The shorthand of it - "Southern 90’s kid living his early 30s in NYC." Yet, this can summarize a lot of people living here.
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I grew up in Virginia and was raised in a multicultural and multiethnic household. This helped me see many perspectives, understand empathy, and learn to resolve my own ‘pain points’. I was mostly self-taught in music and art—teaching myself skills that motivated me to continue improving as I grew older. 

I spent years working as a Visual Merchandiser and quickly learned the importance of accessibility, observation, testing, iterating and listening in order to reach my target audience.

When I discovered Product Design, I realized I had already been utilizing these skills in retail (albeit on a physical level). I didn’t realize at the time how much I would grow to love product design and became motivated by the higher impacts made through digital experiences.

I believe that empathy, accessibility, and simplicity go hand-in-hand when creating engaging, pleasing, and inclusive experiences. What's more, with product design, I utilize more of my skill set to reach more people.