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The 90-Second Hack That Got Me Hired (Even When 200+ Other UX Designers Didn’t)
Here’s what no one tells you about landing a UX job right now: Your portfolio isn’t the problem. Your first 90 seconds are.
I know this because I’ve been on both sides of this brutal equation. I’ve sat in my car before interviews, hands shaking, rehearsing case studies I could recite in my sleep. And I’ve also been the one reviewing portfolios, watching talented designers fumble away their chances before they even opened their laptops.
The uncomfortable truth? Nowadays, technical skills are table stakes. Everyone has them or can learn. What separates who gets hired from who gets ghosted happens in those opening moments — before you say a single word about your design process.
Why Everything You’ve Been Told About Interviews Is Wrong in a Saturated Job Market
Let me paint you a picture that might feel familiar:
You’ve spent weeks perfecting your portfolio. Your case studies are polished to perfection. You’ve memorized every UX principle, practiced explaining your process, and researched the company until you could write their mission statement yourself.
