Career Strategy Podcast
How to design, market, and sell yourself in your UX career
Hosted by Sarah Doody, a user researcher and product designer with 20+ years in UX, and founder of Career Strategy Lab. She interviews UX recruiters, hiring managers and UX people who got hired, and shares what works in today's UX job search. New episode every Monday.
New every Monday
The latest episode
How to tailor your UX resume for every job (and why keyword stuffing backfires)
To tailor your UX resume for every job, read the job description, spot the skills, software and methodologies it repeats, and adjust a few parts of your resume to match.
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UX resume myths about the ATS, with Workday UX director and hiring manager Patrick Neeman
How UX Recruiters Use AI in Hiring (and risks of UX candidates using AI)
What a Shopify design recruiter looks for in a senior UX portfolio
UX Hiring Insights: Steve Durgin, From Candidate to Hiring Manager, on Trust & Networking
UX Hiring Insights: Marc Aquino, Senior Product Design Manager at Deel
Should your UX portfolio approach change based on your role or seniority?
UX Hiring Insights: Sylvain Maretto, Director of Design, on Why AI Hasn’t Taken Over Hiring and What He Looks for in UX Portfolios
UX Portfolio Myth: Your personality is not what UX recruiters want in your portfolio (Myth 5 / 5)
Most listened
Listener favorites
UX Portfolio Myth: Your UX portfolio does not need to be a website (Myth 2 / 5)
From Market Research to UX: How Kellyn Got Hired as a Lead UX Researcher with a 40% Salary Increase
The Optimal UX Portfolio Format: The pros and cons of a portfolio website vs a presentation
Laura Landed a Principal Product Designer Role in 47 Days Without Applying and Only 1 Project in Her UX Portfolio
No, you don’t need 3 – 5 projects in your UX portfolio to apply for a job
Avoid this mistake when writing your LinkedIn profile headline
Rated 5.0 on Apple Podcasts
Reviews from our listeners
Tangible and actionable advice
“As a career switcher, I love the advice and strategies to help my career journey. The podcast helps me re-think and re-work my resume, profile, and portfolio to better showcase my skills and experience. Thank you for your clear approach.”
Clear, practical strategy that works
“The Career Strategy Podcast delivers sharp, actionable guidance for navigating modern design careers. No fluff. ... It played a direct role in my decision to join Career Strategy Lab.”
Lots of career (and life) takeaways
“The sense of perspective and useful strategies that Sarah shares are why I look forward to each new episode. The podcast consistently provides encouraging and down-to-earth insights for cultivating a UX career. Worth checking out!”
Hired stories
UX and product people who got hired, in their own words.
Natalie got hired for a Director level UX role (and now she’s the one hiring for UX roles)
How a Sr UX Researcher got hired at Amazon after a layoff and a 2-year job search
How Marcus Got Hired as a UX Researcher After Six Months of Rejection
How Manny got hired as a Senior UX Designer at Fidelity in 77 days
How Jane Got Hired As A Principal Product Researcher After Emigrating To The USA With No Professional Network
How Erica Got Hired as a UX Officer at WK Kellogg Foundation After a CDC Layoff
How a UX Specialist With 20+ Years Experience Got Hired After A Layoff With Only 1 Project In His UX Portfolio
From UX Layoff to Leadership: How Duncan got hired as a Global Head of UX after a restructure
Hiring manager interviews
What the people hiring for UX roles look for.
