Elevate Your UX Career

How Cultural Awareness Can Transform Your UX Career (with Gladys Rosa Mendoza)

What separates a good UX designer from a truly impactful one? It’s not just your wireframes or research methods. It’s your ability to understand people on a deeper, cultural level. In this episode of Elevate Your UX Career, host Brittany Cates sits down with Gladys Rosa Mendoza, a senior experience researcher and strategist whose career has spanned powerhouse brands like Meta and Inner World. Gladys shares her inspiring journey from visual designer to UX research leader, revealing how empathy, storytelling, and cultural awareness have shaped her approach to human-centered design. You’ll learn: ✅ How to build cultural awareness into your UX research and design process ✅ Why trust and psychological safety are essential for team success ✅ How to create immersive research presentations that drive action ✅ The evolving role of UX research in the age of AI ✅ What mid-level UX professionals can do right now to grow their influence and impact If you’re ready to become a more thoughtful, culturally aware, and strategic UX professional, this episode will show you how to elevate both your craft and your leadership. 💡 Don’t forget to subscribe to Brittany’s newsletter for more career tools, personal stories, and UX leadership insights: brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list [https://brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list] 🧐 Want to make your UX portfolio stand out? Sign up for a personalized review here: https://topmate.io/brittany_cates [https://topmate.io/brittany_cates]

How to Stay Relevant in UX, Even As the Industry Keeps Changing

If you’ve been feeling the pressure to “keep up” in a field that moves faster than ever, this episode is going to feel like a deep exhale. We’re breaking down what actually keeps you relevant as a mid-career UX designer — and spoiler: it’s not mastering every new tool, trend, or AI feature that drops. It’s learning how to stay adaptable, strategic, and visible… even when the industry shifts under your feet. In this episode, you’ll learn: * The timeless UX skills that never go out of style * How to work with AI instead of feeling threatened by it * Why business understanding is your secret weapon * How to make your value visible inside and outside your company * The tiny actions that compound into massive career growth By the end, you’re going to walk away with clarity, confidence, and a plan for becoming the kind of designer who’s impossible to overlook — no matter how fast things change. 💡 Don’t forget to subscribe to Brittany’s newsletter for more career tools, personal stories, and UX leadership insights: brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list [https://brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list] 🧐 Want to make your UX portfolio stand out? Sign up for a personalized review here: https://topmate.io/brittany_cates [https://topmate.io/brittany_cates]

How to Build a UX Career That Fits Your Life (with Steven Steiner)

Many designers hit a point where growth feels out of reach. But what if the key isn’t working harder… it’s finding alignment? In this episode of Elevate Your UX Career, host Brittany Cates sits down with Steven Steiner, a seasoned UX designer and career coach based in San Francisco, to talk about how to build a UX career that fits your life, not just your résumé. Steven shares lessons from his journey from Design Director to Career Coach, revealing how to overcome career stagnation, create a clear career strategy, and stand out in a competitive UX job market. You’ll learn: - How to align your career goals with your personal values - The right way to use industry language on your résumé - Why AI is transforming UX job searches — and how to adapt - Practical networking strategies to grow your influence and opportunities If you’re a mid-career UX designer ready to gain clarity, confidence, and momentum, this episode will give you the roadmap you need. 💡 Don’t forget to subscribe to Brittany’s newsletter for more career tools, personal stories, and UX leadership insights: brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list [https://brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list] 🧐 Want to make your UX portfolio stand out? Sign up for a personalized review here: https://topmate.io/brittany_cates [https://topmate.io/brittany_cates]

Finding Gratitude in Your UX Career (Even When It's Hard)

This week, as we head into Thanksgiving, we’re hitting pause on the chaos, the burnout, and the career frustrations, and focusing on gratitude in UX. Even in a challenging job market, with tight deadlines, difficult stakeholders, and moments when it feels like your work goes unnoticed, there’s still so much to appreciate about being a UX designer. In this episode, you’ll discover: 🍂 How to find gratitude in the work you get to do 🍂 Why even the hard growth moments are worth appreciating 🍂 The power of community and connection with other designers By the end of this episode, you’ll have a fresh perspective and a simple challenge to reflect on what’s meaningful in your career—and how practicing gratitude can actually boost your confidence, resilience, and impact as a UX designer. 🎧 Tune in, take a deep breath, and let yourself feel grateful for the work you do and the difference you make. 💡 Don’t forget to subscribe to Brittany’s newsletter for more career tools, personal stories, and UX leadership insights: brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list [https://brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list] 🧐 Want to make your UX portfolio stand out? Sign up for a personalized review here: https://topmate.io/brittany_cates [https://topmate.io/brittany_cates]

Soft Skills Every UX Designer Needs (That No One Talks About)

You’ve probably spent a ton of time sharpening your UX skills, like mastering Figma, running usability tests, refining your design process. But here’s the truth: the skills that will really move your career forward aren’t always the ones in your portfolio. In this episode, we’re talking about the soft skills every UX designer needs but that no one’s really talking about. These are the skills that help you communicate your ideas with confidence, build trust with your team, and handle the emotional ups and downs that come with the job. You’ll learn: ✨ Why empathy for your teammates is just as important as empathy for your users ✨ How to communicate your design decisions so people actually listen ✨ How to manage your energy and emotions so you don’t burn out By the end of this episode, you’ll walk away knowing exactly which skill to start strengthening and how to apply it right away to elevate your influence and impact as a designer. 🎧 Tune in and get ready to show up as the kind of designer people love to work with. 💡 Don’t forget to subscribe to Brittany’s newsletter for more career tools, personal stories, and UX leadership insights: brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list [https://brittanycatesco.systeme.io/ux-email-list] 🧐 Want to make your UX portfolio stand out? Sign up for a personalized review here: https://topmate.io/brittany_cates [https://topmate.io/brittany_cates]