Drory Ben-Menachem: finger on the pulse of what's going on the industry and what's going on in the various markets that i'm interested in and plus it's just it's fun it lets me pick and choose what I need to learn in the moment.

Drory Ben-Menachem: also do a little bit of writing.

Drory Ben-Menachem: To a little bit of this a little bit of this and learning how to do that.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And yes, it's fun.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I also tell people have two superpowers i'm dyslexic and I have ADHD which means i'm a global thinker and festive normal.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Everyday all that.

Drory Ben-Menachem: awesome okay so.

Drory Ben-Menachem: This is where the audience participation portion comes in what.

Drory Ben-Menachem: made these stories engaging.

Drory Ben-Menachem: i'm going to answer the question in the chat of what was that you just saw it is officially called rally yep dirt fish.

Drory Ben-Menachem: out into Kwame try it great.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So this is open MIC time feel free to unmute or chatting comments what made these stories engagement what made angel story engaging and hopefully what made by spring I don't know if you didn't think it was engaging we're also opening here that.

Angel Vuong: talk to us, I feel like I haven't talked to anyone all day.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I talked to a lot of people today so.

talk to me.

Drory Ben-Menachem: You can talk angel.

Melissa Ewing: read them.

Drory Ben-Menachem: read them out soon things I could identify with.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Their personal cadence those unique patches that's good yes.

I have a thought.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Oh yeah what.

Danny Vu: What the angels story specifically just hearing about like your transition into what you're doing now, I think that was engaging for me at least because i'm i'm sharing that experience, right now, like moving from one industry to another that are.

Danny Vu: I would argue opposite ends of each other.

Danny Vu: But yeah I thought that was great just to hear like someone's like I don't know origin story, I guess, and saying what jory to just like you know you mentioned.

Danny Vu: yeah just starting, you just like your childhood your upbringing, all the way to to now.

Drory Ben-Menachem: designer since the 90s, and so I.

Danny Vu: always like hearing about where people start and where they are now, it always gives like perspective, I guess, like we didn't just get here in a blink of an eye, which is always like reassuring.

Jana Nishi Yuen: I think it was the passion and both of your guys's voices and then the way that you did describe the things that you like to do outside of each city and that sort of thing, as well as for dory it was also.

Jana Nishi Yuen: showing some of his vulnerability and how he turned that around to his advantage.

Drory Ben-Menachem: relatable and seeing seeing setting.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Like visuals and how those visuals enhance both the stories.

Benjamin Sibelman: yeah I can't do.

Benjamin Sibelman: visuals on linkedin like that.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Well, apparently we're working on it, because the bet that kind of like hedging any slide shows you that you can do.

Drory Ben-Menachem: It.

Melissa Ewing: In there right, you can put images in there right.

Drory Ben-Menachem: It depends, I mean if you upload a PDF it will play it as a slideshow apparently um you know, requires a little bit of know orchestrating but.

Drory Ben-Menachem: possible, I just wish we could but gifts and comments, because you know come on linkedin.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Okay, great way and as yourself all right.

Drory Ben-Menachem: In the interest of time keep rolling.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So.

Drory Ben-Menachem: That leads us to talking about the first topic.

Drory Ben-Menachem: there's various schools of thought on this, but.

Drory Ben-Menachem: we'll share ours, the qualities are engaging story.

Drory Ben-Menachem: we've heard a few of those in the chat but.

Drory Ben-Menachem: At least from my perspective, this is kind of where they roll up, first and foremost.

Drory Ben-Menachem: It has to be simple, but good stories are easy to understand they're also tonal language that matches the way the intended audience communicate, so the audience doesn't need to spend time I interpreting and then absorbing the information.

Drory Ben-Menachem: they're engaged that most of the memorable stories and fused frenemy Malik humor or pain or Joyce and all three.

Drory Ben-Menachem: keeps the audience focus if every story, it was simply the factor stated, one after another, and most of us wouldn't listen to remember any of it because it's very monotonous boring.

Drory Ben-Menachem: You know we've all been electrodes like that it's truthful not truth and they kind of scientific you know evidentiary sense, but you know, insofar as the storyteller believes what they're saying and they're actually honest with themselves and their audience about they're talking about.

Drory Ben-Menachem: and Drory Ben-Menachem: I was struggling with a fourth term a lot of different terms, but it really.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Does it does this.

Drory Ben-Menachem: man.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Does it take the reader or the audience somewhere else and make them glad that they went mean people aren't going to.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Really remember exactly what we said or did but they're going to retain how you made them feel and how the story made them feel.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And if the audience walked away feeling that hearing your story, it was worth their time great, and I also think I call I learned something new today that's even better.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So when we think about that in terms of engaging story that's pretty much par for the course, but when we got into this topic of Okay, what about telling a personal story so.

