I created these comics as way to illustrate how I discovered I’d been practicing user experience discovery methods all along.

I want to begin working as UX designer again.

I stepped away from my UX career after graduate school to be a parent. During my time away, I did a lot of graphic design but little UX design. When I reentered the UX field 9 years later, I was in for a surprise. I’d forgotten a whole lot. As I scrambled to catch up and refreshed myself on all the tools and methods, I realized a lot of the situations I encountered as a parent could be described in terms of UX research.

Any activity with a group of kids always begins with a bathroom check.

The idea to illustrate UX methods through the lens of parenting came when I realized that giving a child a choice of ice cream flavors was a lot like A/B testing.

(Granted the story in the comic is not exactly a true A/B test scenario but you get the idea.)

I recently worked on a project on that needed a ton of storyboard creation and iteration. Honestly, I was intimidated by storyboards – my drawing skills with pencil and paper are mediocre at best. But if I wanted to get paid, I had to use them. I got much better at storyboards and realized that basic, simple shapes are very effective at telling a story.

My kid eats her vegetables. But she won’t eat any fruit…

• Don’t avoid using a skill because you can’t do X very well. Taking a risk can really pay off.
• Searching for connections between unrelated ideas can reveal some interesting insights.
• Don’t be afraid to make a bad first draft. Bad first drafts can turn into really, really good final drafts.