How blogging has helped with developing my UX career
It’s been said that around 60% of internet users read blogs (99firms), and although there may be thousands of blogs on UX and personal development out there, my experiences are unique and provide a platform to responsibly tell others.
I’ve been writing about my journey into UX and personal development for the past year and my writing has gained some traction in this field. So far, my topics have ranged from “How to get into UX” to “How to create career goals and plans towards it”.
Outside of work, it has provided me with a platform to express my progress within this field and help to provide a voice to others in guidance in this field. I encourage anybody (whether in UX or other fields) to start blogging within my personal time around career. Below is a breakdown of how blogging has helped develop my career:
It has provided a narrative of my progress within my career
I started out public speaking about my transition from marketing to UX within my tech public speaking group. Although it has been great to express myself verbally to an audience, I’ve found looking back at the way I’ve expressed my experiences over the past year in my blog posts, it has given me tangible evidence of how far I have come towards my career goals. It has acted as a review of the work I have done so far and has helped to develop my expertise within this field, particularly around research and strategy.
Also, combining this with my public speaking skills, it has aided me to become the best storyteller that can help to translate into other areas of my working life, such as presenting results from usability studies.
It provided me with an opportunity to develop a new skill
Blogging aligns with one of my key values in life, which is the need to be creative. Outside of work, it has helped me to develop the following skills:
· Copywriting
· Content generation
· SEO
All these elements I have learnt so far from this experience can relate to my development within UX. Also, it has helped to refine soft skills (such as research and time management), as well as refining knowledge in this field.
Blogging has helped me to provide a digital footprint for my work
As an introvert, putting my work out there to the wider world is one thing where I have had to challenge my fears, as although it can be quite vulnerable to do this and be present for critique, it’s one of the most rewarding hobbies to do outside of work.
Because of this, over the past year, it has acted as a talking point for networking and future opportunities, such as public speaking and job opportunities. Through developing my personal brand in this area, I have provided more insights in terms of the way you work and your personality. It has also acted as a complement to my portfolio, which provides others with proof that the expertise I write about is legitimate.
It has promoted a learning experience for others
No matter how much you can learn about a subject (either through courses, books or YouTube to name a few), real-life experiences give you the biggest learning opportunities. I find when I blog about areas of my career where I have faced the most struggle (such as improving User Research skills), no theory can teach you errors and failures. By presenting stories and analogies from my personal experiences, I am providing real human insights that give back to the community for others to learn from.
From reflecting on these key points about blogging and career development, hopefully, I have given you an insight into the benefits it has had on my career. Also, I hope it boosts motivation for those of you who are looking to start your blog post and get your voice heard about your experiences.
References
99 Firms (99firms.com/blog/blogging-statistics/)
Fancy a chat about all things UX and personal development? Feel free to book in a 30 minute chat with me with Calendly.
