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

Worried your career break in UX has made you unemployable? Let’s talk about what’s actually holding you back.

In this episode, Sarah tackles a concern she hears constantly: “Did my career break ruin my chances of getting hired in UX?” Whether you took time off for caregiving, burnout, travel, or health, this episode will help you stop spiraling and start focusing on what really matters, your story.

You’ll learn the 3 strategies every UX job seeker needs (Design, Marketing, Sales), how to tell if you’re missing one, and why the story you're telling about your break matters more than the break itself.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

✔️ Why your break isn’t the problem—but your story might be

✔️ What “terminal uniqueness” is and how it keeps you stuck

✔️ The 3-part strategy you need to get hired (and how to know what’s missing)

✔️ How to shift from self-doubt to clarity in your job search

✔️ Why visibility and connection matter more than perfection

✔️ How to rebuild your momentum with intention—not burnout

00:38 The Impact of Career Breaks on UX Careers

00:56 The Importance of Your Personal Story in Job Searches

01:22 Addressing Career Break Concerns

03:37 LinkedIn's Career Break Feature

05:28 Three Essential Strategies for UX Candidates

09:53 Identifying Gaps in Your Job Search Strategies

12:23 Building and Leveraging Professional Relationships

16:51 Final Thoughts and Workshop Invitation

18:35 Conclusion and Additional Resources

⭐ Support the show! Leave a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcasts to help more UX professionals find this podcast.

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

Think your UX background is too different to get hired? That mindset might be the real problem. In this episode, Sarah discusses the concept of terminal uniqueness, the belief that your career path is so unusual or messy that none of the strategies that work for others could possibly work for you. Whether you’ve been freelancing, pivoting careers, or have decades of experience, this mindset could be holding you back far more than your resume.

You’ll hear real-world examples of how terminal uniqueness shows up, why it's so common (especially in UX), and what to focus on instead so you can finally move forward with clarity and confidence.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

✔️ What terminal uniqueness is—and how it sabotages your job search

✔️ Why your unconventional path is not the problem (your mindset might be)

✔️ How to reframe your “messy” UX story into your biggest asset

✔️ Why recruiters and hiring managers aren’t looking for a perfect path

✔️ The role of strategy, structure, and storytelling in getting hired

✔️ How Career Strategy Lab helps you own your story and communicate it clearly

00:00 Introduction and Background

00:38 Understanding Terminal Uniqueness

03:12 Examples of Terminal Uniqueness

04:50 Overcoming Terminal Uniqueness

06:54 Communicating Your Unique Story

08:11 Career Strategy Lab Overview

14:49 Final Thoughts and Encouragement

16:58 Podcast Outro and Additional Resources

17:37 Special Message for Job Seekers

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

Applied to 50+ UX or Product jobs & still no interviews or offers? Get UX job search help.

Welcome to the Career Strategy Podcast with Sarah Doody, a UX Designer & UX Researcher with 20 years of experience who founded the UX job search accelerator, Career Strategy Lab. She's been doing UX career coaching since 2017.

Follow Sarah on: LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram

Tired of vague AI tools that spit out generic resume rewrites and surface-level portfolio tips? Meet the smarter alternative.

In this episode, Sarah shares the behind-the-scenes strategy behind Sage—the AI agent exclusively available inside Career Strategy Lab—and why it’s already helping job seekers finish their resumes, portfolios, and LinkedIn profiles faster without sacrificing clarity or confidence.

You’ll learn why this tool is more than just a shortcut—it’s a UX-informed, coach-trained experience designed to get you unstuck and back into momentum, 24/7.

✔️ The two problems most UX job seekers face: info overload + execution overwhelm

✔️ Why most AI job search tools fail (and how Sage is different)

✔️ How Sage is trained on CSL’s proven curriculum and thousands of real conversations

✔️ Why context-specific feedback beats ChatGPT every time

✔️ How CSL members are using Sage to move faster and stop second-guessing

✔️ The one mindset shift that will help you use AI effectively in your career

00:00 Introduction and Common Job Search Struggles

00:46 Introducing Career Strategy Lab's AI Tools

02:01 Why UX Professionals Struggle in Job Searches

02:39 The Problems Our AI Tools Aim to Solve

06:53 How Our AI Tools Work

13:58 Demo of Sage, Our AI Agent

27:51 Benefits of Using Sage

29:36 Conclusion and Call to Action

🎯Want to learn more about the critiques, community, coaching calls, and everything inside Career Strategy Lab? Apply or learn more.

