In today's episode, Sharae Gibbs, founder of She Designs and Google Interaction Designer, shares her 12-year journey in UX and her mission to empower women of color in tech through mentorship and training.
• Former Graphic Designer who pivoted to UX design at major tech companies like IBM and Google
• Created She Designs as a mentorship platform for women of color in tech
• Describes Interaction Design as understanding user journeys and touch points to help people achieve goals
• Discusses the value of having representation and community as a Black woman in tech
• Explains how the She Designs UX course evolved to be more flexible and comprehensive
• Shares tools like Otter AI, Gemini, and ChatGPT that help maintain work-life balance
• Provides perspective on how AI is changing UX, but can't replace human empathy and cultural understanding
Teachers already have core UX skills - empathy, communication, problem-solving, and experience designing for different learners. Reframe your classroom experience in UX terminology: lesson planning is experience design, supporting diverse learners is accessibility work, and curriculum adjustments are usability testing and iteration.
____
Bio: Sharae Gibbs is the Founder of She Designs, and an Interaction Designer with over 12 years of experience in User Experience (UX) Design. She’s worked at companies like IBM and Google, and her goal is to empower the next generation of women of color in tech.
Contact Share at: sharae@shedesigns.org
Check out her courses at www.shedesigns.org
Use my discount code ZEEUXPREP for 15% off the course.
Text Me! 📱I’d love to hear from you! Click here to send me a message.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Zee (00:05):
Hello teacher friends, welcome back to the UX Teacher
Prep Podcast.
I'm Zee, a former teacherturned Senior UX Researcher in
EdTech.
Today I'm chatting with SharaeGibbs.
She's the founder of SheDesigns and an interaction
designer with over 12 years ofexperience.
She's worked with big nameslike IBM and Google and is
(00:25):
passionate about empoweringwomen of color in tech.
We dive into her work at Googleleadership in UX, ai,
accessibility, work-life balanceand so much more.
Stick around until the end,because she's going to give us
insights on how to transitionfrom teaching to UX and she's
gonna talk about her amazing UXdesign course.
Narrator (00:46):
Welcome to the UX Teacher Prep Podcast, the
ultimate destination foreducators who aspire to break
into the field of userexperience and product design.
Your host, Zee Arnold, a15-year teacher turned ux
researcher, is here to guide,coach and mentor you through
every twist and turn as you makeyour career transition into
tech.
If you're ready for a moresatisfying career and lifestyle
(01:09):
and you want the balance tounleash your creativity, this
podcast is for you.
Now for the show.
Zee (01:19):
Hello Sharae.
It's so great to have you onthe show today.
How are you?
Sharae Gibbs (01:23):
I'm doing really well.
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm really glad that we'redoing this.
Zee (01:28):
Yes, I'm so grateful and excited to talk to you on the
show today, because I reallylook up to you for your
expertise and yourprofessionalism.
So let's get started by tellingeveryone a bit about who you
are.
Sharae Gibbs (01:40):
Of course.
So my name is Sharae and I'vebeen working as a UX designer
for over a decade now, primarilyat large tech companies like
Google and IBM, and most peoplein my community know me through
She Designs, which is mymentorship and online training
platform for women of color,building and running it for, I
(02:06):
think, over eight years now, andit's something that I'm
incredibly proud of.
I'm also a mom to aone-year-old and I'm married, so
you know, life is really full.
Zee (02:12):
How long did you say you've been working in UX?
Sharae Gibbs (02:15):
Oh wow, I've been in UX for over a decade.
I want to say I'm up at like 12or 13 years.
Zee (02:22):
Wow, nice, nice.
So what is it that brought youinto the UX field?
What was your journey like?
Getting into UX, or was thatyour first type of career?
Sharae Gibbs (02:31):
This was my first career, but my background was
actually in graphic design, soit's a small little pivot from
designing branded products todesigning experiences.
Starting on with print and thenmoving that to digital
experiences is a littledifferent, so, but my background
was overall in design.
Zee (02:50):
Got it, and did you have any mentors who inspired you to
just continue this road intodesign and even start your own
company?
Sharae Gibbs (03:00):
I want to say that my mother was my first role
model, so she always encouragedme to follow creativity I'm like
my first sketchbook that shegave me and in terms of just
leadership, I would say her aswell, because you know, she was
actually a teacher, and so wasmy grandmother and my aunt, and
(03:22):
they moved from being teachersto different you know different
roles.
So my mother actually founded ahigh school.
She was the principal for ahigh school and she became many
things from a dean.
She was once a paralegal andthen she started to teach
history and English.
But when she got her doctorate,that's what allowed her to
(03:43):
teach at higher level ofeducation.
So I really looked up to her interms of presentation skills,
how do I communicate well?
How, as a woman, do I show upin these spaces?
And she even does a lot of workwith She Designs today, helping
us grant some different things.
So my mom is my ultimate, youknow superpower and superhero,
yeah.
Zee (04:07):
Wow, that's great um teachers in the house.
Your mom was a teacher like me,yeah, um yeah, and I know you
have a lot of respect foreducators, and so when I was in
your program, the ux designcourse, I was wondering if I
would find other teachers in theprogram.
And I did find someone who wasa former teacher that was in our
little cohort, so that was cooltoo.
Yeah, that was really awesome.
(04:27):
So you work at Google, so Ihave to ask you what is it like
being a Googler?
Sharae Gibbs (04:34):
Oh, that's a good question.
I honestly feel very, veryprivileged in a lot of ways that
I think as a Black woman,sometimes you don't get to feel
privileged and so, honestly,being a Googler makes me feel
like I get to be in the know ofthings and also that I have
access to a lot of information.
(04:55):
Internally, we have a lot ofonline training programs and
things that I get to do for free, so I'm always able to kind of
learn a course and take aprogram that I'm curious about,
and then I can also learn frompeers and they're doing some
amazing things.
So it helps me stay on top ofmy skills and continuously like
(05:17):
refine and learn from others,whether it be oh well, I really
like how this person presentedthis material, material or I
want to kind of reach out tothem to learn more about their
background and to understand adifferent perspective.
I think being a Googler isreally cool, and then we also
have, like, free food and justthe basic things that make such
(05:38):
a difference.
Narrator (05:39):
Yeah.
Sharae Gibbs (05:39):
I was thinking about that the other day.
Like I never wake up in themorning and go oh, I don't want
to go to work, I always feellike, wow, I get to go to work.
Zee (05:47):
Wow, that is amazing.
I got to be honest with you.
When I first was transitioningfrom teaching into the UX space,
I thought about Google and Ithought about some of those
major companies, the way howit's portrayed, like, you know,
online and stuff.
