How to become a UX/UI designer: Tips from Egor Krasnoperov

A junior designer I guided was turned down after five final-round interviews. She was on the verge of giving up. She was emotionally destroyed. She was frustrated. She was losing faith. In her case, we went through all the interviews and all the questions, all the answers, and even the pauses. To no one’s surprise, we found a recurring issue. In her case, there was one specific question she was getting wrong over and over. In particular, the question about designing for users with a short attention span. Her answer was vague, overly generic and on the safe side. It was devoid of her thought processes. It lacked empathy. We implemented the following adjustments: - Solving the question methodically, step by step. - Highlighting her thinking about real users. - Explaining a miniature experiment she would conduct to test her idea. - Sharing why her answer would be essential from a business and user perspective. She was able to crush all her subsequent interviews. The hiring manager described her as “thoughtful, precise, and user-focused.” It’s transformative, realizing for her it’s about “how” in which those answers are presented. If the answer lies in showing the work behind it, then for everyone corporate. After all, if those changes were to be implemented, hiring would be on the right track. Who would not want to work there? The core is looking for the right thought, a single framework destined to create a domino effect. Then those dilemmas would be sufficient. In a similar thought, realizing your quitting point is what assists with not pulling the trigger. Notice all the efforts to overcome seem trivial, no one would see the work behind it requiring a sprinkle of effort to create a snowball effect. But simply striving to be worse means small changes to make a world of a difference. Out of every single question you have been asked, which do you find most problematic? ♻️ Repost & follow Chetan Sagar for no-fluff lessons on UX and bouncing back stronger.

🧠 “So, tell me about a time you improved a user experience…” If you’re preparing for UI/UX interviews, you’ve probably heard questions like: • “What’s the difference between UI and UX?” • “How do you handle design criticism?” • “Describe your user research process.” • “What metrics do you track to measure UX success?” • “Which design tools do you use—and why?” The truth? 🎯 These interviews aren’t just about your portfolio—they’re about your thinking process. I recently reviewed a comprehensive collection of UI/UX interview questions (see PDF above ☝), and it reminded me of how crucial it is to go beyond visual design. ✅ Can you talk through your design decisions? ✅ Can you back your ideas with data or testing? ✅ Can you show that you’ve designed for real people—not just screens? ✨ Pro tip: Practice answering these questions out loud. Turn each answer into a mini story—problem, approach, solution, outcome. Design isn’t just about how it looks or works—it’s also about how you communicate it to a team, a stakeholder, or a hiring manager. 💬 What’s the trickiest UX interview question you’ve been asked? #UXDesign #UIDesign #DesignInterviews #InterviewQuestions #UXCareer #PortfolioTips #UXThinking #DesignStrategy #ProductDesign #CareerInUX #UXJobs

The design thinking process starts with empathizing, where UX designers deeply understand users’ thoughts, emotions, and experiences without bias. This helps create products that solve real problems and provide meaningful experiences.   Methods for Empathizing with Users: • Interviews   • Questionnaires/Surveys : Quick insights from multiple users • In-person Interviews : Observe body language & emotions   • Phone Interviews : Convenient & accessible   • Video Interviews : A balance between in-person and phone • Empathy Maps A tool to organize user insights by answering:   • Who are the users?   • What do they say about their experience?   • What do they think about it?   • What do they do before, during, and after?   • How do they feel about it?  • User Personas   • Fictional characters representing real user groups.   • Help designers remember key user insights.   • Support design decisions with realistic user stories.

Most portfolios get excluded after less than a minute of cursory screening. Not because the work is bad but because it doesn’t speak the right language. I see it happen again and again: Designers pour months into building stunning case studies that don’t seem to land them interviews. Only 1 in 10 portfolios make it past the initial screen. And the work isn’t the problem. When I helped a fintech startup hire their first staff designer, we went through literal dozens of portfolios. Only two candidates got interviews. It wasn’t because they had flashy visuals—it was how they tied their work to tangible outcomes. Think about how a hiring manager actually skims: 0–15s → Homepage scan: “Any business value here?” 15–35s → Work grid: “Do they solve real problems?” 35–55s → First case study: “Where’s the measurable impact?” If they don’t find what they’re looking for by T-minus 56s, then you’re out. This is where most designers get tripped up: → They lead with process instead of problems → They blur their role instead of showing specific contributions → They use design language (“better UX”) instead of business language (“increased retention 34%”) The designers who break through are the most bilingual—able to move easily between user pain points and business results. That’s the difference between being seen as “just another designer” and being someone worth interviewing. So the next time you’re updating your portfolio, try flipping the script: 1️⃣ Frame the business problem before your process. 2️⃣ Make your role crystal clear. 3️⃣ Translate design outcomes into metrics that matter to stakeholders. It’s not about dumbing down your work. It’s about making sure your work actually gets seen. 💡 Want this as a file you can reference later? Drop “PORTFOLIO” in the comments. Remember: Invisible work doesn’t get hired. #uxdesign #uxcareers #designleadership ⸻ 👋🏼 Hi, I’m Dane—your source for UX and career tips. ❤️ Was this helpful? A 👍🏼 would be thuper kewl. 🔄 Share to help others (or for easy access later). ➕ Follow for more like this in your feed every day.

