UX boot camps and trade schools are graduating hundreds of people (if not more) around the world monthly. It has created a flood of people on the market for junior jobs that mostly don’t exist. Grads expect a job that wants to keep training and mentoring them. Workplaces expect a well-trained worker, ready to hit the ground running solo on real projects.

Special guests Dmitry Nekrasovski in Canada and Jeff Russell in Colorado are two hiring managers who will give you their positive and negative perspectives of speedy UX training and certificate programs.

I’ve been looking at a lot of UX portfolios, and my fave is https://www.avinandanbasu.com/ I think he’s doing a lot right! Check it out. Note that this podcast was very visual as I was showing the portfolio I was reviewing.

You might want to watch this one on YouTube with the video, especially since he changed his portfolio since this broadcast. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3xzYIQP_jg

We were live with William Ntim, Principal UX Designer at The Home Depot, talking about presenting to stakeholders and getting pushback. Great points about eyes on the prize and staying focused on doing the craft of UX well. Sometimes you’re playing the long game.

Join Lee Andrese from akathame.com as we look at how CX and UX practitioners can craft and tell stories in their portfolios and at their jobs.

I get asked a lot by CX/UX practitioners at all levels, but especially entry-level and junior job hopefuls: “should I apply to this job?” And I’ve previously said that if you know you are unqualified for a job, don’t apply. It’s not so black and white, so let’s talk about all the “it depends” and what to look for when considering if a job is really out of reach or one you should try for.

One of our fave guests is back! Dr. Seth Finkle (psychologist) discusses empathy, which he also discussed in my Delta CX book. Empathy sure has become a buzzword, but what is it really? Do we need it? How do we create it? Can exercises create it? What can we do when co-workers don’t seem to have it? What if we don’t have it? So many questions. We ran over time, and still didn’t cover some of my notes! I’m sure he’ll be back.

CX Visual Designer Sarah Buczek joins us to discuss design systems. What are they, why are they helpful, how do they improve collaboration, where do we start… so many fantastic questions!

Special guest Ira Wolfe from Success Performance Solutions discusses our “Four Horsemen of Bad CX” model, and how it applies to HR, hiring, and the candidate experience. He and I came up with the “antidote” to the Four Horsemen.

Get to know the Decision Matrix from the Delta CX book (you do not have to have read the book). How can we use it to make better decisions about projects and who does those projects? How can we use it to warn cross-functional teammates or stakeholders when we’re making a poor decision?

Special guest and psychologist Dr. Seth Finkle discusses impostor syndrome, typical causes, and some things that we can do to combat it and keep it away. With an estimated 70% of people experiencing impostor syndrome at one point or another, it’s extremely common, and you’re certainly not alone.