Benjamin Myklebust
When I graduated high school, my sole focus was to get a degree that would put me in a position to make the most money. I decided a finance degree was the way to go. I had little interest in the topic of finance, and it was far from a passion. Two years into that degree, I felt trapped. I was not doing well in my classes and I wasn’t even excited to be done with school because whatever job I was going to get was just going to be more of the same. My girlfriend at the time (who is now my wife) saw the struggle that I was having and encouraged me to pursue something that I hadn’t even considered before; my interests. Through our conversations, I decided to stop chasing the money and get a degree that would put me in a field that I was actually captivated by. I had always enjoyed learning about graphic design in high school, so that was where I set my sights and I never looked back.
I loved every second of my new degree program. I loved the history of design and art that I was learning and how those influence designers and artists who are creating today, I loved the new skills that I was gaining, I loved learning about the different disciplines of graphic design, and I loved the unlimited potential of the passions that I was discovering down this path. The discipline of design that I found the most engaging was User Experience and User Interface (UX/UI) Design. I loved the idea that every horrible website or app I ever used was fixable and I could learn how to objectively design a beautiful and enjoyably functional interface. The thought that I can make the digital world more enjoyable and easier to use for every user excites me.
Looking back at the struggle I was having to make the decision to switch majors seems so trivial now. I was considering not making the switch because I would be in school for an extra year or two. Since I was switching from the business school to the art school, I had to start over by taking all of the base classes in that field of study. I was also worried that I wasn’t going to put myself in career that would be as stable as finance. None of the concerns that I was having compare to the fulfillment of working at a job that I love and am passionate about. Knowing what I do now, that decision I made five years ago would have been a no-brainer. As cheesy as it sounds, following my passions led me down a very fruitful path and landed me at this amazing company as a UX Engineer. I would recommend for everyone to do the same, no matter how many doubts or concerns they have about it. Life is just too short not to.