It just seems like it's socompetitive, so hard to get in,
like the process.
(06:07):
The company that I currentlywork for is also very
competitive, but it's an ed techcompany and I just thought, you
know, the company is so huge,you know, being a Black woman
going into that type of space,what would that look like?
And when I started your courseand I learned that you worked at
Google for so long, I was like,wow, like she's really doing it
(06:29):
, this is great.
So it's just great to know thatyou're in there and you're
doing it and you're representing, thank you.
So I'm curious do you workclosely with UX researchers?
And, if you do, what does thatlook like?
Because I know you're aninteraction designer and, by the
way, what does that actuallymean?
Sharae Gibbs (06:40):
Definitely so.
As an interaction designer, I'mthinking about the various
touch points between a consumerand our product or even with a
service, so I'm constantlycoming up with what we call user
flows and figuring out fromsomeone's like goal standpoint,
if they want to complete a goal,what are the different tasks
(07:02):
that they would need to completeto achieve the goal in these
products, and also, as they arein the consideration and
awareness phase, how can weensure that our products stand
out, and so a lot of the workthat I do at Google is about
consent interactions, makingsure that when we request user
data, that we're doing it in avery compliant way.
(07:26):
I would say an interactiondesigner is someone who can
think about the human experience, about all the different touch
points that make up that userjourney, and considering how we
can help them achieve theirgoals.
During, your question was aboutuser research and how do
designers or interactiondesigners kind of work with
(07:47):
those folks, and so what I cansay about UX role is that it
sometimes comprises all things,so I do user research as well in
my role, not just one thing.
It's very multifaceted, and Ilove that right, because I love
human-centered design.
I'm interested in understandinguser painpoints and sentiments
(08:10):
and thinking about how theirfrustrations kind of they kind
of give me little insights intoways that I could potentially
solve those problems.
And so in my current role, I doresearch and I do participate
in what we call our pine conestudies, where I'm talking to
actual people people like youand anyone who has used a Google
(08:32):
product before.
We are coming up with differentmethods to understand their
experience.
And then my role is also tocome up with solutions and
design solutions for it, forthose all Got it.
Zee (08:46):
So you kind of do a little bit of everything then
Interesting.
You also do UX research as well, so you really get the full
breadth of the work I do.
I love that.
So let's talk a little bitabout your course, the She
Designs Women of Color UX Designcourse.
It's been about three yearssince I took your course and
that course had a huge impact onmy transition from teaching to
(09:09):
UX.
Obviously, as you know, withintwo months of taking the course,
I landed my UX research role,and what I really loved about
the course was the first of allI didn't even realize it at the
time.
I realized it after, likelooking back that the parts
where we had to do user researchwithin the course were the
parts that I loved the most.
I loved reaching out to people,like you know, finding people
(09:31):
on Facebook and different placesand trying to get them to do
interviews with me and justdoing the research part of UX
design was the part that I lovedthe most, and then I ended up
in UX research, so that waspretty cool.
The next thing that I lovedabout the course was us having
those live calls where we got totalk to our peers about the
work we were doing, and so thatcollaboration piece I feel like
it really helped prepare me forthe kind of collaboration that I
(09:53):
would be doing as a UXresearcher across different
cross-functional teams.
Last thing I want to say aboutthe course is that it just
really felt good to be alongsidewomen of color right.
I felt really empowered and Idon't think any other UX course
would have afforded me thatopportunity.
I was looking at all differenttypes of courses and they just
didn't feel like I would fit.
(10:13):
You know, they didn't feel likethey were for me.
But when I found your courseand I started to do research on
like what it was all about, whoit was for and what it was for
really designing for everyoneand accessibility and inclusion,
I really felt like that's aplace where I could thrive and I
really did so.
I know that your course hasevolved since then.
So what are some of thosechanges that you've made to your
(10:35):
course and what motivated thosechanges?
Sharae Gibbs (10:37):
Yeah, well, first and foremost, I want to thank
you for sharing that.
I think we put a lot ofintention into developing the
course, and the fact that youfelt that as a student at the
time that means a lot to hear.
I think even just participatingin those live calls was really
therapeutic for me as well.
Right, so I wanted to createcommunity, and that was my goal
(11:01):
when I first started.
The course was to create aspace where people could come
and learn from others, whetherthat be peers or other
professional experts in thefield, and having that access to
professionals was reallyimportant, because if I think
about my time as a designer,starting as a contractor for IBM
(11:22):
and doing some other you knowreally great things I realized
that the women, especially theBlack, latino women they really,
really helped me to figure outhow to find my voice and how I
could take on a career such asthis Just watching them give
presentations, having them helpme navigate to different
(11:45):
projects that I wanted to be on,speaking up and finding my ways
of almost emulating some of thethings that I was experiencing
from them that was so important,some of the things that I was
experiencing from them that wasso important, and so to create
that sort of live call wherestudents could come together,
learn from each other and bringsome you know, you know friends
and coworkers in the field oreven people that were just happy
(12:06):
to contribute to the program.
That was really meaningful forme, and so, you know, I just
want to thank you forparticipating in the program,
but also just for sharing thatyou found it very useful.
Research, because you do haveto understand the world of UX in
(12:38):
order to be a contributor inthe space and to help your
colleagues, right, that may havean expertise or something in
research.
Right, you want to be able totalk the same language and
understand how you cancontribute, not just from a
design perspective but, you know, from a human-centered design
perspective.
And then your questions werearound, like what really
motivated me to want to changethe course, and I think that it
was understanding and learningright and applying what we're
(13:02):
learning and the feedback thatwe're getting through the course
was really important.
So before our program was a settime and we were pairing
students up with startups andtrying to get them to go from
having little experience andknowledge of UX to producing a
case study portfolio with astartup founder and I think what
(13:22):
we found is that people reallywanted to have a lot more
flexibility.
So that was something that'sreally important, especially for
moms, for parents right thatare trying to juggle working
full time, having kids andtrying to takeuggle working
full-time having kids and tryingto take a learning program.
So we wanted to change it to beself-paced, and that's
something that we did.
We wanted to include more videotutorials, more ways for you to
(13:47):
actually get insight on thesevarious topics from
professionals, and so we didrewrite a lot of the curriculum,
a lot of the details ofaccessibility and inclusion
they're still there and then wealso wanted to focus on beginner
level, friendly content thatanyone can start with just to
kind of dig their feet into UX.
You feel more empowered to takeon what we're calling our
(14:16):
Design Mastery Program, whereyou really get to start working
with the tools a lot morehands-on, there's a lot more
tutorials, and that was reallyimportant for me to change about
the program so that we couldactually scale it a bit and make
sure that we could reach morepeople.
