What 9 years of Designing has taught me.
Embrace self-learning, balance creativity with technical skills, communicate effectively, and maintain high standards in all aspects of your work.
👋 Hi, I'm Cristian! Welcome to the first edition of Cristian Talks Product Design, where I’ll be sharing insights each week on designing exceptional products, tackling design challenges, and driving innovation in tech.
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Table of contents
My Background & Professional Growth
Key Lessons Learned
Conclusion
My background and professional growth
In 2015, fresh out of high school, I started exploring graphic design and photography gigs. At the time, I didn't take design too seriously and saw it more as an enjoyable hobby that fit within my skillset. However, as time went by, I started to become increasingly fascinated by the world of software products, web design, and web development.
Driven by a desire to create my own e-commerce stores, blogs, and other SaaS products, I decided to start teaching myself the basic skills required to launch these types of project ideas. These ventures collectively garnered hundreds, if not thousands, of subscribers, leads, views, and purchases. During this journey of self-education and exploration, I found myself becoming increasingly passionate about creating effortless and effective digital experiences.
This newfound passion guided me through a Columbia Engineering UX/UI bootcamp, where I refined my skills as a UX/UI designer, graduating at the top of my cohort. I landed my first official internship at a pre-seed startup called Munch as a UX Researcher. Shortly after, I secured a contract role at Ernst & Young's Gignow, where I was exposed to the healthcare industry and this experience led to a full-time position at Kaiser Permanente, where I worked on their flagship mobile application, allowing me to further hone my skills on impactful Product design projects. My work contributed to Kaiser Permanente being recognized as the 2022 Design Company of the Year by Fast Company for its user-focused app redesign. To this day it’s something that I’m very proud about.
Today, I work as a UX/UI designer at Operative Media, leading design efforts on their flagship AI assistant, Adeline, which aims to empower workflows across their AdTech ecosystem. This transition has been both challenging and rewarding, allowing me to grow in a new context, which I continue to be really excited about. To this day this is something that I am very proud about.
Reflecting on my career, which has been far from a traditional journey, I feel very accomplished. Although I feel that I have much more room to grow, I'd like to start sharing with the design community to encourage those thinking about a career in UX/UI design, those just getting started, and those who, like me, want to continue growing their skills.
With this in mind, I’ve distilled a five key lessons that have been instrumental in shaping my journey as a designer. These insights have not only been foundational to my growth as a designer but also valuable to anyone striving to excel in this field and while they may not apply to every situation, they have certainly been core to my success and can offer guidance to others on a similar path.
Key Lessons Learned
The value of self-learning and adaptability
Adaptability has been essential to my growth as a designer. I've found that exploring new interests, even those unrelated to my current work, have opened up many new possibilities in how I approach problem-solving and various aspects of my day-to-day workflow, from understanding problems to generating ideas.
Moreover, in my short professional career, I’ve witnessed design techniques, tools, and styles evolve rapidly, while new technologies have continually reshaped the product landscape. To navigate this fast-paced environment, staying adaptable has been crucial. I’d like to share a few tips that have helped me embrace self-learning and adaptability.
Tips on embracing self-learning and adaptability:
Stay curious: Always be on the lookout for new skills and technologies to learn, even if they don’t fully align with your day-to-day work. Follow your interests and explore the rabbit holes they lead you down—you never know what valuable insights you might discover.
Be proactive: Take charge of your own education through online courses, books, and hands-on practice. Almost everything you need to learn is available for free—just check Google or ask your favorite AI assistant. Who knows what you might learn.
Adapt to change: Be flexible and willing to shift your focus as needed to stay relevant. Don’t get discouraged if things don’t turn out as expected; remember, there are no limits to what you can achieve.
Main takeaway: Continuously learning and adapting is essential to staying relevant and thriving in any field.
Balancing creativity and technical Skills
No matter where you work, design will always involve a level of politics and subjectivity. You’ll often need to sell your ideas and reasoning, and being able to speak not only to the experience and design but also to the technical side is a game changer in these conversations. I’ve lost count of the times I’ve been told, “This can’t be done,” or “That’s a technical constraint,” only to suggest an alternative approach and hear, “Oh, right, we could probably do that.”
I’ve noticed that for myself and other designers who understand the basics of coding and the infrastructure behind software, it’s been hugely beneficial. Having this technical knowledge has not only allowed me to engage in more meaningful conversations with engineers, architects, and product managers but also empowered me to challenge constraints and push boundaries to create more innovative solutions.