UX resume myths about the ATS, with Workday UX director and hiring manager Patrick Neeman
How UX Recruiters Use AI in Hiring (and risks of UX candidates using AI)
What a Shopify design recruiter looks for in a senior UX portfolio
UX Hiring Insights: Steve Durgin, From Candidate to Hiring Manager, on Trust & Networking
UX Hiring Insights: Marc Aquino, Senior Product Design Manager at Deel
UX Hiring Insights: Sylvain Maretto, Director of Design, on Why AI Hasn’t Taken Over Hiring and What He Looks for in UX Portfolios
UX Hiring Insights: Eric Shumake on Healthcare UX, Specializing, & Thinking of Your Career as Gigs
UX Hiring Insights: Jeni Bible, UX Manager at Home Depot, on How She Got Hired, What She Looks for in Candidates, & Presenting UX Case Studies
Every episode, newest first
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- 199How to tailor your UX resume for every job (and why keyword stuffing backfires)NOV 2, 2026
- 198UX resume myths about the ATS, with Workday UX director and hiring manager Patrick NeemanOCT 26, 2026
- 197How UX Recruiters Use AI in Hiring (and risks of UX candidates using AI)OCT 19, 2026
- 196What a Shopify design recruiter looks for in a senior UX portfolioOCT 12, 2026
- 195UX Hiring Insights: Steve Durgin, From Candidate to Hiring Manager, on Trust & NetworkingOCT 5, 2026
- 194UX Hiring Insights: Marc Aquino, Senior Product Design Manager at DeelSEP 28, 2026
- 193Should your UX portfolio approach change based on your role or seniority?SEP 21, 2026
- 192UX Hiring Insights: Sylvain Maretto, Director of Design, on Why AI Hasn’t Taken Over Hiring and What He Looks for in UX PortfoliosSEP 14, 2026
- 191UX Portfolio Myth: Your personality is not what UX recruiters want in your portfolio (Myth 5 / 5)SEP 7, 2026
- 190UX Portfolio Myth: You can’t show projects that didn’t launch (Myth 4 / 5)AUG 31, 2026
- 189UX Portfolio Myth: Your case studies don’t need to show the full UX process (Myth 3 / 5)AUG 24, 2026
- 188UX Portfolio Myth: Your UX portfolio does not need to be a website (Myth 2 / 5)AUG 17, 2026
- 187UX Portfolio Myth: You don’t need 3 – 5 projects in your UX portfolio (Myth 1 / 5)AUG 10, 2026
- 186Why Positioning Is The Most Underrated Skill in the AI Era of UXAUG 3, 2026
- 185The one thing you can’t DIY in your UX job searchJUL 27, 2026
- 184Natalie got hired for a Director level UX role (and now she’s the one hiring for UX roles)JUL 20, 2026
- 183 3 Things I’d Do If I Was Laid Off From a UX Role TodayJUL 13, 2026
- 182Get Hired Faster in UX: Take A Tour of Career Strategy LabJUL 6, 2026
- 181How UX People Are Leveraging Relationships to Get Hired With the Help of Career Strategy LabJUN 29, 2026
- 180UX Hiring Insights: Eric Shumake on Healthcare UX, Specializing, & Thinking of Your Career as GigsJUN 22, 2026
- 179Feel Burnt Out & Invisible in Your UX Job Search? How Emmanuel Re-Entered the UX Job Market After a Career BreakJUN 15, 2026
- 178Stop Mass Applying: How Carlos Got Hired in UX and Promoted to Senior Product DesignerJUN 8, 2026
- 177Getting Ghosted in Your UX Job Search? You’re Not Invisible — You’re UnpositionedJUN 1, 2026
- 176Stuck at the Final Round of UX Interviews? Andrew Re-Did His UX Portfolio and Got 3 Offers (Including Blue Origin)MAY 25, 2026
- 175How to Deal With NDAs When Creating Your UX PortfolioMAY 18, 2026
- 174The Bar to Stand Out As A UX Candidate is Lower Than You ThinkMAY 11, 2026
- 173UX Hiring Insights: Jeni Bible, UX Manager at Home Depot, on How She Got Hired, What She Looks for in Candidates, & Presenting UX Case StudiesMAY 4, 2026
- 172UX Hiring Insights: Alexander Zeh, Head of Product Design at ManyChat, on Building Diverse UX Teams, Scaling Design Teams, and What Makes a Portfolio Stand OutAPR 27, 2026
- 171The 6-Word Post-It Note To Speed Up & Fix Your UX Job SearchAPR 20, 2026
- 170Finding Your UX Niche: Jonathan’s Journey From UX Layoff to UX Executive in Higher EducationAPR 14, 2026
- 1693 Ways to Stop Wasting Time in Your UX Job SearchAPR 6, 2026
- 168UX Hiring Insights: Steph McDonald, UX Design Recruiter at HubSpot, on AI in Hiring, Portfolios & What Gets You HiredMAR 30, 2026
- 167Stop Asking How: Speed Up Your UX Job Search With This One QuestionMAR 23, 2026
- 166UX Hiring Insights Dan Maccarone on Thinking Over Tools & UX Career ReinventionMAR 16, 2026
