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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. Want to support us? Sign up to get access to exclusive locked episodes for $0.99/mo https://anchor.fm/honestuxtalks/subscribe To request the next topic DM us on Instagram: 🗂 instagram.com/honest_ux_talks 👩💻 instagram.com/anfisign 👩🏻💻 instagram.com/uxgoodies
Ioana engages in a thoughtful discussion about burnout with guests Meg Rye and Laurence Galland.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
In this episode:
0:46 intro
02:05 Wix sponsorship message
04:11 - Guests' background and interest in burnout
07:36 - Observations on designer experiences and industry challenges
15:57 - Symptoms and manifestations of burnout
20:17 - Steps to take upon realizing burnout + prevention tips
28:23 - Advice for those facing burnout threats
38:54 - Key takeaways
Our guests:
Meg Rye (she/her) - founder of Good Maven, recruiter and coach.
Meg’s been at the center of the global design community for 20+ years, working with professionals to build ambitious and fulfilling careers.
Most recently, Meg was the first international design recruiter at Meta. She led the team’s growth from 4 to 700 designers across 13 countries, while building a strong community and culture made up of product designers, content designers, user experience researchers, and artists.
She’s built teams, hiring processes, and programs for enterprise, agency, start-up, and cultural institutions, including WhatsApp, Instagram, Meta Reality Labs, Publicis Sapient, Havas, eBay, Comcast, Siemens, Verizon, The Wharton School, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Laurence Galland has worked with a huge range of teams and individuals and has vast experience across career management, leadership skills development, change management, self-development, business set up/scale up and work/life balance.
Before becoming a coach, she spent 10 years in consumer goods and tourism organisations as a senior HR professional. She holds a Professional Coach Certification (PCC) from the International Coaching Federation (ICF), an Individual Team Coach Accreditation (ITCA) from the European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) and Masters degrees in international business and business administration.
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
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Anfisa and Ioana talk about their favorite UX design books.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
In this episode:
• What were some of the most influential books that shaped our careers?
• What are some of the must-read books that we would recommend to stay up-to-date with the latest trends in the industry?
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
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Anfisa and Ioana dive into how design roles might evolve in the future.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
In this episode:
• What trends are currently shaping the design landscape?
• How do you envision the future of career growth within the design field?
• What do you anticipate for researchers and content designers, who also play integral roles in design organizations?
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
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Anfi and Ioana explore whiteboarding exercises and take-home assignments, discuss their experiences and share tips for successfully completing them.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
In this episode:
•What are whiteboarding exercises and take-home assignments?
•What are some common examples of whiteboarding challenges and take-home assignments?
•When should you accept or decline assignments?
•What tips can help you successfully complete whiteboarding challenges and take-home assignments?
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
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Anfi and Ioana dive into the journey of an AI designer, exploring the transition from concept to production, the unique challenges of designing AI features, and the insights gained from user research that shape the process.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Episode Timestamps:
0:51 – Episode Intro
1:55 – Wix Sponsorship
3:26 – Regular Catch-up
5:43 – Can you share your journey joining the new team as an AI Designer at Miro?
19:27 – How many of those initial concepts made it into production? What are the differences between a typical design process and an AI-driven one?
26:35 – What was your process for developing an AI feature?
34:05 – How does user research play into the development of AI-driven features?
38:37 – What was a learning from research that changed your perspective
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
🧡 Want to support us?
Sign up here to get access to exclusive locked episodes for $0.99/mo
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Anfi and Tommy delve into the value of specialization vs. generalization, managing tool overload, and strategies for intentional, high-quality design decisions within large companies.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Episode Links:
Tommy's UX Decisions online course
UXtools survey and past reports
Episode Timestamps:
0:31 — Episode start
1:51 — Wix Studio partnership
3:31 — Tommy shares his journey as a designer
12:26 — Tommy discusses his unique strengths as a creator and designer
15:07 — Tommy shares his market insights and emphasizes the importance of experimenting with tools
22:47 — Which approach holds more value in today’s market: being a specialist or a generalist?
26:56 — How can designers navigate complex layers of approval and buy-ins when shipping products in large companies?
32:31 — Tool Overload in the Market: Is there potential for an all-in-one tool to emerge as the market leader?
36:42 — Course Announcement: Insights into design thinking, just-in-time learning, and more
39:30 — Craft vs. Intentionality: Balancing exceptional UX as a "north star" with intentional, well-justified design decisions
46:34 — Shifting Company Culture: How to move from quick fixes to a focus on high-quality design
52:19 — Key tips and takeaways for better decision-making in design
56:56 — Tommy’s approach to refining and iterating on his designs
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
🧡 Want to support us?