Drory Ben-Menachem: What is it what does that mean, and I think a lot of people, including myself, have struggled with this for years, but one of the things that can really clear me.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Make sure that you're being unapologetic about it, as you can your personal narrative is the story of you as a uniquely awesome individual.

Drory Ben-Menachem: everybody's journey is different don't downplay dismiss insult or more, the path of brought you to this moment in your career.

Drory Ben-Menachem: see it for what it is an honor it as a part of what makes you you, because if you don't do that hiring managers organizations corporate they're going to pick up on that kind of in authenticity.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So don't apologize for the journey that you.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Know humble my mother always said that there's a line between confidence and arrogance, so you shouldn't apologize for any part of your career journey.

Drory Ben-Menachem: You also want to take care of not to embellish your story with concepts elements, you may not fully understand yet because chances are someone in the audience is going to understand it and they're probably going to ask you about.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And while I call this out separately to make a point in my last term the subtle on it really is a combination of everything about when you heard me use this for this term before just a moment ago.

Drory Ben-Menachem: One of my mentors who's an amazing writer like told me that the two best ways to have a story phil authentic is one right the way you speak and to know what the heck you're talking about.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So, in order to tell an authentic story about yourself.

Drory Ben-Menachem: it's important to know yourself as well as you can first, and this is where the core of what Angela and I wanted to talk about really came.

Drory Ben-Menachem: How do you get clear on what you stand for what drives you to pursue this career path you're This, I believe this, I do set of principles, your your personal values which lets me segue into taking away angel.

Angel Vuong: Alright, thanks so much for a, so we are going to have a conversation today about.

Angel Vuong: It says it's professional and personal values, but essentially what it dwindles down to is your core values, so the conversation that.

Angel Vuong: I think we're going to have today is as much about telling your story, as it is about really understanding, who you are and understanding that story that you want to tell, and this is the message that you want to communicate about yourself.

Angel Vuong: And about the work that you want to do, and this This is important because I, I know that many of you are looking for new career opportunities or this might be your first career out of school and I want these opportunities to be really exciting for you.

Angel Vuong: A former manager had introduced me to this exercise for a performance review and what I really appreciated about it was how it helped me to clearly reflect and capture how I am making an impact in the work that I do today.

Angel Vuong: So we'll we'll go over that in a moment, I have another personal story, but I also wanted to share that.

Angel Vuong: When I first started my design career, which was about six years ago, I was so eager to take on just about any project.

Angel Vuong: And I hope that i'm not the only person who did this, or you know at the time did this, but I would go off I would find myself different companies.

Angel Vuong: I would go to their about their mission page, and I would just soak up that mission statement, and this was how I kind of visualized in my head.

Angel Vuong: How I would envision myself at these companies, and while this worked sometimes and this helped expose me to lots of different projects and opportunities.

Angel Vuong: What I learned was that sometimes there was just a huge mismatch in the way that I find satisfaction and joy in the work that I do, and the way that I live, and this thing that I was working on or this project that I was trying to find value in.

Angel Vuong: And this, what this learning experience taught me is that my own values are important and.

Angel Vuong: That, I have a unique perspective to offer with different companies and teams, just like you do, and the more that you are able to make clear to those around you the type of work that you want to do.

Angel Vuong: I hope that this can help you be more honest with yourself, so this this value exercise is one that will introduce you to today.

Angel Vuong: And I think it's a great tool for discovering the values that resonate with you, if you haven't thought and reflected on on what those are yet.

Angel Vuong: And if again if you have a job and you're satisfied with it, I hope that this this activity is one that you'll be able to bring into your performance reviews to see how to see how.

Angel Vuong: Your projects and your work are living up to those values that are important to you.

Angel Vuong: And, but to kick it off let's talk about values I would love to discuss and try to, I would like to ask you.

Angel Vuong: What do you think the value is and why do you think, why do you think these felt that values matter.

Angel Vuong: And we can use the same format either speak up or chat.

Drory Ben-Menachem: let's see who's gonna be brave enough to unmute first.

Angel Vuong: Tell us reflect.

Kaitlyn Boulding: I could speak up that's okay.

Kaitlyn Boulding: yeah I think that, like, as we are all experiencing living through the pandemic really highlights a certain like public and private conception of what.

Kaitlyn Boulding: Our values are and like brings to the for what we prioritize in terms of what is important to us and how we live that out so then values are the way that we are.

Kaitlyn Boulding: living through and acting out what we think is most important to see in the world.

Angel Vuong: love it.

