Career Strategy Podcast with Sarah Doody | UX, Product Design, UX Research

You’ve done all the hard work of searching for a position, crafting your materials, interviewing, and you received a job offer!

01:12 You aren’t the only one this has happened to.

01:53 Ask the company if they have any other open positions you may be a fit for

03:02 Remember, you made it this far. You’re doing something right!

04:24 It couldn’t hurt to see if your old position is open.

06:06 Have a job search strategy that you work year round

07:57 If you optimize your LinkedIn profile, your job search can happen without you

08:50 A quick recap

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

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The screening call with HR is often your first opportunity to connect and leave a lasting impact.

Tune into this episode to learn what to expect, how to make a great first impression, and the things to NEVER say during an HR screening interview!

00:55 HR Interviews are where your soft skills can shine

02:39 People will remember stories far more than they're going to remember that you were a fast learner or team player

03:31 Recruiters want to see how you got where you are

05:01 Utilizing the Five Ws of Journalism to answer questions

06:36 Don't start talking about your personal life because it's a distraction from your professional life

08:37 Ask Questions! You know they are going to ask if you have any so make sure you’re ready

11:49 A quick recap

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

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This week’s episode is a Q&A session with Sarah!

Tune in to hear the number one thing to do in a saturated job market, how to share case studies that are flagged as confidential, whether or not AI is a threat to UX careers and more!

01:16 Do everything you can to be visible to the companies you're applying to or where you wanna work

06:57 Don’t focus on the quantity of connections, but QUALITY!

11:11 Most people are only scratching the surface of their skills and experience

15:24 AI is not going to replace UX researchers

19:38 How can you use case studies in your portfolio when they’re flagged as confidential?

22:45 Using an educational case study can be tricky

27:56 Be where your potential clients are to stay on their minds

31:41 Relay to the interviewer not just what you’ve done, but the skills you used to do them

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

Stop awkwardly approaching people to get career advice and use the strategies from this episode to connect instead! In this episode of the Career Strategy Podcast, Sarah introduces listeners to the informational interview and teaches exactly how to ask for one.

00:58 What is an informational interview?

01:59 Before asking someone, make sure they don’t cover your questions in their public work

03:23 How NOT to start your email

05:36 Tip #1: Breaking the ice

06:28 Tip #2: Be specific

07:57 Tip #3: Give them options for communication

09:38 A quick recap of how to ask for an informational interview

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

In this interview, Career Strategy Lab Coach, Erin Lindstrom, sits down with Katie Miller, an incredible Senior Researcher who was laid off who generously shares her path to finding her next role.

Katie’s story is an amazing one that exemplifies everything that we teach. She shares how she got into UX, how she dealt with the mindset challenges of the job search, and how CSL has helped her land her new role.

03:51 How Katie first got into UX

10:37 The “pedigree” of working at a FAANG company

17:16 What if you stopped replying to every recruiter and focused on the once who are actually looking for YOU

26:15 You can have your best interview and not get the job

34:53 It can be difficult sometimes, but trust that you’re good at what you do

39:24 Make sure to give yourself breaks

46:01 When an opportunity comes to add to your tool box, jump on it

49:29 Inclusivity is important for the research processes to bring a diverse data set

53:11 It all comes down to being your own best salesperson

57:27 Confidence in yourself and your work takes practice but it’s so worth it!

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

In this episode Sarah discusses the common misconception that your resume should only be one page long

If you have a long and accomplished career history, why would you limit your ability to sell your experience?

There are many reasons to expand your resume, take a listen and see if you could improve how you sell yourself.

01:17  A one page resume isn’t enough most of the time

03:49 Recruiters and hiring managers want to see receipts of our abilities

06:01 When your resume reads like just an overview of your previous responsibilities, it makes it hard for you to stand out.

07:35 If you’ve received feedback from someone that your resume should only be one page, ask them why!

09:36 I’ve seen so many people in my programs expand their resume to two pages and quickly start getting interviews

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

In this episode Sarah discusses how to treat yourself and what you can offer to an employer like it’s a product. Do you know your core features? How are you marketing yourself? Are relationships important to “selling” myself? All these questions and more are answered!

01:16  I really believe that your career has a lot in common with a product and that the reason so many products fail is the same reason

05:23   Products can fail for three reasons:the design, the marketing, and the sales component

07:55  Every day you are trying to get people to buy into different things and the customers are your boss,  your co-workers, peers, etc.

10:59  It’s really important that you are doing small things to be marketing and selling yourself to stay visible

11:58  Do you have clarity on your core features? Products have features. You have features.

13:32 Question number one for you to ponder. Are you clear on the “design of you”?

17:55 Building trust with your audience is important. Without it, everything could come crumbling down based on your marketing choices

22:35  Recap

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

The episode of the Career Strategy podcast features clips from a live Q+A with Sarah. On it, she answers questions about differences in job titles, having a say in product strategy, transitioning from internship to positions, and so much more!

01:01 What is the difference between a UX Designer and Product Designer?

03:58 Should UX designers have a say in the overall product strategy and decision  making process?

05:11    UX designers should always be operating from a place of strategy

06:08 Tips or recommendations for getting  UX consultant positions after a UX internship.

06:55 Try and expose yourself to many different types of products and many different types of industries.

08:53  UX jobs and other industries

11:17 Is UX strategy something that is marketable today?

15:17 Portfolio tips for people who are changing careers into user experience.

19:38 Is it a bad idea to try and market yourself as a UX researcher?

23:13 Just because you're seeing layoffs doesn't mean companies you've never heard of aren't hiring.

25:31  Are junior roles the best fit for someone transitioning into the world of UX from a design related field like architecture?

28:02 As a career changer, what would be the most important aspect that the employer will see on my portfolio?

28:53 A lot of projects that come outta bootcamps look the same and it's not your fault.

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

In this episode, Sarah discusses the number one thing holding you back in your career, the benefits of a community, honing in on your goals, and so much more.

01:30 What does advancing your career mean to you?

05:34 What plans do you have in place to get you to your goals?

08:03 Every goal needs a why, a purpose, a motivation

10:00 Set aside some time to map out a plan. What do you need to do to achieve your goal?

11:45 You need a community of like-minded people to help stay motivated

17:28 You have to embody the plan and believe in it

21:00 You can take action without strategy, but eventually you will lose focus and exhausted yourself

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

Welcome to part 5 of the 5 part series on the Job Search.

In this episode, Sarah discusses what it means when you’re rejected at different points of the hiring process,  reflecting on what is working and what isn’t, sparking relationships with employees, and accepting that sometimes rejection is a good thing.

01:35 Let’s jump right into how to deal with rejection in your job search

03:12 You’re not getting interviews, but who is rejecting you? An automatic system or a human being?

05:55 Now you’re getting interviews but still not getting hired. Well you’re doing something right!

08:37 Take a hard look at your skills and abilities and work on presenting them better.

10:57 Don’t compare yourself to the people getting hired, there are many considerations outside of your control

12:44 It can be valuable to build relationships with people at the company before you ever apply

15:20 Remember to go over the positive parts of your job search

17:28 I encourage you to find a community of like-minded people. It can help remind you of your worth in your career search.

19:24 A quick recap

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube