My Why

Hello and welcome to Dev Diaries!

I created this blog as a space to share my thoughts, insights, and journey in tech—publicly. Pivoting in tech is hard, especially when you wear many hats. People often don’t see you as an expert in any one thing, which makes it easy to be overlooked. I’ve experienced that firsthand.

There isn’t always a clear space to showcase what I’m learning in real time, so I’m making one. My goal with Dev Diaries is to learn out loud, documenting my progress, refining my thinking, and giving recruiters and tech professionals a glimpse into how I approach problems, design, and development.

But this isn’t just a professional journal. I want to explore the intersection of design, development, and problem-solving, sharing insights that might help others navigating similar paths.

I hope you enjoy taking a peek into my brain—but first, let me tell you how I even got here.

A Bit About My Background

I’m a self-taught web developer who initially started in front-end development because I wanted to build beautiful, dynamic designs. However, I didn’t realize at the time that design itself was a separate discipline that I could fully explore.

In college, I studied sociology because I was fascinated by human behavior—why people do what they do. Financial hardships forced me to drop out, but looking back, I realize I was already searching for something deeply connected to user-centered design.

Growing up, I was always creative. I envied my brother, who could draw effortlessly, while I found myself more drawn to patterns, problem-solving, and reinventing things in my own way. When I started web development, I focused on functionality and aesthetics, but I didn’t yet have the language to describe what I was naturally drawn to—UX design.

How I Fell into UX Design

For years, I put design and development on the back burner. My role in support engineering kept me focused on troubleshooting and problem-solving, but over time, I started noticing patterns in how users interacted with software. I found myself constantly asking:

• Why do users struggle with this feature?

• How could this workflow be improved?

At the time, I wasn’t thinking about design—I was just trying to make things work better. But then, in early 2024, I lost my job. Suddenly, I had to figure out my next step.

I started freelancing out of necessity, taking on web development projects to stay afloat. That’s when I unknowingly stumbled into UX design. I naively asked clients, "Do you already have a design?"—not realizing that I was naturally taking on design work without formally calling myself a designer.

It wasn’t until I took a Udemy course on freelance design that I was introduced to Figma and Webflow—two tools that changed everything for me. Suddenly, I saw the connection between design and development, and how good design enhances functionality and improves user experience. My background in coding helped me implement designs effectively, but I wanted to understand design on a deeper level.

Why I’m Taking UX Seriously Now

Losing my job was a major turning point. It gave me the space to reassess what I truly enjoy in tech. That’s when I realized that UX design perfectly blends everything I love:

✔️ The psychology behind why people do what they do
✔️ Creativity and visual storytelling
✔️ Problem-solving through structured, user-centered design

Freelancing helped me discover my passion for UX, but now, I want to take it further. I’ve decided to fully commit to this career path. My first step is earning a UX certification, and I’m starting with the Google UX Design Certificate.

I want to document the entire journey - what I’m learning, my insights, and how it all connects to my experience in front-end development and support engineering.

What You Can Expect from This Blog

This blog won’t just be about UX design—it will cover my full journey in tech. I'll be covering:

• UX Design – My certification journey, design critiques, case studies, and lessons learned

• Front-End Development – Coding projects, UI components, and technical explorations

• Support Engineering & Customer Experience – Insights from my years in support and how it connects to UX

• Freelancing & Career Growth – Lessons from navigating job loss, freelancing, and building a sustainable career

I don’t have it all figured out yet, but that’s the point—this blog is my open diary, a space to track my progress, refine my skills, and hopefully connect with others on a similar path.

If you're someone who loves tech, design, or just figuring things out along the way, I’d love for you to follow along.

Let’s build, learn, and grow together.