Zee (14:30):
So there's it sounds like there's a foundations course now
and then there's a designmastery course.
Is that right?
That's correct.
Okay, I got it.
And I forgot to mention thatpart about being paired with the
startups.
Being able to work with anactual company on a real project
was amazing, because obviously,teachers and others who are
transitioning into the space orjust starting into UX they want
(14:52):
real projects that they canactually work on with real
clients.
So that was top tier.
Sharae Gibbs (14:57):
Awesome, yeah, and we're still going to have that
as part of the design masteryprogram.
So I think a lot of what we didwas trying to make sure, at our
core, we can reach everyone,help everyone get comfortable
with Figma and certain designtools before we start to go
really deep.
And I'm also really proud ofthe work that we've done in
(15:17):
partnering with startupcompanies.
We've partnered with OriginWay,which is an amazing product
that helps women with theirpelvic floor and provides
training about that.
We've partnered with Lunai,which is an app that tracks
periods and utilizesscience-based sounds to
alleviate menstrual pain.
(15:38):
We've also partnered withSkinnery app and Kintsugi.
So these are some of theprograms and startups that we've
worked with Navigate Maternity,a lot of the companies are
leveraging a lot of student workand that's something that we
showcase in some of our casestudies of the impact that we've
made at She Designs.
And again, like to your point,it does help them say I do have
(16:01):
this case study and I have thiswork experience because I've
worked and met with stakeholdersbefore and I sort of know how
to handle myself.
Zee (16:08):
Yeah definitely and, for those who are listening, if you
are interested in the course thefoundations course you can use
my discount code ZUXPREP for 15%off the course.
If you go to the websiteuxteacherprepcom and click on
courses, you can find thatinformation and you can check
out the course.
I think it's a great course and, based on what you've been
(16:30):
saying and the improvements thatyou've made and just enhancing
the course to the next level, Imean I wish I could take it
again.
I think I'm thinking like,should I take it again?
Learn more.
You know I'm always like intolearning more and just getting
as much information as I can.
It sounds like I really want totake a look at it and see the
new things that are there.
Yeah, definitely.
(16:50):
What's one of the main thingsyou hope that your students will
take away from the course?
Anyone who takes my course.
I want them to walk away withthis.
Or is it just like every littlething that's in the course?
I want them to grasp it all.
That's a really good question.
Sharae Gibbs (17:03):
I think one of the key takeaways is the
distinction between empathy andsympathy, your ability to
understand people and help solvethe right problems.
I think it's really, reallyimportant to take away from it.
I would say, showing yourprocess, being able to improve
one, your UX terminology, yourvocabulary and how you
(17:25):
communicate things.
Some of what I've seen is,especially when people are
reaching out to take the programand they may even have a UX
role already, that's the thingthey could be transitioning into
UX or in a UX role.
But wanting to feel moreconfident in their knowledge is
that they want to take thecourse to use the right terms
(17:45):
and speak the lingo, and sothat's really important, right,
like how do I effectively createa design portfolio?
How do I like communicate myideas and put them together so
anyone can see the work andunderstand my approach to design
?
Because I feel like yourapproach to design you could
(18:06):
take wherever you go and beeffective Makes sense.
Zee (18:10):
So let's talk about being a Black designer and leader in
the UX space.
How have you navigated anychallenges that may come up?
I know, basically you're in apredominantly white or
male-dominated industry and so,like, how does Sharae show up as
a Black designer and a leaderin the UX space?
Sharae Gibbs (18:30):
Oh, that's such a good question, because the truth
is like working in tech,especially as a Black woman it
means that you're constantlyevolving and you're constantly
being asked to prove your value.
So, for me, maintaining balanceis really, really important.
I try to stay connected to whyI'm doing the work in the first
place, not just what I'mproducing, but like who am I
(18:53):
doing it for, you know, and howdoes it impact people?
So I, as I had shared before, Itake a lot of courses, right, I
read, I try new tools, notbecause I'm trying to case trend
, but I want to be ready forwhen things happen, for when the
world shifts and you know italways does.
I want to make a space forreflection and ask myself like
(19:17):
am I still growing, am I beingstressed in ways that feel
healthy and meaningful?
And then, personally, you know,becoming a mother, everything
has shifted for me, so my timeis a lot more sacred now, and so
I, you know, I try to staygrounded in community, whether
it's through She Designs or myown support system, and that
(19:37):
really does help me, right?
Because I would say that, as aBlack woman, I'm constantly
experiencing, you know,different things, whether it's
blatant racism, subtlemicroaggressions, even in
meetings, right, you might getover talk sometimes, or people
might say condescending thingsto you in a condescending tone,
like does that make sense, youknow, and so.
(19:59):
And then I, just as a blackperson living in america, we
experience things that are moreovert, like neighbors calling
the priest for no reason.
There was this one time on aplane and someone was like good
riddance when I decided toswitch seats, you know.
So, you know these moments,they really stick with you and I
think, when you show up at ajob, there's just so many
(20:22):
different moments, right, that Icould pull up and say, like
these there are, you know, somechallenges, but I think, as it
relates to women especially, Ifeel like being a black woman,
you, you go through thesedifferent experiences and it
does show up and it does sort ofimpact your trajectory.
I would say so in terms of manyindustries.
(20:43):
I mean, I just went to an eventrecently and a woman was talking
about how she had been wearingmultiple hats at her job and she
had been at the job for yearsand when it was time for
promotions she was reallygetting overlooked and I
remember feeling, you know,connected to her in some way
like we're all having similarexperiences as Black people, as
(21:04):
women of color, and it'ssomething where they're
basically saying like we don'tsee you right Because they're
saying it's not the time or youknow, there's always some reason
, you know, and I feel like inorder for us to kind of break
out of that, it's important forus to continue to find ways to
grow in our careers and honestly, I always say, like plan your
(21:26):
exit strategy.
I would just think that you'rein a space where you're being
overlooked and that's why, youknow, I thought doing a course
was really important and then,adding on to my course outside
of UX, in the future I want todo so many other types of
courses because we have tocreate that understanding that
we understand our own valueright, and sometimes an external
(21:48):
offer somewhere helps usrealize that there's going to be
better coming and that I'mworth more than my current job
and how they are valuing me.
Zee (21:58):
That's so powerful.
The way you were justexplaining the planning, your
exit strategy.
I was thinking, yeah, you needto make some more courses.
You need to make some morecourses because a lot of women
need to hear this.
And what you mentioned aboutjust staying connected to your
why that's something that I tryto ground myself in as well Just
staying connected to the reasonwhy I'm staying in education,
(22:18):
the reason why I want to be inthis design space, and also
connecting to what you saidabout constantly being asked to
prove your value, and I havevery strong beliefs.