Jody Laflen: I think, also, I think, also um values will to me and my values are something that come with me wherever I go so whatever employer, I have or client I have if my values clash with there's I can't do that work it's not a match and.

Jody Laflen: I want to work with with or for someone whose values align with mine, otherwise you know and i've had i've had i've had an entire career i'm a career changer.

Jody Laflen: I have had jobs where I had to leave because I was being asked to do things where I didn't think I could look at myself in the mirror if I did them.

Jody Laflen: And so my values are something that are intrinsic to me and to my work and if I think I don't want to put my name on that, then that's not work, I should be doing that doesn't reflect my values.

Benjamin Sibelman: I would say values are kind of traits that we want to see in ourselves and other people in the world, so like I value being transparent and communicating with other people who are empathetic and I value justice and the flip side is like I want when I see.

Benjamin Sibelman: Injustice arm, for example, I want to do something about it that I see that my work is causing in justice I don't want to do that work.

Benjamin Sibelman: And maybe when I see the people.

Benjamin Sibelman: In my job don't hold the same values for personal.

Benjamin Sibelman: way of being on that could cause problems, but maybe maybe not as much.

Drory Ben-Menachem: mm hmm.

Totally.

Angel Vuong: Like I think we've heard these themes of some words that I jotted down like how you prioritize.

Angel Vuong: They follow you their intrinsic there are these traits right.

Angel Vuong: And i've also what i've also heard is that these are the things that really attract you to.

Angel Vuong: Values kind of point you to like work that attracts you or.

Angel Vuong: The way that you want to live your life and if you're i've also heard this theme of if you are not reflecting these values in a certain way that it might lead to dissatisfaction, maybe unhappiness so.

Angel Vuong: values are the things that really define you as a human, they are the things that you believe to be important to the way that you live and to the way that you.

Angel Vuong: That the way that you live and work and, yes, it, it is.

Angel Vuong: You know everyone it resonates differently with the room, but it is hard to like pinpoint.

Angel Vuong: That definition, but I feel like even if you don't always live your values it's good to kind of have.

Angel Vuong: values that you aspire to.

Angel Vuong: And so.

Angel Vuong: I have a shared a list of like a word bank that will be shared out after today's session but let's kick off the this this exercise.

Angel Vuong: Which is in four steps, but if you jump to the next slide please.

Angel Vuong: What we're going to do first is to take a look together at this sort of values word bank.

Angel Vuong: that this was this was shared with me earlier it's not a definitive list of values, but it's something that I hope that you'll be able to take away today, this is an activity that i've personally spent like an hour working on, because there are a lot of words on this list.

Angel Vuong: And, and this is optional, but if you have a mentor or a friend or peer who can participate in this activity with you.

Angel Vuong: I invite you to.

Angel Vuong: see if they would be able to participate with you because.

Angel Vuong: Sometimes you might be drawn to certain values but it's interesting to see how other people see you live out your values.

Angel Vuong: Next slide please.

Angel Vuong: So, again we have this list of many, many words many value words and for the sake of time i'm just kind of going to walk through this activity, I again hope that it's something that you can take away at the end of the session today and.

Angel Vuong: and work on, but I would like you to.

Angel Vuong: Take a take a look and read through every single one of these words, what we see your words like ability acceptance discovery growth.

Angel Vuong: mindfulness The list goes on, but I want you to take a look at this and use a highlighter or pen pen and mark the words that jumped out at you.

Angel Vuong: That our immediate try not to to spend too much time wondering about the definition of the word.

Angel Vuong: But see what resonates really well with you and.

Angel Vuong: Mark 20 to 30 it's a huge list so.

Angel Vuong: there's a lot to choose from, but choose 20 3035.

Angel Vuong: And what you'll notice is that a lot of these words might start to sound familiar and if it does that's Okay, because you will start to find patterns and trends.

Angel Vuong: And before we before we we group these words and you start to establish these patterns.

Angel Vuong: I wanted to point out that I recognize that if English isn't your first language, there may be some words on here that don't match the values that speak to who you are but that's completely Okay, because this is such an open ended.

Angel Vuong: Flexible activity it's kind of like printmaking you make it what it is.

Angel Vuong: But if there is a.

Angel Vuong: Maybe a phrase that resonates with you and isn't captured in a word, it's okay just just write that down and later, you can reflect on it, to see if there is a word that fits fits in well with it.

Angel Vuong: i've already mentioned asking a peer mentor mentor to do this activity with you to.

Angel Vuong: Next slide.

Angel Vuong: i'll share out what I, the first time that I did this activity These were the words that kind of stood out to me.

Angel Vuong: Ambition beauty belonging boldness commitment the list goes on.

