Why Unnormal?

Suppose your life can be represented as an arrow. If you forecasted the normal course of your life, the line would continue in the same direction. In real terms, it can look like moving up the career ladder or buying a house.

The abnormal course of life would take a radically different turn. This direction can look like becoming a monk or backpacking indefinitely.

The unnormal course is for people who don't have the luxury of pursuing the ascetic life, yet feel unsatisfied by it's current course. The initial trajectory is similar to the normal course, but diverges incrementally until the destination is almost unrecognizeable to the normal course.

Below I've outlined steps you can take to follow your unnormal course into product design, although the approach can be applied to most careers in technology. The beauty of this approach is that your course is your own; tailor it to your needs, circumstances, and vision. If you have the courage to start something new, read below to gain strategies that prepare you for an unconventional road ahead.

1 – Reflect on your strengths and values

According to Harzer & Ruch (2012), "Applying one's signature strengths at work facilitates positive experiences and calling." In other words, knowing your strengths that other people value and putting them into practice can give your career more purpose.

DO

Take the Values in Action Character Strength Survey to learn more about your strengths. It's a long survey, so make sure you eat beforehand.

2 – Cultivate your curiosity

Now that you're aware of what you're good at, it's time to learn more about the topics that interest you. Adopt a growth mindset to take your curiosity wherever it takes you. There are no wrong answers since each moment is an opportunity to learn more about yourself. Below are a few resources on design.

Read

Pick up a book, read an article, or listen to a podcast.

• The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman
• The User Experience Team of One By Leah Buley
• UX for Lean Startups by Laura Klein
• Convivial Toolbox by Elizabeth B. -N. Sanders & Pieter Jan Stappers
• Design Justice by Sasha Costanza-Chock (highly recommend but requires some design knowledge)

Learn

To enroll in a course, search the school plus "extension class" or "continuing studies" plus "interaction design", "ux design", or "product design". For example "ArtCenter extension class interaction design" or "Aalto continuing studies design". This will help you find more classes than the list I have below:

• ArtCenterX
• UCLA Extension
• Berkeley Extension
• Aalto Open University
• UAL Short Course
• Stanford Continuing Studies

Play

Practice in a low stakes environment.

• Pretend your friend is an entrepreneur in need of app designs
• Wireframe a website you like
• Design a website or app for a cause you love
• Show your designs to people you trust
• Practice breathing because feedback is hard!

3 – Tap into your network

Arguably the best advice to navigate a new career is to chat with someone in it. Reach out to people who are first, second, or third connections–actually, whoever. Show genuine interest in your email and reach out to only a handful of people at a time. Below are a few templates from Professor of Graphic Design at MICA, Jeff Glendenning. They're tailored to students, so rewrite them to fit your situation.

Email Templates

Subject: Info Interview for Yale student

[NAME],

[Congratulations on your recent promotion!/other friendly intro - open with positive focus on them].

I am a student at Yale and would value your perspective on [department] at [company] as a Yale alumnus. Specifically, I’m curious about [project they likely worked on/opportunity the company is tackling – show you’ve done your research]. Would you be open to a 20-minute call with me? Please let me know what time and number works best.

Best,
[YOUR NAME]
[Portfolio/Linkedin]

–OR–

Subject: Info Interview for Yale student

[NAME],

[Congratulations on your recent promotion!/other friendly intro - open with positive focus on them]. Your profile came up as I was researching [department] at [company].

I’m particularly interested in your experience there with [pull a specific detail from their profile or google search them]. Would you be open to a quick, 20-min call with me to discuss and learn more about your career trajectory? If so, please let me know the best time and number to reach you.

Best,
[YOUR NAME]
[Portfolio/Linkedin]

4 – Show your work

These are the basic requirements for a Design Apprentice position at Amazon:

• 1 year of work experience in graphic design, creative marketing, web development, logo design, agency production or other design-related fields, or
• 1 year of work experience in a research, social sciences or statistics field, or
• 1 year of experience uncovering the needs of users and delivering solutions to address customer needs.

The preferred qualifications for this same role are:

• Graduate of a design training academy or boot camp.
• Has functional understanding of depth and complexity in technology.
• 1+ years of experience solving problems for customers or organizations.
• 1+ years of experience presenting work or ideas to an audience in a business or corporate environment.
• Familiarity with the research and/or design process, or an expressed interest in the research and design process.

Not all technology companies will need 1+ years of experience with any of these skills especially for entry-level design roles. However, 99% of product design roles, including senior roles, will ask for a portfolio. It can be a PDF, a Squarespace website, or a Google Slides presentation. The point is to demonstrate your interest, some knowledge, and enough skill in design to catch someone's eye.

Copy (but not actually)

Look up some portfolios from recent design graduates or working designers to get a better understanding of what is required in a portfolio. Feel free to copy their process with a different problem or company. Soon you'll figure out your flavor of problem solving and be able to explain it to others. Below is a short list of where to start:

• ArtCenter Grad Show – Interaction Design
• University of Washington Grad Show
• Product Designers from Linkedin

Thanks for reading

If you are very early or late into your product design career, feel free to contact me with your questions, comments, thoughts, or any personal experiences you'd like to share.

I want to leave you with a final note from Laura L. Carstensen, PhD. In A Long Bright Future, she writes, "Let's break away from the idea that life is so short that it allows you only one role, or only one social milieu. Plan for a life that is not only long, but broad.”

Looking forward to seeing where your unnormal course as a product designer leads you!

Acknowledgements

I'd like to thank QuestBridge and staff for giving me the space, validation, and motivation to share my journey. They have helped me excel in unimaginable ways. If you found this content useful, consider donating to help bridge the gap between underserved youth and higher education.