I'm a very spiritual person, Iwould say, and so I'm just so
glad that I know the value thatI bring and that my creator has
given me already permission andaccess and all those things that
(22:43):
I need to be able to show up ina space and be confident.
You know what I'm saying and sodefinitely I keep learning and
I'm always I'm everyone knowsI'm a very curious person.
I'm always trying to learnsomething new and, just like you
said, stay on top of what'shappening and being being ready.
So I would love to see a courselike that, especially from you,
you know.
I think that would be amazing,awesome.
(23:04):
So you mentioned balance andhow you.
You know you have aone-year-old daughter now and
you have to kind of balance alot of different things.
So do you have any specifictools that you leverage at work
to kind of stay organized?
Do you have like a favoritetool?
Sharae Gibbs (23:31):
is one called Otter AI.
It's basically integrated withyour meetings.
I do it from She Designsmeetings because at Google we
have other tools, but I do useit and it sort of wraps
everything up.
I think it's incredibly helpfulfor recording things, for
sharing out big takeaways andthe summaries, insights is
really cool.
So I use that one a lot and Idefinitely use Gemini.
I use chat, gbt, and I think alot of us are starting to use it
(23:53):
, even for like mundane things.
Right, like I need to quicklyget back to this person's email,
how can I just kind of let themknow I acknowledge what they
said and I can move moreefficiently throughout my day.
And then there are also somereally like cool tools that I'm
seeing for images and picturesand some like cool editing
software ones.
(24:13):
So I think I'm using AI moreand more every day.
It's kind of it's a littlescary, yeah.
So I would say there's Figma AIplugins, there's Adobe Sensi
for refining images andoptimizing UX, just yeah.
Gbt for any sort of designbriefs, or I think I really love
(24:33):
how they help you identifycertain patterns and things that
are happening, so it also canhelp you with your research work
.
Zee (24:41):
Yeah, definitely Just for efficiency sake.
I think it's really great to beable to implement some of those
tools just to get you started,because you have so many
different things you have to getdone and you just need
something to just get youstarted on your way so that you
can get to it.
So, speaking of AI, you know AIis advancing very rapidly and I
(25:01):
wonder how you think it'simpacting UX design and what do
you see as potential?
I know you talked about a lotof the benefits, but what are
some potential challenges ofintegrating AI into our design
process?
Sharae Gibbs (25:14):
Yeah, I would say like AI is really shifting
everything, but very powerful,it's very fast.
It helps us to design, createand solve problems really,
really quickly.
I know it can feel sort ofoverwhelming quickly.
I know it can feel sort ofoverwhelming and I look on
YouTube, I look at differentcontent creators and there's a
(25:34):
little bit of fear, I'msuspecting, about how quickly
things are evolving, and I wouldjust encourage designers to
stay curious and adapt.
It's helpful to use those toolsright and the ones that the
people that are thriving are,you know, figuring things out
and quickly starting to adaptand to use those tools.
(25:57):
So maybe it can help you toautomate your tasks, write user
flow, analyze behavioralpatterns, as I just mentioned.
I feel like these tools arehelpful, but I also don't
believe that AI can replace you,you know, because it can't
really replicate livedexperience.
It doesn't have culturalunderstanding or emotional
(26:18):
intelligence, and so I would saythat we are still pretty
complex as people and so I don'tthink that for every single job
that it's going to be able totake over.
And yeah, I think I don't know.
In our course, we're going totalk about integrating AI into
your UX process and a lot ofcool information.
(26:41):
I don't think UX is goinganywhere, but I do think that
it's evolving and it's importantto understand how to blend your
creativity with strategy andkind of think about how UX and
AI of time.
I really am loving thisinterview.
Zee (27:00):
Last thing I want to ask you is what advice would you
have for educators who aretrying to transition into UX
space?
I know it's crazy right now,but any kind of advice you can
give them if they're consideringa career in UX, design and
(27:21):
skills that might be an assetfor them, or any other advice
that you might give them in thistime, right now, transitioning
to UX?
Sharae Gibbs (27:29):
Yeah, definitely.
If you're an educator thinkingabout transitioning into UX,
first of all, know that youalready have so many of the core
skills that you need, becauseteaching is rooted in empathy,
communication, problem solving,and you've already experienced
designing experiences fordifferent types of learners,
(27:50):
right?
So it all beautifullytranslates already into UX.
What you'll need to do isreframe your experience, and so
a lot of the work is identifyingthe overlap and what you
already do.
So, for example, if you have onyour resume today that you know
how to plan a lesson, example,if you have on your resume today
(28:11):
that you know how to plan alesson, well, that's really
experience design.
If you are able to supportdiverse learners, maybe you work
with people with disabilities.
Maybe you have a focus orbackground in inclusive design
and accessibility right, becauseyou understand the different
types of user needs and you kindof interact with people
firsthand.
If you're able to adjust yourcurriculum, well, that's some
(28:34):
sort of usability testing anditeration, and so I think
there's just a way of buildingfluency with UX tools and
language and then learn how totalk about your skills in the
context of product design.
Like, how do you speak aboutuser research?
Why are frames prototyping,like is there anything that you
built in your classroom thatcould be seen as a prototype?
(28:56):
And then, if you just want somehelp with figuring out how to
reframe that experience, Ialways recommend a course, a
bootcamp.
A mentor, a career coach anyonewho can support that career
change and offer mentorship orguidance is something that I
definitely recommend.
And yeah, overall, just don'tunderestimate your value.
(29:18):
You've led classrooms, you'veadapted to people, you've
adapted to change and you'vealready supported so many people
with different needs everysingle day, so I think you've
already done the hard work.
It's just about figuring outhow to again, like reframe your
experience into a UX focused one.
Zee (29:35):
Yes, reframing the experience.
I keep telling teachers you cando this, you have what it takes
.
You might not see it, but I cansee it.
Yeah, so that's great.
It was so great to have you onthe show today, Sharae, and
learn about your journey andyour course.
I am so excited that I got achance to talk to you.
How can people reach out to youif they want to connect with
(29:56):
you.
Sharae Gibbs (29:56):
That's amazing.
Yeah, you can always go to ourwebsite, wwwshedesignsorg.
There's a way for you toactually set up a call with me
through the booking tab at thetop, and I can always be reached
out via email as well.
Shiree at she designsorg, andyou know I'm happy to help
anyone who's interested intransitioning or just wants to
(30:17):
understand more about what I doon a day to day basis.
Zee (30:21):
Okay, so I'll definitely drop that in the show notes and
in the description box.
And thanks again for coming on,Sharae.
