To understand my design journey, I have to start at the beginning. I spent most of my junior and senior year of high school in a pandemic. The thing that kept me going? My 7 am graphic design class. And I’m not a morning person.

When I started college, a career in tech felt like a sure thing. Learn to code, work hard, and you'd be set for life. I figured I could blend my passion for creativity with technical skills and build a stable career out of it.

Then the ground shifted. AI changed the landscape, and creative and UI/UX roles got a lot more competitive. I felt frustrated that the career I'd been working toward was no longer guaranteed. But once I started seeing AI as a tool rather than a replacement, something clicked: the people who thrive aren't the ones who master one tool. They're the ones who can adapt.

Fast-forward to now: I'm working as a web designer and developer for a seed-stage startup. I get to problem-solve and think creatively every day. And even though my role is mostly front-end, it requires creative strategy, collaboration, and constant iteration. I get to practice skills that aren't bound to any single discipline.

This is where things click for me. In today's world, mastering one tool or one skill isn't enough. AI is getting smarter, new tools are being invented daily, and specialized roles are shrinking. What matters more than ever is having a strong foundation, understanding users, and strategic problem-solving. The fundamentals of design don't change because the tools do.

And here's what I think a lot of people are missing: as AI makes it easier to produce content, consumers are going to value brands and creators that feel authentic. Communicating with authenticity matters more now than it ever has, because everything else is starting to feel the same.

So why do I call myself a multidisciplinary creative? Because my strength isn't in any one tool or title. It's in learning tools quickly, thinking creatively, and applying design fundamentals across whatever discipline the work demands. That's what's going to matter going forward, and that's the kind of creative I want to be.