My father once told me “Everything is interesting, if you are interested”. I took that as: It is good to be curious. My upbringing cultivated a love for culture, literature, and art. As an adult these interests are still making a mark; personally as well as professionally.

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This curiosity is also an inherent part of who I am. As a child I refused to accept that it is impossible to know everything (why not?). It was also fed by my analytical thinking. I am good at recognizing patterns and mapping context, this has given me an explorative approach rooted in research. I have familiarized myself with design research methods and often lead the research phase. Sometimes I have a “Sky is the Limit’ mentality, causing me to set unrealistic goals. In order to slow myself down I’ve implemented different methods: I write, draw and work with my hands a lot. This grounds me and has become an important part of my process. Therefore I also have decent making skills that fit with Technology & Realization.  My love for information has also given me an appreciation for data analyzation. I find it interesting how data can tell us different things. For the same reason I am fascinated by AI and how these algorithms work. I’ve spent considerable time in developing Math, Data & Computing skills, especially during my minor in AI. In addition I am a strong improviser therefore I often have a facilitating or advising role. As a critical thinker I ask many questions and am good at giving feedback.

 

By nature I am people oriented, I am empathetic and enjoy having vulnerable, meaningful conversations. This is deepened by my personal interest in psychology (Why do we behave as we do?), sociology (how do social systems work?), ethics (What is right?) and politics (Feminism and How do we make fair policies?). Throughout my studies I have explored the relationship between humans and their technology through these lenses, giving me a focus on User & Society. My social nature has also helped me develop strong communication skills and allows me to easily shift between perspectives.  I I have experience taking on leadership roles, for example during my board year. I am adaptable in my collaboration due to my ability to see things from others’ perspective, which is a skill I deepened as a Commissioner of Education at Lucid. I am goal oriented and I often don’t mind doing things that I find challenging, I’m always looking for solutions and enjoy troubleshooting. I gravitate towards social topics and seek balance between practicality and idealism; I like to disrupt the status quo to create impact and engagement. My favorite tools for this are humor and fun. My goal is to improve existing structures, because every small step in the right direction helps. Within my extracurricular as well as my studies I’ve taken up projects that have the goal of bringing people together and stimulating meaningful experiences. I believe this is what is needed to create a better future. My main strategy is storytelling; not only am I good at telling stories; I also am good at creating environments where people share stories. An example is Poëzie Plek, an Art & Poetry Exhibition where young artists are invited to share their work. 

 

I have always been creative and entrepreneurial. Since I was young I’ve organized and created many things, and I’ve been deepening my skills in these areas for as long as I can remember. I’ve always had a clear vision and a big imagination. Now I work as a freelancer and as a Poet in the creative sector and have organized multiple successful events, which have taught me valuable skills relating to Business & Entrepreneurship. I am strong in the ideation part of a design process, not only because I have plenty of ideas, but also because I see opportunities everywhere. I love to play with self-expression; I tend to experiment with my fashion and try not to take myself seriously. This is also my designer attitude, I like to explore boundaries with a playful yet intentional approach. Because of this Creativity & Aesthetics attitudes are a natural fit. In addition, I’ve been inventive in my methods and solutions – I taught myself how to do most things.

 

In conclusion, my professional identity as a designer is grounded in curiosity, creativity and an interest in people. Due to my passion for learning and empathy, I am able to see different perspectives, while my analytical thinking skills help me deal with complex contexts. I aim to balance a playful approach with a focus on real-world impact. I do this often from a social design perspective and I take on research-driven approaches.