⭐ Support the show! Leave a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcasts to help more UX professionals find this podcast.

🔔 Follow & Subscribe for weekly strategies and stories to help you grow in your UX career—without the burnout.

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

Applied to 50+ UX or Product jobs & still no interviews or offers? Get UX job search help.

Welcome to the Career Strategy Podcast with Sarah Doody, a UX Designer & UX Researcher with 20 years of experience who founded the UX job search accelerator, Career Strategy Lab. She's been doing UX career coaching since 2017.

Follow Sarah on: LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram

Feel like you’re doing everything “right” and still not getting anywhere? You might be saying yes to too much—and it’s slowing you down.

In this episode, Sarah shares how one of Steve Jobs’ greatest strengths—his ability to say no—has shaped the design of Career Strategy Lab and her own career choices. You’ll hear how saying no to shiny objects, distractions, and opportunities that seem exciting on the surface actually leads to deeper results, more momentum, and a better UX for job seekers inside CSL.

Whether you’re applying to every job that pops up, overcommitting to upskilling, or trying to be everything to everyone, this episode is a reminder that focus is a strategy—and saying no is a skill.

✔️ What Steve Jobs’ product philosophy can teach you about your UX career

✔️ How Sarah decides what to say no to in her business—and why it matters

✔️ Why not doing “all the things” actually creates better outcomes for clients

✔️ The trade-offs you’re making every time you say yes

✔️ How saying no led to CSL’s newest AI tool + all-in-one experience

✔️ 3 reflection questions to help you narrow your focus and move forward

01:50 Steve Jobs' Focus Strategy

03:55 Applying Focus in My Career

08:01 The Importance of Specialization

11:47 Real-Life Examples of Saying No

13:28 The Ripple Effect of Focus

17:50 Final Thoughts and Career Advice

20:07 Conclusion and How to Connect

⭐ Support the show! Leave a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcasts to help more UX professionals find this podcast.

🔔 Follow & Subscribe for weekly strategies and stories to help you grow in your UX career—without the burnout.

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

Feel like your UX experience is too complex to explain—or too chaotic to package into a clear story? In this open house interview, Steve Sanshwe shares how he went from a chaotic job search and overwhelming case studies to landing a Principal Product Designer role—faster than he expected and at a higher level than he applied for.

Steve explains how he used the Career Strategy Lab to reframe his experience, clarify his story, and attract the right roles (without redesigning his resume 10 times or burning out in the process). Whether you’re drowning in too much experience or unsure how to stand out, Steve’s journey offers practical takeaways and proof that progress—not perfection—is what moves the needle.

✔️ Why Steve finally stopped rewriting the same case study and joined CSL

✔️ The mindset shift that helped him clarify his story and build confidence

✔️ How reframing your portfolio can attract better-fit opportunities

✔️ Why he landed a higher-level role than he applied for

✔️ How he used his Compass Statement to own the interview

✔️ Why saying “no” to the wrong roles helped him find the right one—fast

01:00 Episode Context and Audience

02:09 Steve's Career Journey and UX Experience

05:26 The Impact of Career Strategy Lab

11:32 Iterative Process and Sprints

16:52 Final Tips and Conclusion

19:02 Closing Remarks and Podcast Information

⭐ Support the show! Leave a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcasts to help more UX professionals find this podcast.

🔔 Follow & Subscribe for weekly strategies and stories to help you grow in your UX career—without the burnout.

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

What does your UX job search have in common with Peloton? A lot more than you think. In this episode, Sarah shares the behind-the-scenes story of how a treadmill class in NYC and a Peloton bike helped her design Career Strategy Lab. You’ll learn how the principles of group fitness at scale inspired the structure, energy, and effectiveness of this UX job search accelerator—and how applying those same principles to your career can help you get out of your own head, stop procrastinating, and finally make progress.