We'll talk soon.
All right, talk soon.
Thanks so much for having me
Sharae Gibbs (30:28):
We'll talk soon.
Alright, talk soon.
Thanks so much for having methanks so much for tuning in.
Narrator (30:35):
If you like this podcast, hit, follow and scroll
down to leave a 5 star rating.
Then share it with a friend.
If you're looking for resourcesto help you on your tech
transition journey, head over touxteacherprepcom.
Follow us on LinkedIn andInstagram at uxteacherprep for
daily tips and motivation.
Have a topic you'd like to hearaddressed on the show?
Send us a DM on Instagram.
(30:56):
If you're listening on YouTube,like, subscribe and share.
Until next time, be well.
Hello teacher friends, welcome back to the UX Teacher
Prep Podcast.
I'm Zee, a former teacherturned Senior UX Researcher in
EdTech.
Today I'm chatting with SharaeGibbs.
She's the founder of SheDesigns and an interaction
designer with over 12 years ofexperience.
She's worked with big nameslike IBM and Google and is
(00:25):
passionate about empoweringwomen of color in tech.
We dive into her work at Googleleadership in UX, ai,
accessibility, work-life balanceand so much more.
Stick around until the end,because she's going to give us
insights on how to transitionfrom teaching to UX and she's
gonna talk about her amazing UXdesign course.
Narrator (00:46):
Welcome to the UX Teacher Prep Podcast, the
ultimate destination foreducators who aspire to break
into the field of userexperience and product design.
Your host, Zee Arnold, a15-year teacher turned ux
researcher, is here to guide,coach and mentor you through
every twist and turn as you makeyour career transition into
tech.
If you're ready for a moresatisfying career and lifestyle
(01:09):
and you want the balance tounleash your creativity, this
podcast is for you.
Now for the show.
Zee (01:19):
Hello Sharae.
It's so great to have you onthe show today.
How are you?
Sharae Gibbs (01:23):
I'm doing really well.
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm really glad that we'redoing this.
Zee (01:28):
Yes, I'm so grateful and excited to talk to you on the
show today, because I reallylook up to you for your
expertise and yourprofessionalism.
So let's get started by tellingeveryone a bit about who you
are.
Sharae Gibbs (01:40):
Of course.
So my name is Sharae and I'vebeen working as a UX designer
for over a decade now, primarilyat large tech companies like
Google and IBM, and most peoplein my community know me through
She Designs, which is mymentorship and online training
platform for women of color,building and running it for, I
(02:06):
think, over eight years now, andit's something that I'm
incredibly proud of.
I'm also a mom to aone-year-old and I'm married, so
you know, life is really full.
Zee (02:12):
How long did you say you've been working in UX?
Sharae Gibbs (02:15):
Oh wow, I've been in UX for over a decade.
I want to say I'm up at like 12or 13 years.
Zee (02:22):
Wow, nice, nice.
So what is it that brought youinto the UX field?
What was your journey like?
Getting into UX, or was thatyour first type of career?
Sharae Gibbs (02:31):
This was my first career, but my background was
actually in graphic design, soit's a small little pivot from
designing branded products todesigning experiences.
Starting on with print and thenmoving that to digital
experiences is a littledifferent, so, but my background
was overall in design.
Zee (02:50):
Got it, and did you have any mentors who inspired you to
just continue this road intodesign and even start your own
company?
Sharae Gibbs (03:00):
I want to say that my mother was my first role
model, so she always encouragedme to follow creativity I'm like
my first sketchbook that shegave me and in terms of just
leadership, I would say her aswell, because you know, she was
actually a teacher, and so wasmy grandmother and my aunt, and
(03:22):
they moved from being teachersto different you know different
roles.
So my mother actually founded ahigh school.
She was the principal for ahigh school and she became many
things from a dean.
She was once a paralegal andthen she started to teach
history and English.
But when she got her doctorate,that's what allowed her to
(03:43):
teach at higher level ofeducation.
So I really looked up to her interms of presentation skills,
how do I communicate well?
How, as a woman, do I show upin these spaces?
And she even does a lot of workwith She Designs today, helping
us grant some different things.
So my mom is my ultimate, youknow superpower and superhero,
yeah.
Zee (04:07):
Wow, that's great um teachers in the house.
Your mom was a teacher like me,yeah, um yeah, and I know you
have a lot of respect foreducators, and so when I was in
your program, the ux designcourse, I was wondering if I
would find other teachers in theprogram.
And I did find someone who wasa former teacher that was in our
little cohort, so that was cooltoo.
Yeah, that was really awesome.
(04:27):
So you work at Google, so Ihave to ask you what is it like
being a Googler?
Sharae Gibbs (04:34):
Oh, that's a good question.
I honestly feel very, veryprivileged in a lot of ways that
I think as a Black woman,sometimes you don't get to feel
privileged and so, honestly,being a Googler makes me feel
like I get to be in the know ofthings and also that I have
access to a lot of information.
(04:55):
Internally, we have a lot ofonline training programs and
things that I get to do for free, so I'm always able to kind of
learn a course and take aprogram that I'm curious about,
and then I can also learn frompeers and they're doing some
amazing things.
So it helps me stay on top ofmy skills and continuously like
(05:17):
refine and learn from others,whether it be oh well, I really
like how this person presentedthis material, material or I
want to kind of reach out tothem to learn more about their
background and to understand adifferent perspective.
I think being a Googler isreally cool, and then we also
have, like, free food and justthe basic things that make such
(05:38):
a difference.
Narrator (05:39):
Yeah.
Sharae Gibbs (05:39):
I was thinking about that the other day.
Like I never wake up in themorning and go oh, I don't want
to go to work, I always feellike, wow, I get to go to work.
Zee (05:47):
Wow, that is amazing.
I got to be honest with you.
When I first was transitioningfrom teaching into the UX space,
I thought about Google and Ithought about some of those
major companies, the way howit's portrayed, like, you know,
online and stuff.
It just seems like it's socompetitive, so hard to get in,
like the process.
(06:07):
The company that I currentlywork for is also very
competitive, but it's an ed techcompany and I just thought, you
know, the company is so huge,you know, being a Black woman
going into that type of space,what would that look like?
And when I started your courseand I learned that you worked at
Google for so long, I was like,wow, like she's really doing it
(06:29):
, this is great.
So it's just great to know thatyou're in there and you're
doing it and you're representing, thank you.
So I'm curious do you workclosely with UX researchers?
And, if you do, what does thatlook like?
Because I know you're aninteraction designer and, by the
way, what does that actuallymean?
Sharae Gibbs (06:40):
Definitely so.
