Hi Steemit!

Hello Steemit community!

First, I have to thank my friend @robrigo for introducing me to Steemit. He is truly an amazing ambassador for Steemit, online and off. I’m also thankful that my husband @rahulyadav has joined up because it’s given me the momentum to start posting! Now we can settle in for some couple writing sessions (aww). These two don’t know it yet, but I’m counting on them to teach me more about cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.

I’m excited to join Steemit because it seems like radical concept in the world of content creation. In the past, I’ve tried my hand at blogging and am currently an avid Instagramer. Steemit seems like a better platform than the blogging platforms I’ve used in the past since it facilitates compensation for content. What a great idea! As a user experience (UX) designer, I’m curious to see how this platform will evolve (onboarding, user interactions, etc.).

This photo is from the recent Movement music festival in Detroit and features the building I work in and a rainbow.

A little more about me…

As I mentioned, I’m a UX designer. Currently, I’m working at General Motors and living in the great city of Detroit. My day job mostly revolves around designing mobile apps. My journey as a designer, however, has been somewhat untraditional. I grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, a town that has just enough diversity and cultural events to leave me wanting more. I’m fortunate to have parents who supported my desire to pursue something in the world of design, even though it wasn’t necessarily their dream (they, as typical Chinese parents, would have preferred that I pursued medicine, law, or business). With their support, I was able to move to NYC and study at Parsons School of Design. I wanted to be a fashion designer. Cue bright lights and runway music. After some internships and classes though, I realized the world of fashion was not for me. (More on this later.)

I tried other areas of design by interning at a brand consultancy and then an event design and production company, but this was an impressionable time for me and my idealism called me to something else. One milestone in my design journey was going to the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum and seeing an exhibit called “Design for the 90%.” This, along with other books and courses, opened my eyes to the power of design as something that can impact lives. The exhibit featured products and designers that aimed to help the other 90% of the world improve their standard of living, whether is was through better cooking stoves or water pumps or solar powered lights. At the same time, I got into a class that went to Guatemala to help a women’s weaving association with their weaving and beading business. These experiences led me to do the unexpected. I applied and was accepted into the Peace Corps. After graduation, I became (to the best of my knowledge), the first Parsons graduate to join the Peace Corps. My time in the Philippines turned out much different than I expected, but I learned a lot and plan to share more about this two year adventure later.

After some additional adventures, including a boat ride that circumnavigated the world and allowed me to travel to 14 countries, I came back to the US wondering what I should do next. I applied to a ton of jobs. A couple gigs and a desk job at a solar company later, I realized my true passion is design and I needed a way to get back into this field. This fast forwards to my time in grad school and all the craziness that came soon after. Many life changing and great things later, such as meeting my husband, here we are today.

Future Posts

I’ve alluded to topics I’d like to touch on more in future posts (Peace Corps and Peace Boat adventures, being a designer, travel). I hope my travel posts won’t be just another travel post in what I’m sure is a saturated area. I’d like to talk more about Detroit and shed light on what it’s really like living here. I’m also into cooking/food and drink experiences, moving towards a minimalist lifestyle, and sustainable living.

@rahulyadav and I chomping down on some scrumptious stroopwafel in the Netherlands

Thanks for reading and let’s create a great community together!