Angel Vuong: And what I really liked about this activity is that the words that I picked the words that jury may pick and the words that you've made pick might be completely different and that's.

Angel Vuong: Totally Okay, because we're all human and we're all different, and what it might mean is that, if we do have values that align we may be drawn to similar things.

Angel Vuong: But we talked about a little bit earlier about mismatch and values it's just really good to understand what works for you, or what kind of drives you so that when you find work projects companies to work for.

Angel Vuong: or people to be around even that you know they're there is an a clash and values.

Angel Vuong: So yes, next is just define this is another really fun and flexible part of this this activity.

Angel Vuong: And it's the definition stage in in your terms you get to define exactly what these values mean to you i'll show you what that might that look like for me.

Angel Vuong: So I found words that were.

Angel Vuong: kind of fell into these two main buckets or two main categories, and that was kindness and trust and I thought about how.

Angel Vuong: This.

Angel Vuong: relates to me in the workplace, like.

Angel Vuong: there's this association with the word kindness or in my head and association with the word kindness, that means maybe you're more reserved for your meek or your quiet.

Angel Vuong: and soft spoken.

Angel Vuong: or those were the immediate terms that stood out to me, but I feel like those who know me well know that I am maybe none of those things I can actually be very loud.

Angel Vuong: very involved and engaged.

Angel Vuong: So it was important for me to design to define what kindness meant for me, and so I define this as not being meek not being ambivalent or overshadowed.

Angel Vuong: But what it is, is being deliberate and being honest.

Angel Vuong: Committed creative justice.

Angel Vuong: Mutual respect and assuming best intent, it was you know that's not a complete sentence, but these were the things that resonated to me when I define the word kindness and I also found a lot of.

Angel Vuong: A lot of.

Angel Vuong: terms or a lot of values that fit into this category of trust as like a primary and a primary value and I defined trust as a firmness or confidence in a person or an idea and a process and I found that there was sort of this overlap between kindness and trust.

Angel Vuong: The and you'll you'll see that the the yellow stickies at the bottom were the words that were in the last step of the exercise that kind of funneled into this definition of kindness and trust.

Angel Vuong: And so, this is something that I use for myself personally in a.

Angel Vuong: In a performance review and I had asked earlier for you to recruit a friend or family member or peer mentor to.

Angel Vuong: To participate in this because it's really fulfilling and satisfying when you can see that the things that are important to you.

Angel Vuong: Like other people see that that is reflected to.

Angel Vuong: I.

Angel Vuong: So with this next step it's a reflection it's asking yourself how the roles that you apply for align with your values or if they if these values align to the feedback.

Angel Vuong: That you receive, so what that meant for me was in my performance reviews, you know i've written about these things that i've accomplished things i've done but i've also solicited feedback from my colleagues and.

Angel Vuong: there.

Angel Vuong: I had noticed.

Angel Vuong: I had noticed feedback that really aligned to.

Angel Vuong: kind of establishing trust in the way that I partner with engineers that's a relationship that's so important to me.

Angel Vuong: establishing trust and communication.

Angel Vuong: And approaching with kind of like an open an open mind there's like there's a kindness to that.

Angel Vuong: So it was really satisfying for me to see that and the products that I had taken on with this particular company that I was working with.

Angel Vuong: That my peers and my colleagues saw how my personal values were reflected in the work that I did, and that was really, really satisfying to me, but I would like to say, you know.

Angel Vuong: This is also so important, if you are looking for your first job or, if you are.

Angel Vuong: Even not even even if it's not your first job if you are career seeking right now, like you know, we had heard themes of making sure that your values match up with with these roles that you're applying for because at the end of the day, I think that it gives you satisfaction and.

Angel Vuong: A kind of an honesty.

Angel Vuong: and honesty with yourself, and if this was you know, a short and sweet kind of walk through of this exercise, but it's one that's really helped me, and I hope that something that you can take away that will be helpful for you as well.

Thanks.

Drory Ben-Menachem: awesome anybody in the audience questions for Angela there anything that's confusing or you'd like her, like her to clarify in terms of the exercise.

Benjamin Sibelman: now going to have a question about like.

Benjamin Sibelman: Have you had feedback that.

Benjamin Sibelman: Like what you what you're done at your work doesn't align with your values and what's that been like.

Angel Vuong: The question that I heard was have I gotten feedback that does not align with my values.

Benjamin Sibelman: That feedback about your your what you do at work.

Angel Vuong: feedback about what I do at work, that does not align with my values.

Angel Vuong: um I don't know I I I don't know if some of the feedback that i've gotten has like if my peers are specifically thinking of like certain.

Angel Vuong: A particular values I think it's more in terms of like.

Angel Vuong: and Angel Vuong: I guess.

