I'm Alex,
nice to meet you.
I'm a culinary explorer that currently has 72 places bookmarked on Yelp, a home-cook who questions if I need all 6 spices in a recipe, and a video game nerd optimizes strategies.
I search to discover why things work the way they do. Why use paprika in a recipe as opposed chili powder, what message do authors have in telling stories, and what problems are people having that we aren't solving for?
How I got started in user experience
Growing up with a brother with physical limitations, it was apparent to me early on that frustrating experiences were everywhere.
Simple small details like the lack of ramps, how tough it was to open a door, or how annoying just typing could be showed me that friction was everywhere.
As a designer, I set out to make experiences less frustrating for users like my brother.
My Process
To me, design is a story.
Our protagonist is our user and we have to dive into their worlds to understand what is the main conflict that they have.
For designers working as supporting characters, it's our job as a designer to help empower our protagonists to be able to resolve their problems.
Through the process, we have to figure out if we're helping users solve the right problem, diverge first then converge on solutions, and iterate our test from what we learn from our protagonists until we ultimately help them reach a happier end.
What I'm curious about currently
Material Design and applying it to Mobile Devices
Adapting to cooking without relying on recipes and applying that thought process to my own design
Productivity and breaking challenging tasks into small actions that can be tackled within 5 minutes
Some of my favorite spots to eat at
Hakata Ramen Shin-Sen-Gumi
Kang Ho Dong Baekjeong (KBBQ)
Lawry's
Pasadena Sandwich Company
Tea Master Matcha Cafe (Awesome Green Tea Soft Serve!)