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Honest UX Talks episodes
- #180 The state of job hunting in 2026
Anfi and community members from Into UX Jobs share their real job‑search journeys — how many applications they submitted, how many interview stages they went through before landing their role, how long the process took, what their take‑home challenges looked like, the questions the design managers asked, the hardest moments they faced, what current job hunters need to know, practical interview tips, and the unfair advantages that helped them stand out.
Timestamps:
02:40 - Members share general information about the companies they applied to and the positions they applied to.
08:00 - Describe your job search in three words.
09:30 - What was the reality you experienced? Statistically, how many companies did you apply to during your last job hunt?
15:45 - How many interview stages did you go through at the company where you landed the job? If you remember, how long did the process take?
18:17 - How many stages did you go through at the company where you received an offer?
26:21 - When did you feel like you were actually getting an offer?
32:20 - Questions you were asked by your design manager.
46:28 - Moments when it felt particularly hard — the most challenging part of your process.
54:38 - If you're currently job hunting, what do you need to hear right now?
59:36 - What was your unfair advantage?
Check out these links:
Order Ioana's book on Amazon, shipping worldwide.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
1 hr 10 min - #179 Building career capital with intention w/Dan Cariño
nfi and Dan discuss the insights he gained from his experiences at H&M, Klarna, and Meta. They delve into his time working abroad in Hong Kong and how user interface design differs in that part of the world. The conversation also covers Dan's journey at Klarna, his path into Meta, and the key factors that contributed to his success during the Meta interview process. Additionally, they explore how his work at an AI startup influenced his career as artificial intelligence became more widespread.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
This episode's guest:
Dan's Instagram
Dan's LinkedIn
Dan's Substack
Check out these links:
Order Ioana's book on Amazon, shipping worldwide.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
1 hr 10 min - #178 What we got wrong about AI replacing design?
Anfi and Ioana discuss how AI has changed the approach to design systems. They explore the idea that AI was expected to replace UI systems, but in reality, design systems are becoming more important. Why were people so confident that AI would replace them? And why won’t that happen?
They also talk about what makes a design system AI-ready and whether AI operators will become a future role—should teams start specifically assigning people to manage AI within design systems?
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Check out these links:
Order Ioana's book on Amazon, shipping worldwide.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
33 min - #177 What even is a design engineer? w/ Mehmet Baytaş, Senior Design Engineer @ Attio
Ioana and Baytaş discuss what being a design engineer entails. They explore whether vibe coding can be a pathway into design engineering and whether learning to code is necessary right now. Additionally, they delve into the daily responsibilities of a design engineer and the essential first steps for those interested in starting this career.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Mentioned in this episode:
Baytaş on LinkedIn
Baytaş's website
Baytaş on Tweeter
Design Engineering 101 article on Design Discipline
Check out these links:
Order Ioana's book on Amazon, shipping worldwide.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
47 min - #176 Design is not dead, but has changed
Ioana and Anfi discuss how the design process has evolved in the age of AI: should we rely on educated guesses or actual research? How can we reach insights faster? What's the best design process today? How to get to insights quickly without sacrificing quality? And can LLMs fully replace human research?
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Check out these links:
Order Ioana's book on Amazon, shipping worldwide.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
36 min - #175 The "dream job" has changed. What are designers aspiring to in 2026?
Anfi and Ioana discuss their past dream careers from a few years ago, explore whether big tech companies still shine on a CV, and share what kinds of companies designers aspire to work at today. They also delve into whether an entrepreneurial path is more attractive now, how to build clarity in your career goals, and share their visions of an ideal career.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Check out these links:
Order Ioana's book on Amazon, shipping worldwide.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
42 min - #174 What makes a portfolio feel senior in 2026?
Ioana talks about the key skills to showcase in a UX design portfolio in 2026 that hiring managers value, highlights timeless design principles alongside new rules shaped by recent AI-driven shifts, explores the dramatically transformed hiring landscape, and examines which design skills are and aren't replaceable by AI.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Check out these links:
Order Ioana's book on Amazon, shipping worldwide.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
22 min - #173 How to build taste in the age of AI?
Anfi and Ioana discuss what it means to develop taste and how, in the age of AI, cultivating refined taste—whether in aesthetics, craft, or judgment—becomes a crucial differentiator in design.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Mentioned in this episode:
Aesthetics of AI article
aesthetics in the ai-era : visual + web design trends for 2026 from Ioana's newsletter
Cosmos.so Alternative to Pinterest
Check out these links:
Order Ioana's book on Amazon, shipping worldwide.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
37 min - #172 You don’t need a bootcamp to become a designer anymore
Ioana and Anfi discuss how to start design career in 2026, why bootcamps are going out of the market and how to utilize AI in the job search process.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Check out these links:
Preorder Ioana's upcoming book here. The first 100 copies will be hand-signed.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
52 min - #171 Inside Lovable & Intercom: what top design talent looks like in 2026
Ioana shares recent field insights on vibe coding, design culture, and AI-driven strategies she learnt from Lovable and Intercom designers. She talks about the value of rapid experimentation, user-centric design, and the future of top design talent in 2026.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Check out these links:
Preorder Ioana's upcoming book here. The first 100 copies will be hand-signed.
Ioana's co-working space
Join Anfi’s Job Search community. The community includes 3 courses, 12 live events and workshops, and a variety of templates to support you in your job search journey.
Ioana's AI project: aidesign-os.com
Ioana's WhatsApp group
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
Ioana's Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
Into UX design online course by Anfisa
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
👩🏻💻 Ioana’s instagram
25 min
About Honest UX Talks
From the publisher's feed
Honest weekly conversations about UX design career, challenges, portfolios, mental health, and all things UX. Ioana and Anfisa together have 20 years of experience in the UX field and trying to share their main lessons to help anyone transitioning to design overcome the fears.
Our weekly conversations are supported by Wix Studio, the web platform built for agencies and enterprises, and an amazing supporter of the design space.
https://www.wix.com/studio
To request the next topic DM us on IG:
🗂 instagram.com/honest_ux_talks
👩💻 instagram.com/anfisign
👩🏻💻 instagram.com/uxgoodies
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