Angel Vuong: Hearing feedback about.

Angel Vuong: hold on and spinning in circles, I want to make sure that I understood that question correctly um.

Benjamin Sibelman: So, you said that you it feels really good to hear people on validate that um that they see these as your values and they see you living but, as you said you don't always I mean you may not always and.

Melissa Ewing: So, are you saying, then, that if she if angel were to get feedback that she was not trustworthy on a particular incident or something like that.

Benjamin Sibelman: right if the value is trust that would be an example, you know.

Angel Vuong: Well, but the thing is that these are you know values that I keep to usually to myself, I I shared them out as examples, just so y'all could.

Angel Vuong: See how I kind of process through this activity but it's not something where I go into my team and say like hey these are my you know, this is very important to me like you know it's something that I keep out top of mine in the things that I do.

Angel Vuong: But it's more of like an alignment when I when I receive feedback that matches how I personally feel about myself or how i'd like to live that's really I guess validating.

Angel Vuong: Right um but I guess like.

Angel Vuong: Going into this I don't know if my partner's my colleagues would specifically say like angel values trust so here's how it shows up in her work it's more of like a self reflection kind of activity.

sure.

Drory Ben-Menachem: goodbye, if I could, yes, and to what angels talking about I think i'm.

Drory Ben-Menachem: The type of feedback that comes in angels point is like we're not we're not walking around with T shirts, I might be cool T shirts with our values on him.

Drory Ben-Menachem: But it's something that if we're if we're relatively clear about it are things that are core to how we move through the world, and I can actually I can recall times in my past where I grew up in a family, where know honesty was.

Drory Ben-Menachem: One of the like, probably the number one value like you know the monogamy word is better than a written contract, so if you say you're going to do something you do it.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And I remember.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I remember the feeling that, when I got feedback in some of my early jobs that said hey, you said you were going to have this delivered by the deadline or you know you said that this actually got done and turns out it didn't get done.

Drory Ben-Menachem: um.

Drory Ben-Menachem: It didn't feel very good when it wasn't it wasn't a cause for me to kind of reevaluate or or kind of question my own values, but it was it was a learning opportunity for me to say Oh, I can reflect on my behavior go yeah I don't want to do that anymore.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So it's.

Drory Ben-Menachem: it's not necessarily a very explicit thing but it's it's it's really part of that how.

Drory Ben-Menachem: How you take that moment to reflect and reorient yourself to say oh Okay, I need to make sure that how i'm acting in how i'm acting in private, is how I present myself in public, make sure those two are Congress.

Benjamin Sibelman: Thank you.

Drory Ben-Menachem: caitlin had a question has reflecting on your values shifted your career trajectory in a meaningful way but that's a good question.

Angel Vuong: I think it definitely has for me i'm.

Angel Vuong: Going back to that example that I used about kindness and.

Angel Vuong: You know I had mentioned how like what first comes to mind with kindness for me it's just like.

Angel Vuong: How do I wanted to find kindness like.

Angel Vuong: there's like a gentleness to it right, and so, when I first started my career.

Angel Vuong: I my very first ux design job I was.

Angel Vuong: I worked with all men, I was the only.

Angel Vuong: woman in this room, of all men, where I struggle to make my voice heard oftentimes and when I sat with the word.

Angel Vuong: kindness and this was you know this was before I had done this evaluation activity is just something that's always sat with me.

Angel Vuong: But when I first started my career like I had a really hard time standing up and articulating these decisions that I had made in my work or being really firm right.

Angel Vuong: And over time.

Angel Vuong: Over time, the word kindness shifted for me from something that was you know.

Angel Vuong: Just being agreeable or just being easy to work with.

Angel Vuong: and helpful to something that was.

Angel Vuong: kind but firm kind means you know, yes, I might see you know points that are points or comments that are are different and in.

Angel Vuong: A room with people who.

Angel Vuong: may be tough stakeholders, but like I approach it in a firm manner in a way that is also direct and confident like it it's um.

Angel Vuong: I really appreciated how like I could still stay true to that core value, even though the meaning of it might have.

Angel Vuong: shifted over the years or kind of evolved over the years.

Angel Vuong: Yes.

Angel Vuong: Wonderful comment value from akshay values tend to evolve with us as we encounter new experiences and situations and dust can change over time.

Angel Vuong: Exactly what I was trying to communicate.

Drory Ben-Menachem: yeah and they here's a here's a really interesting question like How often do you reevaluate reevaluate yourself, or when do you consider re evaluating yourself.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I personally do a year and reflection and rejuvenation.

Drory Ben-Menachem: ritual it's become part of something that I learned from my mentor years ago and it's been really valuable to me, what about you angel.

