Being a "good designer" isn't about Figma. It's about bridging design and technology, being a systems thinker, and understanding how to create experiences for people.
My journey began when I taught myself HTML and CSS and built three websites by the seventh grade. I have since worked in agency, start-up, fintech, and higher-ed environments and formed a leadership style rooted in adaptability, empathy, and innovation. It's these skills I also use to support local communities.
Today, I lead a team of UX designers, researchers, and writers, championing collaboration, diversity, and inclusion and empowering product-driven teams to deliver impactful user-centered solutions. Outside work, I'm a writer of three books, a public transit advocate, family historian, Pallas cat conservationist, and artist.
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MANJI [mahn-jee] · n. Charms and symbols of luck, divinity, and spirituality — often used by Jains and Buddhists of ancient Persia, India, China, and Japan.
"Manji" symbolizes the ability to bring luck and blessings to those who embrace it. In various cultures, it also represents infinity and the ongoing cycle of creation.
The concept draws inspiration from ancient Chinese metaphysical beliefs rooted in energy and elemental principles. For instance, Taoist cosmology and feng shui utilize energy maps called baguas to focus on and enhance eight essential areas of life: family, prosperity, reputation, relationships, creativity, career, spirituality, and health.
These areas are represented by "trigrams," a series of lines that encircle a yin-yang symbol — a representation of balance and change, where opposites continuously give rise to one another. In some cultures, purple is associated with royalty, power, ambition, and creativity. A purple yin-yang, therefore, embodies the cosmic duality of these powerful concepts.
These ideas underscore the meaning behind the Manji Designs logo and its creative philosophy. The belief that design is a guiding force essential for success parallels the ancient practices of architectural harmony and perpetual creation.
Design, seen as a strategic and intentional act, aligns ambition with creativity — elevating it beyond mere functionality to a tool for purposeful innovation.