Tips on Balancing Creativity and Technical Skills:
Leverage your strengths: Use your creative skills to enhance your technical work and vice versa.
Collaborate with others: Work with teammates who complement your skills to produce the best results.
Practice both: Regularly engage in both creative and technical activities to keep your skills sharp.
Main takeaway: Strive to balance creativity with technical proficiency to create innovative and functional designs.
Working without direction & sharing solutions
Early in your career, it’s essential to take the time to observe how others approach discovery, design, and communication. But beyond observation, I encourage you to take initiative—don't just wait to be told what to do. The real mark of a seasoned designer is not just in identifying areas of opportunity but also in proposing solutions.
This ability to both recognize issues and offer actionable ideas is something I’ve found to be the most valuable lesson in my career. By being proactive and solution-oriented, you’ll not only contribute more effectively but also grow significantly as a designer.
Tips on working without direction & sharing solutions:
Observe and learn: Regularly take time to watch how others approach design challenges, from ideation to execution. Absorb their methods and insights, then apply what resonates with you.
Take initiative: Don’t wait for tasks to be assigned—explore areas where you can contribute and take action. Proactively addressing issues or opportunities shows leadership and drive.
Propose solutions: When you identify a problem, don’t stop there. Go the extra mile to think through possible solutions and present them. This problem-solving mindset is key to growing as a designer.
Main takeaway: The ability to explore independently and offer concrete solutions is what sets seasoned designers apart. Embrace this proactive approach to truly excel and innovate in your design career.
Following and understand-focused process
We’ve all been there—tight deadlines can easily push you into reactive designing. But I strongly encourage following a repeatable, adaptable process that prioritizes clearly understanding the problem space. Doing so consistently leads to higher-quality work compared to rushing out the first idea that comes to mind.
A common misconception, especially early in UX/UI design careers, is the belief that every task—like user interviews, competitive analysis, or user testing—must be completed before delivering a final product. This often results in designers bypassing the discovery phase altogether. And I want to highlight that while these tools are valuable, they aren’t always necessary, particularly when resources or time are limited.
The key is to start by understanding the problem space, which will naturally guide you in selecting the right tools and steps. And never underestimate the power of collaboration; as one of my first design directors often reminded me, "I’ve never designed anything that I couldn’t improve after showing it to a few teammates." You never know what insights others might bring that could help you solve a problem.
Tips on following an understanding-focused process:
Ask "Why" often: Continuously question the reasoning behind design decisions to ensure you’re addressing the core problem and not just symptoms.
Prioritize understanding: Begin by deeply understanding the problem space before jumping into solutions. This will guide your process and keep your work focused on the right challenges.
Use targeted research: Conduct quick, relevant research to test your ideas and collaborate with your team to refine your approach.
Main takeaway: An understanding-focused process prevents rework and enhances the quality of design outcomes.
The Importance of effective presentations
Over time, I’ve found that adapting your presentations to fit the audience is crucial. While there are exceptions, a general guideline is to avoid sharing raw working files with higher-level stakeholders. Instead, focus on creating a narrative through slides or decks that clearly demonstrate your design journey and decision-making process. This helps keep the conversation focused and eliminates potential distractions.
On the other hand, when collaborating closely with designers or team members, sharing a Figma file or Miro board can foster more in-depth, interactive discussions. The key is to choose the right format for the right audience, ensuring your ideas are communicated effectively and your work is polished.
How to make effective presentations:
Adapt your presentation: Customize your approach based on who you’re presenting to — narrative-driven decks for stakeholders, detailed files for designers.
Create a presentation template: Develop a go-to template that helps you quickly put together presentations without starting from scratch, saving time and ensuring consistency.
Check for spelling errors: Always review your work for spelling and grammatical mistakes to maintain professionalism and avoid unnecessary distractions.
Avoid using Lorem Ipsum: Instead, use realistic content to ensure your walkthroughs stay focused and on track.
Main takeaway: Tailoring your presentation to the audience not only improves communication but also enhances decision-making and collaboration.
Conclusion
Reflecting on these five key lessons from my career, I hope these insights not only inspire you but also equip you with practical strategies to navigate and excel in your own design journey. Embrace self-learning, balance creativity with technical skills, explore without fear, follow a structured process, and communicate effectively to achieve success in your field.
I understand that it’s easier said than done, but I encourage you to give them a try—nobody is perfect so remember the key is to continuously and intentionally try to improve. If all else fails this alone will set you up for success.
I hope you found the content in this week’s post valuable. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or comments.
Till Next time,
Cristian Pineda