- 1655 practical time-saving tips for your UX job searchMAR 9, 2026
- 164What is Career Maximalism and Why Caring Too Much About Your Job Can BackfireMAR 2, 2026
- 163What is Career Minimalism and How It Can Quietly Weaken Your CareerFEB 23, 2026
- 162How Erica Got Hired as a UX Officer at WK Kellogg Foundation After a CDC LayoffFEB 16, 2026
- 161UX Hiring Insights: Sarah Doody’s Interview With Design Recruiter Jared Tredly from ShopifyFEB 9, 2026
- 160Why This UX Designer Walked Away After 5 Interview Rounds (And Doesn’t Regret It)FEB 2, 2026
- 1593 Skills UX Professionals Need Most In the Age of AIJAN 26, 2026
- 158From UX Internship to Amazon UX Designer: How Vasudha Got Hired With a Master’s in HCIJAN 19, 2026
- 157UX Hiring Insights: Ben Peck on UX Generalists, Soft Skills, & Standout PortfoliosJAN 12, 2026
- 156From Market Research to UX: How Kellyn Got Hired as a Lead UX Researcher with a 40% Salary IncreaseJAN 5, 2026
- 155UX Hiring Insights: Patrick Neeman on Soft Skills, Strategy & Hiring Red FlagsDEC 29, 2025
- 154How This Senior UX Designer Got Hired After Losing Her Mojo & ConfidenceDEC 22, 2025
- 1535 Things Hired UX People Do That Work In Today’s UX Job MarketDEC 15, 2025
- 152How Steven Built a UX Consultancy After Being Laid Off After 17 Years At The Same CompanyDEC 8, 2025
- 151Want to get hired in UX in Q1 2026? Start With These Q4 Career EssentialsDEC 1, 2025
- 150From Academia to UX: How Ellen Got Hired As A Content Designer at TD BankNOV 24, 2025
- 149Are You Suffering From Stranger Syndrome in Your UX Career or Job Search?NOV 17, 2025
- 148From Lost in UX to Confident Systems Designer: How Phoenix Reclaimed His UX Career IdentityNOV 10, 2025
- 147Are you an invisible genius in your UX career?NOV 3, 2025
- 146How Jonathan Stopped Redesigning His UX Portfolio and Started Getting InterviewsOCT 27, 2025
- 145Escaping UX Career Identity Fog and Why Your Identity Is Your SuperpowerOCT 20, 2025
- 144Finding and Owning Your UX Voice: How Melp Did With Career Strategy LabOCT 13, 2025
- 143UX Hiring Insights: Why It Can Take 12 Weeks to Fill UX Roles (and What to Do About It)OCT 6, 2025
- 142Laura Landed a Principal Product Designer Role in 47 Days Without Applying and Only 1 Project in Her UX PortfolioSEP 29, 2025
- 141Design a UX Portfolio Recruiters Read For More Than 1 Minute SEP 22, 2025
- 140How a UX Researcher & CX Strategist is navigating an international UX job searchSEP 15, 2025
- 139Position yourself as the ideal candidate with this Steve Jobs marketing tip about features vs benefitsSEP 8, 2025
- 138From Recruiter to Product Designer: How Ellie’s taking control of her UX careerSEP 1, 2025
- 137One LinkedIn profile update that landed this UX Designer 5 solid recruiter leads in 24 hoursAUG 25, 2025
- 136How Manny got hired as a Senior UX Designer at Fidelity in 77 daysAUG 18, 2025
- 135How a 30-Year UX veteran is navigating a UX layoff without burnoutAUG 11, 2025
- 134A career break has NOT ruined your career or chances of getting hired, here’s why…AUG 4, 2025
- 133How Terminal Uniqueness In Your Job Search Is Keeping You StuckJUL 28, 2025
- 132How Career Strategy Lab’s AI Tools Help Mid & Senior UXers Get Hired FasterJUL 21, 2025
- 131Why I don’t teach every UX topic and & why my focus is your UX superpowerJUL 14, 2025
- 130From UX Portfolio Rewrites to Hired as a Principal Product Designer: How Steve Owned His Career StoryJUL 7, 2025
- 129How to get hired in UX faster with Peloton inspired UX career coachingJUN 30, 2025
- 128How a 30 year UX veteran went from feeling irrelevant to in control of her careerJUN 23, 2025
- 127The $100K Shift: Why working ‘on’ your career (vs ‘in’ it) changes everythingJUN 16, 2025
- 126From UX Layoff to Leadership: How Duncan got hired as a Global Head of UX after a restructureJUN 9, 2025
- 124Why Sarah Doody’s UX portfolio framework still helps people get hired after 20 yearsMAY 26, 2025
- 123How a 25-Year UX veteran rewrote his career story and reclaimed his confidenceMAY 19, 2025
- 122How Marcus Got Hired as a UX Researcher After Six Months of RejectionMAY 12, 2025
- 121Your UX job search is costing you 5-figures, see how with this job search ROI calculatorMAY 5, 2025
- 120How a Sr UX Researcher got hired at Amazon after a layoff and a 2-year job searchAPR 28, 2025
- 119Why you should research the interviewer before a job interviewAPR 21, 2025