✔️ The UX behind Sarah’s early inspiration for Career Strategy Lab

✔️ How “perceived effort” can help job seekers at every level thrive in the same space

✔️ Why group coaching helps beat procrastination and self-doubt

✔️ What Peloton and portfolio reviews have in common (hint: shared energy)

✔️ The power of community, cognitive offloading, and normalization in your job search

✔️ Why DIYing your career might be the thing keeping you stuck

00:56 The Inspiration Behind Career Strategy Lab

01:29 The Concept of Group Fitness at Scale

04:51 Applying Group Fitness Principles to Career Coaching

06:50 Benefits of Group Coaching

10:20 Normalization in Group Settings

13:40 Cognitive Offloading in Group Coaching

16:10 Community, Accountability, and Belonging

17:49 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

23:32 Call to Action and Additional Resources

24:47 Encouragement for Job Seekers

Applied to 50+ UX or Product jobs & still no interviews or offers? Get UX job search help.

Welcome to the Career Strategy Podcast with Sarah Doody, a UX Designer & UX Researcher with 20 years of experience who founded the UX job search accelerator, Career Strategy Lab. She's been doing UX career coaching since 2017.

⭐ Support the show! Leave a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcasts to help more UX professionals find this podcast.

🔔 Follow & Subscribe for weekly strategies and stories to help you grow in your UX career—without the burnout.

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

Applied to 50+ UX or Product jobs & still no interviews or offers? Get UX job search help.

Welcome to the Career Strategy Podcast with Sarah Doody, a UX Designer & UX Researcher with 20 years of experience who founded the UX job search accelerator, Career Strategy Lab. She's been doing UX career coaching since 2017.

Follow Sarah on: LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram

Nancy Leslie has over 30 years of UX experience—and yet, before joining Career Strategy Lab, she felt irrelevant, overlooked, and unsure of how to position herself in today’s market. In this honest and uplifting open house conversation, Nancy shares how she moved from self-doubt to spaciousness, and why she finally feels like herself again—professionally and personally.

Whether you're later in your career or just feeling disconnected from your value, Nancy’s story will remind you that it’s never too late to rewrite your narrative and re-energize your future.

✔️ Why years of experience can make job searching harder, not easier

✔️ The emotional toll of being a runner-up again and again

✔️ How Nancy reframed “aged out” into “experienced pioneer”

✔️ The surprising career impact of mindset and community

✔️ Why CSL didn’t box her in—but actually set her free

✔️ How showing up, experimenting, and getting feedback changed everything

00:58 Episode Overview and Special Format

01:42 Introducing Nancy: A UX Veteran

02:10 Nancy's Journey in UX

03:16 The Impact of Career Strategy Lab

04:47 Mindset Shifts and Career Growth

12:04 The Role of Community and Coaching

15:56 Final Thoughts and Advice

17:20 Conclusion and Podcast Outro

18:04 Special Message for Job Seekers

⭐ Support the show! Leave a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcasts to help more UX professionals find this podcast.

🔔 Follow & Subscribe for weekly strategies and stories to help you grow in your UX career—without the burnout.

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

Enrollment is OPEN for my UX job search accelerator and will close on Fri, Jun 20 at 8pm PT. Join by Friday and get 1 extra month in the program for free. You can learn more, watch success stories, or enroll here.

And you can watch to the recording of my UX job search workshop, until this Friday.

If you have questions about the UX job search accelerator program (aka Career Strategy Lab) you can book a 1:1 call here or use the chat widget on the websites linked above to send us a message.

🎬 Watch our free UX Job Search Workshop and learn how to stand out in 2025

👉 Join Career Strategy Lab, a UX job search accelerator for UX and Product people.

👋 Say hi and follow our host, Sarah Doody, on LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube.

Applied to 50+ UX or Product jobs & still no interviews or offers? Get UX job search help.

