What an interesting six months it’s been
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, I’ve worked from home for more than 100 days in a row.
And during this time, videoconferences have sometimes wreaked havoc on my sanity. Does that sound familiar?
Here’s what I did about it and how you can control your own meeting madness.
All with a meeting manifesto.
Approaching exhaustion
When the shelter-in-place order came down in March, my workdays were immediately filled with hours of videoconferences.
During the first month, all those videoconferences took their physical and mental tolls on me. By the end of a meeting-filled day, I was racked with anxiety (over all the…
A picture is worth a thousand UX words.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words.
That holds true for words in UX writing, too!
Yes, if you’re a UX writer, your expertise is words. But you work in a visual medium. Customers will see your words in the context of a UI design, not as lines of text on a blank screen.
Why mock up words?
I’m not suggesting that you always mock up your UX writing. But there are times when a mockup of your work can help you collaborate better with your partners.
A few reasons to mock up your…
It’s time to pull up a chair.
Do you sometimes feel a little invisible as a UX writer? Like you don’t have a seat at the table?
Getting a seat at the table means two things to me:
- Being seen and treated as an essential member of the project team
- Feeling empowered to make UX writing decisions for the project
Here are some tips on how to raise your visibility (and gain more recognition) for the work you do!
Tip 1: Explain what you do
You might work with someone who has never heard of a UX writer. …
When user testing isn’t an option
It happened last year, when I was interviewing for a UX writing position.
After I presented a writing sample in front of a room of people, the sole researcher in the group asked, “Did you test your copy in front of users?”
I winced. No, I didn’t, I had to admit. It would have been great to have worked with a researcher to do some testing, I added, but we didn’t have time for it.
When you can’t test your content in front of real users, does that mean it’s not valuable? Not at all.
Here are several ways you…
With feedback from the Dropbox team
A little intro
Back in August 2017, I was a content designer at Intuit. I wasn’t unhappy, just a little restless.
I started looking for other UX writing jobs. I ended up interviewing with a handful of companies. And in the end, I happily accepted a UX Writer position at Dropbox in San Francisco.
Here are the tips I learned along the way, as well as some feedback from the team that hired me.
The basic process
Applying for a UX writing job usually involves these steps:
- Prepare your resume and portfolio
- Find a job
- Apply for the job
- Complete a writing exercise
- Present your portfolio
- …
Jennie Tan
UX Writer @dropbox. I craft words that help people get things done. Also #TheOffice superfan and breakfast burrito lover.