- 1183 things your UX job search has in common with soap operasAPR 14, 2025
- 117Applied to hundreds of UX jobs without success? Consider this your UX job search interventionAPR 7, 2025
- 116How to optimize your resume for the ATS so you can get more UX job interviewsMAR 31, 2025
- 115How this UX Designer escaped UX portfolio burnout and rebuilt his entire UX job search strategyMAR 24, 2025
- 114From Laid Off to Senior UX Designer: How Sarah Landed Her Dream RoleMAR 17, 2025
- 113How a Senior Product Designer got promoted with a 37% increase in total compensationMAR 10, 2025
- 112Emily tripled her freelance UX rate and got a full time UX Writing role tooMAR 3, 2025
- 111Hidden costs of navigating your UX job search aloneFEB 24, 2025
- 110How Jane Got Hired As A Principal Product Researcher After Emigrating To The USA With No Professional NetworkFEB 17, 2025
- 109How UX career coaching cohorts can hold you back and why Career Strategy Lab takes a different approachFEB 10, 2025
- 108Why you’re stuck redesigning your UX resume and how to get out of a career rutFEB 5, 2025
- 107Your UX Career Is a Product: Sarah Doody’s interview on the Awkward Silences podcast by User InterviewsFEB 3, 2025
- 106How Steven Navigated ADD In His UX Job Search and Got Hired As a Design ResearcherJAN 27, 2025
- 105How a UX Specialist With 20+ Years Experience Got Hired After A Layoff With Only 1 Project In His UX PortfolioJAN 20, 2025
- 104The goal of a UX portfolio isn’t to sell the product you worked on, it’s about selling YOUJAN 13, 2025
- 103How Kristin Got Hired As A UX Designer With Only 2 UX Portfolio ProjectsJAN 6, 2025
- 102Navigating Your UX Career in Challenging Times (Sarah Doody’s episode on the Insights Unlocked Podcast)DEC 30, 2024
- 101Creating a Career Roadmap: Sarah Doody’s Episode on the AIGA Design PodcastDEC 23, 2024
- 100How Jaden got hired as a Sr Product Designer after a UX employment gapDEC 16, 2024
- 99How To Stand Out In The UX Job Search FunnelDEC 9, 2024
- 98Why In-Demand UX Professionals Treat Full-Time Roles Like Freelance GigsDEC 2, 2024
- 97Stop Sending Recruiters Cold Emails & Get Them To Reply By Doing This InsteadNOV 25, 2024
- 96Jamie overcame UX job search struggles & got hired as a Sr Product DesignerNOV 18, 2024
- 95Beyond Big Tech UX Jobs: Industries and companies hiring for UX roles in 2025 and beyondNOV 11, 2024
- 93How 2 senior UX professionals got hired (& the UX portfolio “Inverted Pyramid Framework”)OCT 28, 2024
- 92How piecemeal career advice can hold you back in your careerOCT 21, 2024
- 91No, you don’t need 3 – 5 projects in your UX portfolio to apply for a jobOCT 14, 2024
- 90How Career Strategy Lab can pay for itselfOCT 7, 2024
- 89Should you pause your job search until after the election?SEP 30, 2024
- 88Troubleshoot your resume with 11 questions in this resume checklistSEP 23, 2024
- 87Reduce job search overwhelm with a task batching scheduleSEP 16, 2024
- 86No, LinkedIn’s ‘Open To Work’ banner does not make you seem desperateSEP 9, 2024
- 85Q&A about UX portfolio formats, case studies, tailoring your portfolio, & moreSEP 2, 2024
- 844 ways to get people to respond to emails by following up strategicallyAUG 26, 2024
- 83Hired stories from 3 mid & senior UX people recently hired in USA, Canada, and EnglandAUG 19, 2024
- 82Why You Should Always Be Applying: The ABA Rule For Your Job SearchAUG 12, 2024
- 81Job Search Success: Communication skills over qualificationsAUG 5, 2024
- 80How to include numbers on your resume, even if you think you don’t have anyJUL 29, 2024
- 79How to advance your UX or Product career as a mid or senior-level professionalJUL 22, 2024
- 78How to optimize your resume for the Applicant Tracking SystemJUL 15, 2024
- 77The truth about years of experience in your job searchJUL 8, 2024
- 76What to post on LinkedIn to increase your visibility in your job searchJUL 1, 2024
- 75Is Career Strategy Lab a scam or a genuine career booster?JUN 24, 2024
- 74How to handle large UX portfolio projects and include the right level of detailJUN 17, 2024
- 72How to stand out using the AIDA frameworkJUN 3, 2024
- 71How to make time for professional development in your careerMAY 28, 2024
- 70Q&A With Career Strategy Lab Alumni: 2 Product Designers and A Senior UX Designer Who Were Recently HiredMAY 20, 2024