As an interaction designer, I'mthinking about the various
touch points between a consumerand our product or even with a
service, so I'm constantlycoming up with what we call user
flows and figuring out fromsomeone's like goal standpoint,
if they want to complete a goal,what are the different tasks
(07:02):
that they would need to completeto achieve the goal in these
products, and also, as they arein the consideration and
awareness phase, how can weensure that our products stand
out, and so a lot of the workthat I do at Google is about
consent interactions, makingsure that when we request user
data, that we're doing it in avery compliant way.
(07:26):
I would say an interactiondesigner is someone who can
think about the human experience, about all the different touch
points that make up that userjourney, and considering how we
can help them achieve theirgoals.
During, your question was aboutuser research and how do
designers or interactiondesigners kind of work with
(07:47):
those folks, and so what I cansay about UX role is that it
sometimes comprises all things,so I do user research as well in
my role, not just one thing.
It's very multifaceted, and Ilove that right, because I love
human-centered design.
I'm interested in understandinguser painpoints and sentiments
(08:10):
and thinking about how theirfrustrations kind of they kind
of give me little insights intoways that I could potentially
solve those problems.
And so in my current role, I doresearch and I do participate
in what we call our pine conestudies, where I'm talking to
actual people people like youand anyone who has used a Google
(08:32):
product before.
We are coming up with differentmethods to understand their
experience.
And then my role is also tocome up with solutions and
design solutions for it, forthose all Got it.
Zee (08:46):
So you kind of do a little bit of everything then
Interesting.
You also do UX research as well, so you really get the full
breadth of the work I do.
I love that.
So let's talk a little bitabout your course, the She
Designs Women of Color UX Designcourse.
It's been about three yearssince I took your course and
that course had a huge impact onmy transition from teaching to
(09:09):
UX.
Obviously, as you know, withintwo months of taking the course,
I landed my UX research role,and what I really loved about
the course was the first of allI didn't even realize it at the
time.
I realized it after, likelooking back that the parts
where we had to do user researchwithin the course were the
parts that I loved the most.
I loved reaching out to people,like you know, finding people
(09:31):
on Facebook and different placesand trying to get them to do
interviews with me and justdoing the research part of UX
design was the part that I lovedthe most, and then I ended up
in UX research, so that waspretty cool.
The next thing that I lovedabout the course was us having
those live calls where we got totalk to our peers about the
work we were doing, and so thatcollaboration piece I feel like
it really helped prepare me forthe kind of collaboration that I
(09:53):
would be doing as a UXresearcher across different
cross-functional teams.
Last thing I want to say aboutthe course is that it just
really felt good to be alongsidewomen of color right.
I felt really empowered and Idon't think any other UX course
would have afforded me thatopportunity.
I was looking at all differenttypes of courses and they just
didn't feel like I would fit.
(10:13):
You know, they didn't feel likethey were for me.
But when I found your courseand I started to do research on
like what it was all about, whoit was for and what it was for
really designing for everyoneand accessibility and inclusion,
I really felt like that's aplace where I could thrive and I
really did so.
I know that your course hasevolved since then.
So what are some of thosechanges that you've made to your
(10:35):
course and what motivated thosechanges?
Sharae Gibbs (10:37):
Yeah, well, first and foremost, I want to thank
you for sharing that.
I think we put a lot ofintention into developing the
course, and the fact that youfelt that as a student at the
time that means a lot to hear.
I think even just participatingin those live calls was really
therapeutic for me as well.
Right, so I wanted to createcommunity, and that was my goal
(11:01):
when I first started.
The course was to create aspace where people could come
and learn from others, whetherthat be peers or other
professional experts in thefield, and having that access to
professionals was reallyimportant, because if I think
about my time as a designer,starting as a contractor for IBM
(11:22):
and doing some other you knowreally great things I realized
that the women, especially theBlack, latino women they really,
really helped me to figure outhow to find my voice and how I
could take on a career such asthis Just watching them give
presentations, having them helpme navigate to different
(11:45):
projects that I wanted to be on,speaking up and finding my ways
of almost emulating some of thethings that I was experiencing
from them that was so important,some of the things that I was
experiencing from them that wasso important, and so to create
that sort of live call wherestudents could come together,
learn from each other and bringsome you know, you know friends
and coworkers in the field oreven people that were just happy
(12:06):
to contribute to the program.
That was really meaningful forme, and so, you know, I just
want to thank you forparticipating in the program,
but also just for sharing thatyou found it very useful.
Research, because you do haveto understand the world of UX in
(12:38):
order to be a contributor inthe space and to help your
colleagues, right, that may havean expertise or something in
research.
Right, you want to be able totalk the same language and
understand how you cancontribute, not just from a
design perspective but, you know, from a human-centered design
perspective.
And then your questions werearound, like what really
motivated me to want to changethe course, and I think that it
was understanding and learningright and applying what we're
(13:02):
learning and the feedback thatwe're getting through the course
was really important.
So before our program was a settime and we were pairing
students up with startups andtrying to get them to go from
having little experience andknowledge of UX to producing a
case study portfolio with astartup founder and I think what
(13:22):
we found is that people reallywanted to have a lot more
flexibility.
So that was something that'sreally important, especially for
moms, for parents right thatare trying to juggle working
full time, having kids andtrying to takeuggle working
full-time having kids and tryingto take a learning program.
So we wanted to change it to beself-paced, and that's
something that we did.
We wanted to include more videotutorials, more ways for you to
(13:47):
actually get insight on thesevarious topics from
professionals, and so we didrewrite a lot of the curriculum,
a lot of the details ofaccessibility and inclusion
they're still there and then wealso wanted to focus on beginner
level, friendly content thatanyone can start with just to
kind of dig their feet into UX.
You feel more empowered to takeon what we're calling our
(14:16):
Design Mastery Program, whereyou really get to start working
with the tools a lot morehands-on, there's a lot more
tutorials, and that was reallyimportant for me to change about
the program so that we couldactually scale it a bit and make
sure that we could reach morepeople.
Zee (14:30):
So there's it sounds like there's a foundations course now
and then there's a designmastery course.
Is that right?
That's correct.
Okay, I got it.
And I forgot to mention thatpart about being paired with the
startups.
Being able to work with anactual company on a real project
was amazing, because obviously,teachers and others who are
transitioning into the space orjust starting into UX they want
(14:52):
real projects that they canactually work on with real
clients.
So that was top tier.
Sharae Gibbs (14:57):
Awesome, yeah, and we're still going to have that
as part of the design masteryprogram.
So I think a lot of what we didwas trying to make sure, at our
core, we can reach everyone,help everyone get comfortable
with Figma and certain designtools before we start to go
really deep.
