My advice to junior UX Designer on their first job

Molka TURKI
UX Collective
Published in
5 min readJan 6, 2019

When I first started in the UX design world, as a junior, I’ve faced many difficulties and committed some mistakes that I have learnt from and helped me grow.

That’s why I wanted to share my experience and try to help others start on better basis. To do so, I tried to collect some advice and tips that I hope will be helpful to others and inspire new Designers.

Besides having enough knowledge of design techniques and tools, you’ll need some other skills on your first day at your new job. You will be asking yourself what I should and shouldn’t.

Here are some tips, based on my experience as a junior Product Designer in charge of designing CRM applications for web and mobile for a consulting company with more than 5000 employees, that will hopefully make you avoid future mistakes.

Work with passion and let it be contagious

As a new designer, you will be full of energy with a fresh mind and new ideas to bring on the table. Don’t be scared to show them your passion about design, to work on projects with dedication as there are your own or to propose creative and new concept. Your attitude as a junior talented, positive and punchy will make you the center of interest and better opportunities will cross your path.

Always start with a first big step

I have always believed that in order to succeed in any project in life, you must always start with a big first step. Just like in a race, if you start well, it will increase your chances to win it.

Try to give your best at the beginning, pay attention to every detail, take your time, surprise them and bring more to the table than it was expected from you. In this case they will easily trust you with other projects, give you more responsibilities and accelerate your career growth.

Share your work and ask for feedback

Keep in mind that sharing your work with your team mates is always a good idea. It’s ok to ask for feedback, that doesn’t make you a bad designer. Accepting negative feedback is always seen as a quality. Think of them as lessons to grow and be more skilled. Negative feedback will also help you build on it and correct the mistakes, and positive feedback will improve yourself esteem and productivity which will lead to a well-constructed project.

Always make sure to share your work as much as possible with your colleagues. Don’t be afraid of what they may think of you. Especially at the beginning, you need to have your team’s feedback to know if you are on the right track.

Exchanging ideas, good or bad could always lead to better results.

Learn to say NO

At first, you may receive a lot of tasks to do from your team members. If you say yes to everyone, after a while you’ll get overwhelmed and unfocused. The result will be lower work quality and productivity.

When I first started at my job, I used to take anything that was given to me. I’ve found myself working on multiple projects at the same time. Couldn’t really focus on the quality and found myself overwhelmed and tired.

That’s how I’ve learnt to say NO. I have developed a simple technique that really helped me and made my teammates understand the line of my work. This technique consists on having a clear plan and schedule of your tasks that should be shared with everyone, so they can know exactly what I’m working on and when I’ll be able to accept other tasks.

Good attitude will bring you inspiration

Good music collection, a huge cup of coffee or a good snack is always essential to keep positive mood and can help protect you from anxiety that may surround you in the work place.

Remember to always be healthy, exercise and have a hobby that you’re passioned about. A healthy mind and a good body shape will not just make you look sexy but also will give you strength to go thought challenges at work and daily life.

Speak your mind

As a junior, especially if it’s your first gig, you can’t be perfect at communicating your ideas to your team or your colleagues. You may get communication issues on your first days in the company. Not to worry, a quick advice is to do not run away from the conflict and abandon the project because of a small misunderstanding or a miscommunication between you and your other team members.

Always try to speak up and clarify what bothers you or make feel uncomfortable. Don’t consider it as weakness, if you don’t express yourself clearly no one will notice that the challenges had ever existed.

Career path

Okey, you’ve found your first job. Good for you. But this shouldn’t mean that you’ll spend the rest of your life in the same place doing the same tasks.

You should always keep an open mind, seek opportunities for growth inside or outside your company, learn new things.

From my humbled experience, it took me a while to find what I really wanted to do. I have gone from designing chairs and drones to creating websites! It may seem like they’re two different worlds but that’s the thing about Design.

It’s a large universe of different disciplines that they continuously evolve and grow. That’s why planning your career path is essential. Be good at what you’re doing but keep an eye on what you can do next.

Challenge yourself and get out of you comfort zone to avoid demotivation and let things get past you.

Finally

At the begging of any career, things could get hard. That should not discourage you or get your hopes down. We hope this article will be useful for you and will help you start you first job. Feel free to share your first job experience with me or if you have any questions reach out to me on LinkedIn.

Special Thanks to Reem Tiss for help and feedback .

Published in UX Collective

We believe designers are thinkers as much as they are makers. Curated stories on UX, Visual & Product Design. https://linktr.ee/uxc

Written by Molka TURKI

Digital Product Designer for Web and Mobile application. Focusing on human-centred design and experiences. Skilled with collaboration in an agile environment.

Responses (14)

What are your thoughts?

Good advice, especially the part about speaking your mind. That can be very scary when you’re just starting out, but trust me, if you’re working in a good company, your opinion is valued.

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This is great! Thank you!!!

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Nice article! Some good tips for junior designers!

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