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Hi, I’m Xiaomin (晓敏)

Photo by Women Talk Design

Xiǎo 晓 - dawn, know; Mǐn 敏 - keen, sharp, agile.

I like hats. One of my all-time favorites is the user experience designer. Complexity and ambiguity excite me. I enjoy sifting through the chaos and tidying things up. I find joy in seeing possibilities within constraints, and I take pride in turning challenges into opportunities. That’s how I work, how I speak, and how I write.

Another hat I fancy is the Argentine Tango dancer. I dance to meet strangers, connect with friends, and teach and perform with my husband. Just like in crafting design, I love having interactive conversations with people with and without words.

Hailing from the small city of Wuzhou in southern China, proud to be a Michigan Wolverine, I'm now living in Berkeley, California.

Thanks for stopping by.

Work

I've designed digital products across different domains throughout my career.
Being adaptive has helped me navigate the wide range of products and services from enterprise to consumer.

Recent highlights include:

Other proud moments in the past:

 Speaking

I speak to inspire, as I learn to develop my voice.

 

Designing for inclusion with Blockchain

Designers + Geeks, co-hosted with Women Talk Design
November 15, 2018 in San Francisco

More people are starting to believe in the power and potential of blockchain in building a decentralized future. However, we have varying levels of knowledge and confidence in the technology. How do we go about designing for trust around this “trustless” technology? What is it like to design blockchain products that go beyond the Bitcoin craze? What does it have to do with user experience design? In this talk, I covered insights and shared design principles to encourage broader adoption of blockchain products.*

Part of our "Designing for Inclusion" series. DESIGNERS + GEEKS EVENTS We host monthly events like this in San Francisco, New York, and Boston. Sign up for o...

* When working on the talk, I was a UX designer at Innovation Group of Wells Fargo.
* The talk evolved from my lightning talk at Women Talk Design on October 3, 2018, “Designing for trust around a trustless technology.”

 
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How Tango has taught me to design better

Women Talk Design Lightning Talks
July 11, 2018 in San Francisco

In this lightning talk, I walked the audience through my day life as a UX designer and my night life as tango dancer. I shared how I drew the connection between these two passions of my life – tango dancing and designing user experience.

WRITING

I write to share my thoughts on design, tango, and personal growth.