Sign up here to get access to exclusive locked episodes for $0.99/mo
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Anfi and Rachel delve into the creative journey of a designer, with Rachel sharing her experience of how she approached a pitch, exploring non-linear approaches to design thinking, the value of diverse backgrounds, and the art of storytelling in design.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Episode Timestamps:
0:35 - Episode Intro
1:45 - Collaboration with Wix Studio
3:07 - Can you share your story as a designer? What led you to work with me at Mews on guest experiences?
4:58 - What inspired Rachel to become a product designer?
8:39 - Why did Anfi decide to discuss this episode’s topic with Rachel?
13:03 - Observing, noticing, and interpreting signals: The concept of hearing those whispers. What does that mean for you? Describe this process.
16:55 - Mapping insights into the bigger picture: Rachel’s approach to research, exploring solution spaces, and analogous industries. How they look at similar problems in other areas before returning to the same space for competitor research.
18:58 - Taking a non-linear approach instead of following the standard process: Abstract thinking and reverse engineering.
21:04 - Coming to design from a different background: Is it a drawback? Should designers follow standard paths? Anfi shares her experience at her university design program and the diversity of student backgrounds.
24:15 - Why did you choose high fidelity for the pitch? What was your thought process?
29:03 - Storytelling: How do you approach telling stories in a cohesive yet engaging way that keeps listeners interested until the end? (Song analogy)
32:40 - Extra thoughts: Presenting your voice to others and then hearing it back—how this helps identify areas to adjust, cut, or elaborate on. Why verbalizing thoughts is key to the feedback process.
42:52 - Why are you so good with words?
47:08 - Closing thoughts on imposter syndrome as a designer.
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
🧡 Want to support us?
Sign up here to get access to exclusive locked episodes for $0.99/mo
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
Anfi and Ioana explore the key factors that have shaped their career decisions and offer insights on making thoughtful choices for your professional journey.
This episode was recorded in partnership with Wix Studio.
Episode Timestamps:
0:58 - Episode Kickoff 1:04 - Special announcement about our new partnership with Wix 3:01 - Life Updates 8:43 - Reflecting on the mechanisms behind career decisions and key learnings so far 25:40 - How to assess team dynamics, company culture, and project fit during interviews?
Mentioned in this episode:
Platforms that provide insights into company cultures, organizational structures, and workplace experiences. These platforms aim to offer transparency to job seekers and employees by providing information like company reviews, salary data, and employee experiences.
• The Org
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
🧡 Want to support us?
Sign up here to get access to exclusive locked episodes for $0.99/mo
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
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Anfi and Ioana share their experiences collaborating with engineers, what makes a great developer, and offer tips for improving teamwork.
Timestamps:
0:41 Episode’s intro and updates from Anfi and Ioana
05:00 How has your collaboration with engineers evolved over the last 10 years? 11:52 What qualities make a good engineer from a designer’s perspective? 22:54 Tips for effective collaboration: How can regular syncing help improve teamwork? What are the strategies for staying on the same page with devs if you work remotely?
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
🧡 Want to support us?
Sign up here to get access to exclusive locked episodes for $0.99/mo
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
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This episode was recorded during the Hatch conference in Berlin.
In this episode:
• What key trends shaped the design industry in 2023 and 2024? How do they influence the design market in 2025 and beyond?
• What can designers do today to stay competitive in the evolving design industry?
Check out these links:
Ioana's AI Goodies Newsletter
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.
Enroll in Ioana's AI course "**AI-Powered UX Design: How to Elevate Your UX Career"** on Interaction Design Foundation with a 25% discount.
❓Next topic ideas:
Submit your questions or feedback anonymously here
Links:
🎓 Into UX design online course by Anfisa
🎓 Domestika course Create a Learning Strategy by Ioana
🧡 Want to support us?
Sign up here to get access to exclusive locked episodes for $0.99/mo
Follow us on Instagram to stay tuned for the next episodes.
🗂 Our instagram
👩💻 Anfisa’s instagram
Amanda is a wife. A mother. A blogger. A Christian.
A charming, beautiful, bubbly, young woman who lives life to the fullest.
But Amanda is dying, with a secret she doesn’t want anyone to know.
She starts a blog detailing her cancer journey, and becomes an inspiration, touching and
captivating her local community as well as followers all over the world.
Until one day investigative producer Nancy gets an anonymous tip telling her to look at Amanda’s
blog, setting Nancy on an unimaginable road to uncover Amanda’s secret.
Award winning journalist Charlie Webster explores this unbelievable and bizarre, but
all-too-real tale, of a woman from San Jose, California whose secret ripped a family apart and
left a community in shock.
Scamanda is the true story of a woman whose own words held the key to her secret.
New episodes every Monday.
Follow Scamanda on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
Amanda’s blog posts are read by actor Kendall Horn.