And I'm also really proud ofthe work that we've done in
(15:17):
partnering with startupcompanies.
We've partnered with OriginWay,which is an amazing product
that helps women with theirpelvic floor and provides
training about that.
We've partnered with Lunai,which is an app that tracks
periods and utilizesscience-based sounds to
alleviate menstrual pain.
(15:38):
We've also partnered withSkinnery app and Kintsugi.
So these are some of theprograms and startups that we've
worked with Navigate Maternity,a lot of the companies are
leveraging a lot of student workand that's something that we
showcase in some of our casestudies of the impact that we've
made at She Designs.
And again, like to your point,it does help them say I do have
(16:01):
this case study and I have thiswork experience because I've
worked and met with stakeholdersbefore and I sort of know how
to handle myself.
Zee (16:08):
Yeah definitely and, for those who are listening, if you
are interested in the course thefoundations course you can use
my discount code ZUXPREP for 15%off the course.
If you go to the websiteuxteacherprepcom and click on
courses, you can find thatinformation and you can check
out the course.
I think it's a great course and, based on what you've been
(16:30):
saying and the improvements thatyou've made and just enhancing
the course to the next level, Imean I wish I could take it
again.
I think I'm thinking like,should I take it again?
Learn more.
You know I'm always like intolearning more and just getting
as much information as I can.
It sounds like I really want totake a look at it and see the
new things that are there.
Yeah, definitely.
(16:50):
What's one of the main thingsyou hope that your students will
take away from the course?
Anyone who takes my course.
I want them to walk away withthis.
Or is it just like every littlething that's in the course?
I want them to grasp it all.
That's a really good question.
Sharae Gibbs (17:03):
I think one of the key takeaways is the
distinction between empathy andsympathy, your ability to
understand people and help solvethe right problems.
I think it's really, reallyimportant to take away from it.
I would say, showing yourprocess, being able to improve
one, your UX terminology, yourvocabulary and how you
(17:25):
communicate things.
Some of what I've seen is,especially when people are
reaching out to take the programand they may even have a UX
role already, that's the thingthey could be transitioning into
UX or in a UX role.
But wanting to feel moreconfident in their knowledge is
that they want to take thecourse to use the right terms
(17:45):
and speak the lingo, and sothat's really important, right,
like how do I effectively createa design portfolio?
How do I like communicate myideas and put them together so
anyone can see the work andunderstand my approach to design
?
Because I feel like yourapproach to design you could
(18:06):
take wherever you go and beeffective Makes sense.
Zee (18:10):
So let's talk about being a Black designer and leader in
the UX space.
How have you navigated anychallenges that may come up?
I know, basically you're in apredominantly white or
male-dominated industry and so,like, how does Sharae show up as
a Black designer and a leaderin the UX space?
Sharae Gibbs (18:30):
Oh, that's such a good question, because the truth
is like working in tech,especially as a Black woman it
means that you're constantlyevolving and you're constantly
being asked to prove your value.
So, for me, maintaining balanceis really, really important.
I try to stay connected to whyI'm doing the work in the first
place, not just what I'mproducing, but like who am I
(18:53):
doing it for, you know, and howdoes it impact people?
So I, as I had shared before, Itake a lot of courses, right, I
read, I try new tools, notbecause I'm trying to case trend
, but I want to be ready forwhen things happen, for when the
world shifts and you know italways does.
I want to make a space forreflection and ask myself like
(19:17):
am I still growing, am I beingstressed in ways that feel
healthy and meaningful?
And then, personally, you know,becoming a mother, everything
has shifted for me, so my timeis a lot more sacred now, and so
I, you know, I try to staygrounded in community, whether
it's through She Designs or myown support system, and that
(19:37):
really does help me, right?
Because I would say that, as aBlack woman, I'm constantly
experiencing, you know,different things, whether it's
blatant racism, subtlemicroaggressions, even in
meetings, right, you might getover talk sometimes, or people
might say condescending thingsto you in a condescending tone,
like does that make sense, youknow, and so.
(19:59):
And then I, just as a blackperson living in america, we
experience things that are moreovert, like neighbors calling
the priest for no reason.
There was this one time on aplane and someone was like good
riddance when I decided toswitch seats, you know.
So, you know these moments,they really stick with you and I
think, when you show up at ajob, there's just so many
(20:22):
different moments, right, that Icould pull up and say, like
these there are, you know, somechallenges, but I think, as it
relates to women especially, Ifeel like being a black woman,
you, you go through thesedifferent experiences and it
does show up and it does sort ofimpact your trajectory.
I would say so in terms of manyindustries.
(20:43):
I mean, I just went to an eventrecently and a woman was talking
about how she had been wearingmultiple hats at her job and she
had been at the job for yearsand when it was time for
promotions she was reallygetting overlooked and I
remember feeling, you know,connected to her in some way
like we're all having similarexperiences as Black people, as
(21:04):
women of color, and it'ssomething where they're
basically saying like we don'tsee you right Because they're
saying it's not the time or youknow, there's always some reason
, you know, and I feel like inorder for us to kind of break
out of that, it's important forus to continue to find ways to
grow in our careers and honestly, I always say, like plan your
(21:26):
exit strategy.
I would just think that you'rein a space where you're being
overlooked and that's why, youknow, I thought doing a course
was really important and then,adding on to my course outside
of UX, in the future I want todo so many other types of
courses because we have tocreate that understanding that
we understand our own valueright, and sometimes an external
(21:48):
offer somewhere helps usrealize that there's going to be
better coming and that I'mworth more than my current job
and how they are valuing me.
Zee (21:58):
That's so powerful.
The way you were justexplaining the planning, your
exit strategy.
I was thinking, yeah, you needto make some more courses.
You need to make some morecourses because a lot of women
need to hear this.
And what you mentioned aboutjust staying connected to your
why that's something that I tryto ground myself in as well Just
staying connected to the reasonwhy I'm staying in education,
(22:18):
the reason why I want to be inthis design space, and also
connecting to what you saidabout constantly being asked to
prove your value, and I havevery strong beliefs.
I'm a very spiritual person, Iwould say, and so I'm just so
glad that I know the value thatI bring and that my creator has
given me already permission andaccess and all those things that
(22:43):
I need to be able to show up ina space and be confident.
You know what I'm saying and sodefinitely I keep learning and
I'm always I'm everyone knowsI'm a very curious person.
I'm always trying to learnsomething new and, just like you
said, stay on top of what'shappening and being being ready.
So I would love to see a courselike that, especially from you,
you know.
I think that would be amazing,awesome.
(23:04):
So you mentioned balance andhow you.
You know you have aone-year-old daughter now and
you have to kind of balance alot of different things.