Angel Vuong: i'm.

Angel Vuong: So I.

Angel Vuong: Do this thing where like the very first day of every year I start a new journey and I or journal sorry if I start off new journal out the first day of every year and I write.

Angel Vuong: I write value words that like really resonate with me for that year, so similar to jury like.

Angel Vuong: You know I do kind of like a recalibration at the end of every year and I decided to take these intentional words with me into every new year, and at the.

Angel Vuong: I like to I journal all the time, I have a career Journal and I like to reflect on whether or not this has shown up in different projects that I do or interactions that i've had with.

Angel Vuong: My colleagues.

Angel Vuong: But it also comes I do it with every performance review cycle to like this helps me to kind of keeping in check with myself and to make sure that i'm honoring myself and the things that are important to me.

Angel Vuong: And I found that through the years i've just kind of stuck to a couple of values like what I what I showed you all in this activity might be a little bit outdated but.

Angel Vuong: it's not too far off from.

Angel Vuong: The value words that I would pick for myself today.

Angel Vuong: It it might have evolved a little bit or I might define it a little bit differently.

Angel Vuong: But it's nice to see that it's that these words have just kind of followed me throughout my career and my life.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I would, I would echo that i'm in both with the only and kind of do the the year like Okay, what are the words of intent for me that's definitely something I.

Drory Ben-Menachem: tried to practice.

Drory Ben-Menachem: it's interesting that the core those core values and what's come and gone on the way I.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Just thinking back on on caitlin's question about like how you know, reflecting undervalued 52 career trajectory yeah.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I think that if I hadn't started doing that I would probably still be at Microsoft because between 2020 10 Microsoft was a very different organization and it wasn't as.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Welcoming or inclusive of the design community, as it is now, we were trying, but it was just a very different, but there was a very different leadership rubric and.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Because I reflected on those values it's what made it motivated me to actually leave Microsoft and go join an organization called filter which.

Drory Ben-Menachem: that's really where I added the value of.

Drory Ben-Menachem: compassion and mentorship because it it helped me how look at this career of design and ux and a very different light and you know see that there's more than one path and more than one journey to do this and everybody's kind of figuring it out on their own.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So yeah I think it's it's a very powerful thing and it, however, you do it, however, you choose to do it it's true for you and you'll get something out.

Drory Ben-Menachem: But any last questions.

Drory Ben-Menachem: check in the chat.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Okay, all right um we have about 10 minutes left.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Little know now for something completely different.

Drory Ben-Menachem: angel you're welcome to chime in as much as you like on these this is your kind of i'm kind of you know we're have a little tongue in cheek moment for storytelling.

Drory Ben-Menachem: First and foremost.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Please don't write a story that sounds like everyone else's on the Internet, hiring managers, like myself, we see these all the time there's kind of it's getting to be like this cookie cutter mindset around like how people write their linkedin stuff.

Drory Ben-Menachem: that's funny like I saw this on Twitter, years ago, but I still remember it to this day.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Like i'm showing how unique a nonconformist I am by wearing the same Fred Perry lumberjack shirt and American apparel philosophies everybody else.

Drory Ben-Menachem: yeah I mean it's funny, but if you think this is ridiculous.

Drory Ben-Menachem: How many people have an interest story that's the derivative of this highly talented so with background in blah who's passionate about solving real problems for real people I love working with this and I have skills in that i'm well versed in those things and I strengthen stuff.

Drory Ben-Menachem: My career dream is to do things for this place that are useful intuitive usable.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Design thinking.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Now this is an extreme parody example, but the point is like.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Try to avoid information that would apply to lots of people yeah make it about you.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Have the courage to say something unique about.

Drory Ben-Menachem: seriously i've actually i've had to do this myself if you're having trouble coming up with something because it's one of the hardest things to do to write honestly about yourself have a friend appear a colleague somebody who knows you really well not your mother.

Drory Ben-Menachem: have somebody ghost write something for you, because you'd be amazed to hear what they think about you it's similar to the values exercise, you can start there and then you can turn it into prose like hey you know why don't we read each other's bios.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And the way you get practice and during that is start offering recommendations to people on linkedin just send them a recommendation guess what chances are they're going to send them back to you and they're going to reflect what they see in you back and it's amazing.

Drory Ben-Menachem: um so one of the things that we did you, you may have seen this little survey that we sent out, we probably should have sent earlier well.

Drory Ben-Menachem: But we did a little research to see like what are those common words that are bubbling up in these you know about me things and even filtering out the like designer ux user experience whatever you know those classic things.

