Vol. 006 - How do you manage your time when applying for jobs?

Hi designers,

Welcome to Vol. 006 of the UX Jetpack Newsletter, where I share job searching tips weekly. This week we are talking about:

1. How do you manage your time when applying for jobs?
2. How do you showcase your NDA projects in your portfolio?
3. 5 Amazing Product Designer Portfolios
4. What's the difference between Information Architecture and Sitemaps?

If you enjoy those tips, please consider sharing them with your friends. They can sign up at https://uxjetpack.com/newsletter

How do you manage your time when applying for jobs?

To land a job in today's job market, it's easy to feel overwhelmed and unsure where to start. Tons of things you need to work on:

📂 Portfolio

📝 Resume

🤝 Networking

🗣 Interview prep

🖥️ Portfolio presentation

📩 Applying to job postings

Now, let me give you some tips to help you navigate the job-hunting journey:

1. Don't wait for perfection! You don't need a flawless portfolio or resume to start applying. Get them out there and gradually improve them along the way.
2. Building connections is key, but remember, Rome wasn't built in a day. It takes time to see results, so be patient and don't get discouraged if you don't get immediate feedback.
3. Practice makes perfect when it comes to interviewing prep. Do as many mock-up interviews as possible with your friends or other designers. Feedback helps you improve.
4. Don't let the workload consume you. Spread it out! Apply to jobs on Mondays and Tuesdays, do coffee chats on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and dedicate Fridays to interview prep. This way, you balance it all and avoid burnout.

Keep this in mind: job searching in today's market is tough. It typically takes 6 months to a year to land a job. So, don't rush it or feel the need to conquer everything overnight.

How do you showcase your NDA projects in your portfolio?

People usually password-protect their NDA projects; however, this can add another layer of friction and there's a possibility of the password getting leaked. So here are a couple of ways you can effectively showcase your NDA projects:

✨ Confirm with your manager what you can showcase There's a chance that you can actually show something vs. nothing at all. Make sure you clarify this beforehand.

✨ Focus on high-level items with minimal visuals You can discuss - your role - team structure - high-level process - final deliverables - the learning and challenges So you don't reveal any sensitive information while still shining some light on your process.

✨ White label your designs to protect sensitive information Replace any real data or sensitive labels with dummy data or fake logos. This way, people can still see your design without any sensitive information being leaked.

✨ Prepare a detailed case study to present during the interview If the hiring manager is interested, you can share the detailed case study before the actual portfolio presentation.

If you have to password-protect your projects, share the password with the recruiter and hiring manager when applying. Make sure they have access to the password so that they can view your work.

5 Amazing Product Designer Portfolios

If you are working on your portfolios right now and need some inspiration, here are 5 amazing UX design portfolios.

Sang Jun Lee https://www.sangjunlee.me/

Oishee Sen https://www.oishee.io/

Frances Tung https://www.francestung.com/

Simon Pan https://simonpan.com/

Gabi Dumaguin https://gabrianna.us/

And there are even more great examples on https://www.bestfolios.com/home and https://www.casestudy.club/

Hopefully those can help you design your own portfolio.

What's the difference between Information Architecture and Sitemaps?

Samhita Tankala from NN/g provides an excellent summary of the distinctions between information architecture and sitemaps.

In a nutshell, information architecture is a series of practices that involve planning, organizing, and maintaining your website's content. On the other hand, a sitemap visually presents the structure of your content.

Check out more details here: https://www.nngroup.com/articles/information-architecture-sitemaps/