Today we’d like to introduce you to christine sheller
christine, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I was an indoor kid. Making art out of anything I could find at an early age: signage for our bedrooms, greeting cards for all of the family members, jewelry out of clay…locking myself in my bedroom for hours and hours and emerging with tons of goods for all. So when I understood that I could make a career out of design, it was a no-brainer for me. I started my journey at Tyler School of Art back in Philadelphia, to study graphic design, and later went on to get my masters in user experience (UX) design. I’ve always dreamt of calling California home, and made that dream a reality during the pandemic when my then partner (now husband) and our french bulldog, Fonz packed up a truck and made it a go during the pandemic.
I have a long history of building design practices and teams, sometimes from scratch, sometimes in-house. I have the privilege of leading an amazingly talented design and research team at O3, a CX consultancy focused on AI-powered experiences. And shortly after landing out west, I was always delighted to accept an adjunct position at ArtCenter College of Design where I teach user research within the interaction design program.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
That’s a great question. I don’t think any career journey is smooth, and I sure had struggles along the way and still sometimes do. It took me some time in my early days to learn what put jam in my donut—what are the things that give me energy, and what takes them away. And I still sometimes struggle with that from time to time, but now have a great journal method (The Good Times Journal from Designing Your Life) that helps to get me unstuck.
And the world right now is tricky for design. We’re experiencing a total transformation with AI, which I am excited and energized about, but it can also be a little scary and overwhelming to try to understand what might become of process, and tools, and approach…all of things designers are so passionate about. It’s an interesting time and an interesting opportunity for our industry.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My specialization is user experience research + design: understanding what users want from their digital experiences, and creating solutions to meet and exceed their expectations. Like graphic design, my first love, UX design is problem solving and calls on so many skills: empathy, passion, attention to detail, And math. Our grade school teachers were right; math does make its way into the real world.
I’m less of a practitioner and more of a people leader: I love building teams, helping them see their potential while supporting the goals of our clients + their businesses.
How do you think about luck?
I don’t know that luck has played a role in my life + business. I do believe in karma, and I always try to give my best and pay it forward. I think I’m where I am because I’ve worked hard, treated people with kindness and consideration, and helped grow and evolve the businesses I’ve partnered with.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://o3world.com
- Other: shellerville.com my personal site artcenter.edu my college
Image Credits
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