13 steps to present case studies like top UX designers! (And land your dream job.) Most designers think: “If my portfolio looks good, I’ll get hired.” But the truth is: Portfolios alone don’t seal the deal. What really matters in interviews is: - Storytelling - Clarity - And showing your impact. In 2025… Hiring managers aren’t impressed by “pretty screens.” They want to see how you: Think Solve problems And adapt in real situations. This carousel breaks it down visually: ✅ Why you should customize your story for every company. ✅ Why results and impact speak louder than aesthetics. ✅ Why practicing and engaging the room is a game-changer. No fluff. Just a proven playbook to nail your next interview. Swipe through. You’ll rethink. You’ll apply. ♻️ Repost this if you know a designer who needs this before their next interview!

We’ve just finished a redesign of the Careers page at Trilateral Research, and the results speak for themselves. The focus was simple, think about the user first. On the old page, vacancies section sat right at the bottom of the page. We moved them up to the top where people expect to find them. We also introduced a talent pool section, making it clear that even if the role someone is looking for isn’t advertised, they can still send us their CV.   Since the change, we’ve seen CVs jump from two or three a week to five or six every day.   It shows how much impact small shifts in UI, UX, and clear CTAs can have. Sometimes it’s not about big overhauls, but about making the right tweaks that guide users naturally.   This was very much a team effort, and it’s great to see the difference it’s already making. https://lnkd.in/evcG_9xE #UXDesign #TeamWork #Careers

🚨 To every designer who’s mastered the tools but keeps failing UX interviews, this might be a boon for you. You’ve built pixel-perfect screens. You’ve recreated popular apps. You’ve showcased your finesse with design software. But here’s the hard truth: 📉 If your portfolio is filled with look-alike redesigns and imaginary flows, you're not showing what UX hiring managers actually care about. They are not looking for tool proficiency. They are looking for strategic thinking, user empathy, and measurable impact. 💡 UX is not about beautifying interfaces. It is about solving real problems for real people with clarity, logic, and outcomes. If you are stuck in the loop of rejection, it is not your talent which is lacking. It is your portfolio narrative. I have helped designers shift from "visual decorators" to "UX strategists" by guiding them through live, outcome-driven projects that reflect true UX maturity. 📩 Message me if you are ready to: ✅ Work on a real use-case with real constraints ✅ Build a portfolio that speaks business, not just aesthetics ✅ Finally crack the UX interview wall Let’s stop designing for applause. Let’s start designing for impact. 🔁 Share this with someone who’s ready to level up. #UXJobs #UXPortfolio #UXMentorship #LiveProjects #UXInterviews

One of the hardest truths in UX research is this: even the most careful researcher brings bias into the room. The way we phrase a question, the order we ask it in, even the emphasis in our tone—these subtle cues can shape the answers we receive. Suddenly, the interview stops being about the user’s truth and starts echoing our own assumptions back to us. I call this the “interview echo chamber.” As practitioners, our responsibility isn’t just to ask questions, but to constantly question ourselves. ❓ Am I steering this conversation without realizing it? ❓ Are my words shaping the insights I claim to uncover? ❓ What assumptions am I carrying in, unseen? Methods and tools will continue to evolve—but the discipline of self-awareness is timeless. Without it, our research risks becoming validation, not discovery. The more we recognize this, the better we become at designing for what users actually need—rather than what we subconsciously expect to hear. 👉 How do you keep yourself in check when running user interviews? #UXResearch #DesignLeadership #ObjectOrientedUX #DesignStrategy

Empathy and Psychological Safety in UX Interviews In UX research, it’s not only what we ask that matters, but how we listen. When participants feel safe, they share more — and more honestly. The researcher acts a bit like a therapist in session: showing genuine empathy, suspending judgment, and giving thoughts time to form. The tone we set changes the depth of disclosure: a hint of impatience or skepticism can make a person close up; a warm cadence and respect for pauses lowers tension and invites the full story. In a corporate setting, trust pays off quickly. Interviewing an employee who’s testing a new platform might start with small talk about a typical workday and a clear invitation: there are no “right” or “wrong” answers here. Open prompts — “Tell me what happened when you first tried this feature?” — plus verbal nods and attentive silence signal safety. In a non‑judgmental space, people admit to difficulties they would hide in front of management. That’s where the real insight lives — whether the context is EdTech or FinTech. Checklist: Building Trust & Psychological Safety
in UX Interviews: https://lnkd.in/dg5yrvia #UXResearch #UserExperience #EmpathyInDesign #HumanCenteredDesign #DesignResearch

Had an interview recently for a Product Designer role - Telephonic round ✅ - I interview ✅ - Chat with a senior designer ✅ So far, normal. Then came the task: “Create a full screen — research, wireframe, and high-fidelity UI — but… do it completely through AI. Don’t design it yourself. Just prompts.” Strange? Sure. But here’s the kicker: Their feedback after the task → “I should’ve been able to get the designs ready in 1–2 prompts.” At that point I legit went back to double-check the JD. -Was this a Product Designer role… or a Prompt Engineer with Figma access? I left that interview a little shook. Because if design becomes “see how fast you can wrangle AI in 2 prompts,” what happens to craft, iteration, and critical thinking? Curious- what’s your take? Are we redefining “design”… or just confusing job titles? #UXDesign #ProductDesign #AI #DesignThinking #FutureOfWork