Welcome to the Career Strategy Podcast with Sarah Doody, a UX Designer & UX Researcher with 20 years of experience who founded the UX job search accelerator, Career Strategy Lab. She's been doing UX career coaching since 2017.

Follow Sarah on: LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram

Still stuck in job search mode even though you’re “doing all the right things”? This episode might explain why.

What if the problem isn’t how hard you’re working—but what you’re working on?

In this episode, Sarah unpacks one of the most powerful mindset shifts you can make in your career: moving from working in your career (busywork, perfectionism, burnout) to working on it (strategy, clarity, confidence). Drawing from her own business experience and the journeys of UX professionals she’s coached, Sarah shows you how to stop spinning your wheels and start making high-leverage decisions that move your career forward.

✔️The difference between working in vs. on your career or job search

✔️ Why busy doesn’t equal progress—and what to do instead

✔️ The costly habits that keep you stuck (like redesigning your resume for the 10th time)

✔️ How to zoom out and make more strategic, long-term career decisions

✔️ What cupcake bakers, physical therapists, and UX designers have in common

✔️ 3 reflection questions to help you shift into CEO mode for your career

00:00 Introduction: Troubleshooting Formulas and Business Insights

01:47 Starting My First Business: The Journey Begins

02:13 The Importance of Working On Your Business

03:22 Examples of Working In vs. On Your Business

09:40 Applying Business Strategies to Your Career

17:43 Actionable Tips for Career Growth

21:06 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Feeling scattered or stuck in your UX career? Join Sarah Doody for a free, live UX Career Audit Workshop to help you pause, reflect, and plan your next move with intention.

✔️ Why you need to audit your career like a product roadmap

✔️ How to identify what’s working (and what’s not)

✔️ Why you need Career Performance Indicators (CPIs)

🎯 Register here → maven.com/sarahdoody

Not sure what stage you're in—or what to focus on next in your UX career?

Download Sarah Doody’s free UX Career Roadmap to get clarity on where you are and what matters most right now, whether you're job searching, pivoting, or planning ahead.

✔️ Identify your current stage in the UX career journey

✔️ Prioritize what to work on (and what to ignore)

✔️ Avoid wasting time on the wrong things

🎯 Download the roadmap → Here

⭐ Support the show! Leave a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcasts to help more UX professionals find this podcast.

🔔 Follow & Subscribe for weekly strategies and stories to help you grow in your UX career—without the burnout.

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube

After being laid off from his UX position, Duncan Abel wasn’t sure how to package his 20+ years of UX experience—or if he even wanted to stay in the field. In this candid conversation, Duncan shares how Career Strategy Lab gave him the structure, community, and confidence to move forward and land a global UX leadership role at the British Standards Institute.

Whether you're a senior leader navigating change or just unsure how to communicate your value, Duncan’s story will inspire you to stop doubting your experience and start owning your career path.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

✔️ Why being experienced doesn’t always make job searching easier

✔️ How Duncan rebuilt his confidence after a layoff

✔️ The surprising value of self-reflection in a job search

✔️ What made interviews feel radically different this time

✔️ Why your “mentor model” and “compass statement” matter more than you think

✔️ How Career Strategy Lab helped him clarify, focus, and land a high-level role

00:00 Introduction to Career Strategy Podcast

00:40 Meet Duncan Abel: Career Journey and Challenges

04:29 The Impact of Career Strategy Lab

10:30 Mentorship and Career Roadmap Insights

14:09 Global Relevance of Career Strategy Lab

16:45 Final Advice and Encouragement

19:58 Conclusion and Social Media Call-to-Action

Applied to 50+ UX or Product jobs & still no interviews or offers? Get UX job search help.

Welcome to the Career Strategy Podcast with Sarah Doody, a UX Designer & UX Researcher with 20 years of experience who founded the UX job search accelerator, Career Strategy Lab. She's been doing UX career coaching since 2017.

⭐ Support the show! Leave a rating on Spotify or a review on Apple Podcasts to help more UX professionals find this podcast.

🎯 How I can help with your UX job search

📋 Get my UX case study template

👋 Follow me, on LinkedIn, Instagram, & YouTube