Is a career in UX a good fit for you?

Have you ever wondered if a Career in UX Design is a good fit for you? Or you want to know what it takes to succeed in UX Design?

Let's go over the common traits and personality found in successful UX Designers.

As I research and based on my experience working with other UX designers I find that successful UX designers have two things in common:

• They really enjoy what they do.
• Their personality fits right in.

But before you dive deep into the pursuit of a career in UX, there are some questions you'll want to ask yourself so you can be clear wether you'll enjoy this field and have the personality traits that will help you succeed.

1. Do you enjoy problem solving? 
Or are you a natural problem solver?

Problem solving is like second nature to a designer. In UX, all you're doing is seeking creative solutions into a design that aligns with the users and business objectives. I also like to think of this trait as a problem radar, making it easy for you to identify issues. Not in a negative way but the ability to find opportunities for improvements in your every day life... which leads me to the second question:

2. Are you passionate about improving people’s lives? 
Or, Do you think about how things around you could be improved? I don't know what to call this trait but it's like a facilitator, you tend to enjoy helping make things easier for others. In UX, when you design your solutions, you're always thinking of ways that simplify the experience for others. You truly care about others experiences because you have Empathy, which is the 3rd trait I'd like to share with you.

3. Do you have empathy for people?
Empathy is the capacity to understand or feel what another person is experiencing from within their frame of reference. It's like putting yourself in the shoes of the users to know how they feeling when using a product or a service. In UX, having empathy is important because in any given project, you, the designer will act as an advocate for the user’s needs when they are overlooked by the rest of the team.

**4. Are you comfortable and confident speaking in front of a team? **
You won't need to be a good public speaker but you will need to be a Good Communicator. Presentations are very common, I get to present design solutions every Monday at my current job. At first it was uncomfortable giving presentations but as with everything you get better with practice. The key is to communicate straight to the point and be clear about your objectives.

**5. Are great listener? **
in UX, since you working towards finding solutions and working with different team members from product manager to developers and different stakeholders, it's very important to be able to listen and have a clear understanding of the problems being presented that you need to solve for.

6. Are you driven and self-motivated?
Being Proactive is one of those traits that also applies to other disciplines, but in UX, being proactive means you are ready to wear many hats. You're always going to learn new things, new skills, tools sets, and have many opportunities to be creative. You'll need the self-motivation to learn new skills when needed.

**7. Do you manage your time well? **
To be able to manage many tasks, you'll need to be Disciplined. And being able to manage your time effectively is another trait that will help you in UX.

8. Do you view yourself as a future leader or someone who can inspire and earn the trust of others?
For you to provide valuable solutions to your team or company, you'll need to be Trustworthy. You'll need to be a person able to be relied on by steak-holders, managers, developers and other team players. Best way to earn it is to be truthful and transparent with your solutions by bringing facts and sources of truth to the table that back up your designs. Also being open to suggestions and opinions of others without feeling critiqued or attacked.

If you’ve answered yes to most of these questions, then you my friend are a perfect fit for this career path. Regardless of what your background is, you probably already have some skills that will translate into UX/UI Design whether you lean towards being artistic or being more analytical. If you want to know how to get started in UX, go see my previous video on becoming a UX Designer.

Well I hope this article brings you value and has helped you out in some way or another.