So do you have any specifictools that you leverage at work
to kind of stay organized?
Do you have like a favoritetool?
Sharae Gibbs (23:31):
is one called Otter AI.
It's basically integrated withyour meetings.
I do it from She Designsmeetings because at Google we
have other tools, but I do useit and it sort of wraps
everything up.
I think it's incredibly helpfulfor recording things, for
sharing out big takeaways andthe summaries, insights is
really cool.
So I use that one a lot and Idefinitely use Gemini.
I use chat, gbt, and I think alot of us are starting to use it
(23:53):
, even for like mundane things.
Right, like I need to quicklyget back to this person's email,
how can I just kind of let themknow I acknowledge what they
said and I can move moreefficiently throughout my day.
And then there are also somereally like cool tools that I'm
seeing for images and picturesand some like cool editing
software ones.
(24:13):
So I think I'm using AI moreand more every day.
It's kind of it's a littlescary, yeah.
So I would say there's Figma AIplugins, there's Adobe Sensi
for refining images andoptimizing UX, just yeah.
Gbt for any sort of designbriefs, or I think I really love
(24:33):
how they help you identifycertain patterns and things that
are happening, so it also canhelp you with your research work
.
Zee (24:41):
Yeah, definitely Just for efficiency sake.
I think it's really great to beable to implement some of those
tools just to get you started,because you have so many
different things you have to getdone and you just need
something to just get youstarted on your way so that you
can get to it.
So, speaking of AI, you know AIis advancing very rapidly and I
(25:01):
wonder how you think it'simpacting UX design and what do
you see as potential?
I know you talked about a lotof the benefits, but what are
some potential challenges ofintegrating AI into our design
process?
Sharae Gibbs (25:14):
Yeah, I would say like AI is really shifting
everything, but very powerful,it's very fast.
It helps us to design, createand solve problems really,
really quickly.
I know it can feel sort ofoverwhelming quickly.
I know it can feel sort ofoverwhelming and I look on
YouTube, I look at differentcontent creators and there's a
(25:34):
little bit of fear, I'msuspecting, about how quickly
things are evolving, and I wouldjust encourage designers to
stay curious and adapt.
It's helpful to use those toolsright and the ones that the
people that are thriving are,you know, figuring things out
and quickly starting to adaptand to use those tools.
(25:57):
So maybe it can help you toautomate your tasks, write user
flow, analyze behavioralpatterns, as I just mentioned.
I feel like these tools arehelpful, but I also don't
believe that AI can replace you,you know, because it can't
really replicate livedexperience.
It doesn't have culturalunderstanding or emotional
(26:18):
intelligence, and so I would saythat we are still pretty
complex as people and so I don'tthink that for every single job
that it's going to be able totake over.
And yeah, I think I don't know.
In our course, we're going totalk about integrating AI into
your UX process and a lot ofcool information.
(26:41):
I don't think UX is goinganywhere, but I do think that
it's evolving and it's importantto understand how to blend your
creativity with strategy andkind of think about how UX and
AI of time.
I really am loving thisinterview.
Zee (27:00):
Last thing I want to ask you is what advice would you
have for educators who aretrying to transition into UX
space?
I know it's crazy right now,but any kind of advice you can
give them if they're consideringa career in UX, design and
(27:21):
skills that might be an assetfor them, or any other advice
that you might give them in thistime, right now, transitioning
to UX?
Sharae Gibbs (27:29):
Yeah, definitely.
If you're an educator thinkingabout transitioning into UX,
first of all, know that youalready have so many of the core
skills that you need, becauseteaching is rooted in empathy,
communication, problem solving,and you've already experienced
designing experiences fordifferent types of learners,
(27:50):
right?
So it all beautifullytranslates already into UX.
What you'll need to do isreframe your experience, and so
a lot of the work is identifyingthe overlap and what you
already do.
So, for example, if you have onyour resume today that you know
how to plan a lesson, example,if you have on your resume today
(28:11):
that you know how to plan alesson, well, that's really
experience design.
If you are able to supportdiverse learners, maybe you work
with people with disabilities.
Maybe you have a focus orbackground in inclusive design
and accessibility right, becauseyou understand the different
types of user needs and you kindof interact with people
firsthand.
If you're able to adjust yourcurriculum, well, that's some
(28:34):
sort of usability testing anditeration, and so I think
there's just a way of buildingfluency with UX tools and
language and then learn how totalk about your skills in the
context of product design.
Like, how do you speak aboutuser research?
Why are frames prototyping,like is there anything that you
built in your classroom thatcould be seen as a prototype?
(28:56):
And then, if you just want somehelp with figuring out how to
reframe that experience, Ialways recommend a course, a
bootcamp.
A mentor, a career coach anyonewho can support that career
change and offer mentorship orguidance is something that I
definitely recommend.
And yeah, overall, just don'tunderestimate your value.
(29:18):
You've led classrooms, you'veadapted to people, you've
adapted to change and you'vealready supported so many people
with different needs everysingle day, so I think you've
already done the hard work.
It's just about figuring outhow to again, like reframe your
experience into a UX focused one.
Zee (29:35):
Yes, reframing the experience.
I keep telling teachers you cando this, you have what it takes
.
You might not see it, but I cansee it.
Yeah, so that's great.
It was so great to have you onthe show today, Sharae, and
learn about your journey andyour course.
I am so excited that I got achance to talk to you.
How can people reach out to youif they want to connect with
(29:56):
you.
Sharae Gibbs (29:56):
That's amazing.
Yeah, you can always go to ourwebsite, wwwshedesignsorg.
There's a way for you toactually set up a call with me
through the booking tab at thetop, and I can always be reached
out via email as well.
Shiree at she designsorg, andyou know I'm happy to help
anyone who's interested intransitioning or just wants to
(30:17):
understand more about what I doon a day to day basis.
Zee (30:21):
Okay, so I'll definitely drop that in the show notes and
in the description box.
And thanks again for coming on,Sharae.
We'll talk soon.
All right, talk soon.
Thanks so much for having me
Sharae Gibbs (30:28):
We'll talk soon.
Alright, talk soon.
Thanks so much for having methanks so much for tuning in.
Narrator (30:35):
If you like this podcast, hit, follow and scroll
down to leave a 5 star rating.
Then share it with a friend.
If you're looking for resourcesto help you on your tech
transition journey, head over touxteacherprepcom.
Follow us on LinkedIn andInstagram at uxteacherprep for
daily tips and motivation.
Have a topic you'd like to hearaddressed on the show?
Send us a DM on Instagram.
(30:56):
If you're listening on YouTube,like, subscribe and share.
Until next time, be well.
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