Drory Ben-Menachem: there's a lot of the same words that he bubbling up in these about me statement.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Granted statistics significances here we've got like a total of maybe 41 by five o'clock today we'll see what it looks like not all of these are bad, some of these necessary but you want to at least try and find a way to use them in a way that feels less cookie cutter now.

Drory Ben-Menachem: craft a story that showcases your unique value i'm not talking about like hey i'm growing a sagittarius I like long walks in the rain I don't care about them what can be fun, but.

Drory Ben-Menachem: focus on this is what I believe in this is the work I love doing and here's what I can contribute to your company.

Angel Vuong: This is your.

Angel Vuong: thoughts yeah.

Angel Vuong: So.

Angel Vuong: piggybacking off of what dory as mentioned about this this next slide.

Angel Vuong: don't pollinate your pros with cliches idioms are buzzwords so um i've been guilty of this at some point in my career, yes, we all have let's raise our hands for it, but you know I am a creative.

Angel Vuong: I am a creative empathetic.

Angel Vuong: User experience designer with experience in xyz and I want to create these human centered while yada yada like.

Angel Vuong: There are a lot of portfolios, a lot of personal statements that sound like this and we would like to hope that if you are entering this career path that you do embody those things.

Angel Vuong: But I think what we would like to emphasize for the storytelling aspect is that you have something so unique and so special to offer your future employer and that's what they want to hear.

Angel Vuong: You know, think Troy you had a really interesting.

Angel Vuong: kind of comment on the word empathy the last time that that we chatted.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Oh yeah.

Drory Ben-Menachem: it's funny just seeing the evolution of word usage just in our own discipline.

Drory Ben-Menachem: There was a time where I was a huge fan of the word empathy designed for empathy and we got an empathy for the users.

Drory Ben-Menachem: About three years ago I kind of got burned out on the word empathy because it was really being overused and was being used by people who didn't really understand what it meant.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And because I I lean on my mentors a lot and I was just having a discussion with one of my mentors about this.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And she actually said I actually don't like the word empathy because it doesn't motivate people to do anything it's one step away from sympathy.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And she said, I prefer the word compassion like more what's the difference well empathy is passive empathy is i'm feeling what you're feeling and a way that I can relate, and I feel as though it's happening.

Drory Ben-Menachem: that's not compassionate compassion is i'm feeling what you're going through or experiencing so deeply that it's compelling me to do something about it to take action.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And that's where the beauty of the language comes out in terms of really digging in, and this is also a benefit and opportunity for people who are maybe still trying to learn it you look.

Drory Ben-Menachem: there's such a there's such a wide range of words to use that.

Drory Ben-Menachem: aren't really well known, but you can dig into those and go.

Drory Ben-Menachem: That better captures what i'm talking about, and as long as it's not a.

Drory Ben-Menachem: You know, a word that you know there's a lot of English words that nobody ever know uses anymore or uses wrong like you know.

Drory Ben-Menachem: decimate.

Drory Ben-Menachem: But I mean there's you have a choice, you have a choice you don't have to fall victim to you know this.

Drory Ben-Menachem: If your story reads or sounds like this, this is not gonna do any favorites.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I, for the record I didn't write this this is.

Drory Ben-Menachem: This is written by an algorithm on some website it's literally went public and it gave me this crap.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So, think about.

Drory Ben-Menachem: How are you using plain language and simple terminology as much as possible.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So they don't have to work so hard to think about what your value.

Melissa Ewing: Do you see caitlin's hand.

Drory Ben-Menachem: angel I do now.

Kaitlyn Boulding: Oh sorry I did have a question, can I ask.

Kaitlyn Boulding: So i'm i'm also a career changer and i'm I don't want to scare people away.

Kaitlyn Boulding: So if you could speak a little bit to for people coming in kind of from a very slant wise, I know that I bring a lot of value with my diverse background, but i'm also trying to make myself, and I think someone had a question about like both figuring out how to stand out and fitting.

Drory Ben-Menachem: yeah.

Kaitlyn Boulding: So if you can speak to think how much i'm never sure how much to be like Hello.

Kaitlyn Boulding: I have a very unique experiences, and I can do what you want me to do.

Drory Ben-Menachem: yeah that's a tough one.

Angel Vuong: I will say that.

Angel Vuong: I will say that there is probably space for you to tell a really quick a narrative of.

Angel Vuong: That you know the pre career change you when you introduce yourself in something like an onsite interview there is space and room for that.

Angel Vuong: But I think like.

Angel Vuong: it's it's absolutely fine to talk about being career changer to like that's that's something that's going to set you apart think it might be useful or.

Angel Vuong: I think it might be helpful to kind of reflect on like those highlights or those key things that you've learned about learn from your past career and how maybe how it translates into.

Angel Vuong: ux researcher design or you know, whatever your next career path is going to be.