- 699 actionable steps to take after being laid offMAY 13, 2024
- 68How to Write Emails People Actually Respond To: Introducing the GAIN FrameworkMAY 6, 2024
- 66How to build authentic professional relationships with a quarterly engagement planAPR 22, 2024
- 65Why you should stop complaining on LinkedIn and what to do insteadAPR 15, 2024
- 64Interview with Cheryl Platz: UX Portfolios, Storytelling, & Hiring Process InsightsAPR 8, 2024
- 62What is Career Compound Interest and How You Can Leverage It In Your CareerMAR 25, 2024
- 60Create a portfolio that stands out by focusing on your benefits, not features as a candidateMAR 18, 2024
- 58The Optimal UX Portfolio Format: The pros and cons of a portfolio website vs a presentationMAR 11, 2024
- 57A lesson on attention to detail involving Van Halen and M&M candiesMAR 5, 2024
- 56How to describe a career break on your resume and why you should own it (and not be ashamed)FEB 26, 2024
- 55The Ultimate Job Search Guide: A 5-Part Framework, from finding jobs to interviews, to rejection and everything in betweenFEB 19, 2024
- 54How to deal with ghosting in your job searchFEB 12, 2024
- 53How to follow up after a job interview so you can stand outFEB 5, 2024
- 522 questions to overcome career overwhelm and focus on what you can controlJAN 29, 2024
- 51Do a 15-minute annual review of your career with these six questionsJAN 22, 2024
- 49Building a UX Portfolio to Get Hired – Sarah’s guest appearance on the Ironhack PodcastJAN 9, 2024
- 24How to research a company’s culture before you apply for a jobJAN 6, 2024
- 48How to stop applying for hundreds of jobs – Sarah’s guest appearance on the Honest UX PodcastJAN 2, 2024
- 47Designing a UX Career – Sarah Doody’s NNg Podcast InterviewDEC 26, 2023
- 46How a CSL alumni learned to strategically tell her story and land her dream jobDEC 18, 2023
- 45Listen in on a Q&A session with 3 Career Strategy Lab Alumni who recently got hiredDEC 11, 2023
- 44From start up, to laid off, to dream job. Meet CSL Alum, Malavika OakDEC 4, 2023
- 43How commenting and posting on LinkedIn can land you more interviews and opportunitiesNOV 28, 2023
- 18Avoid this mistake when writing your LinkedIn profile headlineNOV 22, 2023
- 163 Questions to help get unstuck in your careerNOV 22, 2023
- 153 ways to deal with burnout in your job searchNOV 22, 2023
- 41A job search hack to help career climbers and switchers get more interviewsNOV 22, 2023
- 42Do hiring managers and recruiters spend six seconds on your resume?NOV 20, 2023
- 40How to vet UX career advice and know who to trustNOV 13, 2023
- 39Career Strategy Q+A with Sarah: Getting started in your career, promotions, and portfolio tipsOCT 26, 2023
- 38Stuck in your career? You don’t need more information, you need more actionOCT 23, 2023
- 4How to find a tech job outside of the tech industry and possibly find better pay, benefits, and balance in work and lifeOCT 21, 2023
- 9Don’t take this popular career advice about how to approach your job searchOCT 21, 2023
- 55 tips from hiring managers and recruiters about your job search and moreOCT 21, 2023
- 3Thinking about investing in your career? Ask yourself these 3 questions firstOCT 21, 2023
- 2The real reason why you don’t get job offers and keep getting overlooked for job opportunitiesOCT 18, 2023
- 6How to make it past the second job interviewOCT 18, 2023
- 14LinkedIn mistakes to avoid & how to optimize your LinkedIn profileOCT 18, 2023
- 1How to build and maintain confidence during your job searchOCT 12, 2023
- 12You got the offer! How to decide whether you should accept a job offer and what to do if it’s notOCT 12, 2023
- 34What to do if a job offer is rescinded, why it happens and how to respondSEP 26, 2023
- 21The number 1 thing you should do before you apply for a jobSEP 25, 2023
- 22Why you should prioritize people over platforms in your job searchSEP 25, 2023
- 23Why your job search is not a numbers game and how this can delay getting hiredSEP 25, 2023
- 25How to deal with rejection in your job searchSEP 25, 2023
- 29It’s a myth that your resume must be one page, here’s why it can hurt your job searchSEP 25, 2023
- 30From laid off to landed a new role; interview with Senior UX Researcher, Katie MillerSEP 25, 2023
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