Hey There

This is my dog flaffs.
He's a good boy.

Photo of me, Eric Hellmuth

As a kid, I loved creating custom backgrounds for my desktop. I would spend hours cutting photos from Google Images and pasting them into Microsoft Paint, adding shapes, changing colors, and editing them to match my vision. I always enjoyed this creative outlet but never considered it a career option.  

On the other hand, I love science. I studied Biology in college and was hired to work for a pharmaceutical company shortly after graduation. I help produce medications that literally save people's lives. I felt like I landed my dream job. However, there is no creative outlet in the drug manufacturing process. The pharmaceutical industry is extremely regulated, which leaves little room to implement creative improvements.

Everything changed one night in 2017. I was living with one of my long time friends who happens to be a web developer. We enjoyed brainstorming theoretical quirky business ventures together. One idea was to take old, worn-out purses and upcycle them. We called it “From Hearse to Purse.”

On that fateful night, we thought of an app concept that we believed was our best idea yet. Essentially a long forum scoreboard, the app would allow users to award and deduct points away from their friends. We called the app Points - Your Actions Matter. We were certain that this was the app. We purchased a computer and got to work. My roommate developed the back-end code, while I designed front-end mockups. I designed the entire UI of the application without any formal training or experience. I worked on branding, logo design, color palettes, and typography. After two years of nights and weekends, a lot of trial and error, and phone calls with Apple, our app was approved and made available on the Apple app store. It is not my finest work, but it was the start of a new passion.

The original app icon created for Points - Your Actions Matter
Initial Points Icon
The final app icon for Points - Your Actions Matter
Final Points Icon

The experience of designing an app sparked my passion for user-center and process-driven design. I enjoy UX because it merges both of my passions, science and creativity. I get to apply the research skills I learned in pharmaceuticals and combine them with my zest for creativity to design solutions to problems. I get to turn a thought into a tangible product with no bounds or restrictions.

At the start of my UX design journey, I created designs based on how I thought they should be. I didn't consider how the experience would be for the user. I now know that design is more than looks. It is about solving problems for the user through an iterative process that requires empathy. I find user experience design so fulfilling because it is an ever evolving game of brainstorming solutions to create the best possible product.

I understand the importance of an inclusive internet. My wife works as a disability rights advocate and protects the rights of people with disabilities. One of those rights is an accessible internet. Because of her, I understand why it is so important to have an accessible internet and recognize how inaccessible the  internet currently is. She fights every day for the basic rights of people with disabilities and I want to support her crusade to make the internet fully accessible. It is my priority to make sure that every design I create is accessible to everyone, regardless of ability. Prioritizing accessibility makes me a better designer.

I hope you enjoyed learning a little bit about me. I look forward to getting to know you. Please send me an email and I will respond to you as soon as possible. Cheers!