Drory Ben-Menachem: mm hmm yeah well said, I think, if you know if we were to use the.

Drory Ben-Menachem: principal from Swiss school of design it's a fierce reduction of unnecessary elements I I don't I manage the blockbuster video at one point in my.

Drory Ben-Menachem: You know, in my youth, nobody cares and it doesn't really have a lot of bearing other than like you know i'm dealing with irate stakeholders that might help, but you know it doesn't really have any bearing on my story, as it is now so knowing.

Drory Ben-Menachem: How much research you've done to figure out Okay, this is what this company values, this is the focus of what this role is this is what they're expecting.

Drory Ben-Menachem: and being able to go and cherry pick those points of honor from your legacy to go, this is what brings me to the table with a unique perspective.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And I think there was a.

Drory Ben-Menachem: How might you communicate that you fit in and stand out.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I don't know that I want to fit in but that's just me, I mean, I want to be able to stand out in a way that shows that, like I have something unique to bring to the table, because if.

Drory Ben-Menachem: i'm part of an organization and the organization wants everybody to fit in and be in the same box and cookie cutter what does that say about the team's ability and agency to be creative and think outside that box and.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Be their authentic selves or are we literally just looking at a scenario group thing, maybe I don't want to work there.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So just taking a look at other questions, how do you get past the first cut and what you computer and not a human is looking for those key buzzwords.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Good question they're not going to look for it in your about me statement the algorithm those HR tools they're going to do a scrub of keywords versus your resume.

Drory Ben-Menachem: So I wouldn't worry less about what's in your personal statement.

Drory Ben-Menachem: and always submit a cover letter.

Drory Ben-Menachem: You know it's always good practice.

Drory Ben-Menachem: But your resume should be specifically oriented to.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I need to make sure that this aligns to the job description, but not so much that you're actually like copying and pasting literal bullet points from the job description don't do that.

Angel Vuong: And also build your network to.

Angel Vuong: build your network.

Angel Vuong: learn about different companies learn about different teams at different companies learn about culture different companies.

Angel Vuong: and Angel Vuong: that's very important that's one thing that I.

Angel Vuong: Think has helped me a lot in in my career is just building a network, and you have access to that at hdd.

yep.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Okay, so we're checking on time, with just a couple more quick ones on this also speak to to angels pointed out like you'll have time and space to talk about the other things in an in person interview on a screening call and phone conversations zoom calls.

Drory Ben-Menachem: there's a right, how you speak thing but there's also this tendency that people will try to cram everything that can into their written about them don't do that.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Especially when we're dealing with what I call table stakes skills if you're a designer hiring managers assume that by now you've learned, one of the popular design tool relatively well.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Your researcher we assume you know how to use survey monkey type form good Google forms you get the.

Drory Ben-Menachem: The whole table stakes and here's a caveat if you're getting rejected because the team uses sketch, and you know Sigma character blessing, because they don't really understand what they're looking for when it comes to design talent.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Oh, and if you insist on listing the skills in your resume please don't do this.

Drory Ben-Menachem: ever done.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I mean seriously, what is the cpu about a hiring tool to a hiring manager about you, I have no idea how data visualization works.

Drory Ben-Menachem: My two favorite things about this example, are the 16 point scale because wow and a complete lack of any use universal context, like seven out of 16 in photography, what do you compare against like Okay, so if.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Elliot or width or dorothea Lange or Gordon parks or any leibovitz or 16, then that means you're kind of just stop please stop don't get published.

Drory Ben-Menachem: And finally.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Angela and I.

Drory Ben-Menachem: are both big believer this like right for content, editor story your first draft is your worst drought.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Last but not least, one of the things i'll close with one of my theater coaches always told me, other than honey open your mouth you're you're showing your words, the non CAA please darling.

Drory Ben-Menachem: He said rehearse rehearse rehearse rehearse and when you think you're ready for her to more time nothing replaces practice and repetition build stuff.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Any last thoughts.

Angel Vuong: um yeah put yourself out there apply for apply for a lot of different jobs, using these different stories that you have see what works, it will change your story will change.

Angel Vuong: And just get a lot of practice telling that story.

Angel Vuong: and other than that Thank you so much tori and thank you all for being here with us today.

Drory Ben-Menachem: Thank you so much for hosting us Melissa is great I loved it.

Drory Ben-Menachem: I don't know about anybody else but i'm happy to hang out and answer more questions for anybody who wants to stay over, and now we can just give it.

Melissa Ewing: Thank you so much, and thanks so much to draw an angel we're so grateful for this fabulous storytelling event I can send everybody the resources.

Melissa Ewing: right either after this or first thing in the morning, everybody who registered.