I have been getting a lot of questions lately about what makes a good user experience designer. Unfortunately, the phrase “user experience” is gaining momentum but not a lot of clarity. We used to be called information architects, then usability specialists, and now user experience designers and customer experience designers.

While searching how best to answer clients and friends about the question of UX, I happened upon Whitney Hess’ blog. I believe Whitney makes a good point that one way to understand what a good UXer is, means to have a clearer picture of what a good UXer is not. See her detailed post on these points below:

You’re not a good UXer if you…

  1. Don’t talk to users
  2. Can’t identify your target audience
  3. Don’t define the problem before trying to solve it
  4. Can’t articulate your users’ goals
  5. Design in a vacuum
  6. Make design decisions based on personal preferences
  7. Don’t consider the business objectives
  8. Don’t use UX methodologies
  9. Don’t design for conditions and edge cases
  10. Only think about the interface

I hope this helps remove some of the fuzzy thinking and mystique behind a good UXer. Enjoy!

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