Virtual conference Growing In Content 2023: Redesign your Content Career Register to attend

Cara Lam shares her journey from freelance content writer to full-time content designer, offering insights on acing job applications and interviews.

LinkedIn icon Twitter icon

One-day virtual conference: Growing In Content 2023

Redesign your career at Growing In Content 2023, whether you're aiming to climb higher in your current role or bouncing back from a career setback. Join us October 26th, 2023.

In the fourth video of our Perspectives series, Cara Lam discusses her journey to becoming a content designer, focusing on interview techniques and resume crafting, while offering tips for improving content practice and expertise.

Watch the talk below:

Cara's talk recording from Perspectives Conf (18:07)
Get the slides in PDF format

Meet our speaker

Photo of Cara Lam
Cara LamContent Designer, Instagram

An Australian-Chinese transplant in New York City, Cara broke into content design in early 2021 and has fallen in love with the field ever since. She first started writing professionally as a freelance travel blogger in Japan, then moved on to be a marketing copywriter at a NYC crypto firm. It was at this crypto firm that she learned about UX writing and content strategy.

After a month of self-study on the subject, Cara landed her first full-time UX writing gig consulting for a commercial bank. She's actively growing the content practice at her company and even led her own UX writing course recently! Cara's pumped to pay it forward and help others break into content design.

In her talk, Cara shares her journey of transitioning from freelance content writer to full-time content designer and offers valuable insights on how to stand out in job applications and interviews. She elaborates on the essentials for creating an impressive resume and portfolio, highlighting the need to use power verbs, focus on achievements, and create a visually appealing design.

During the interview process, Cara suggests using the STAR method for presenting past projects, showcasing clarity on challenges faced, and maintaining a positive outlook on personal experiences. She also emphasizes learning about the company's products and being constructive in providing feedback. As a content designer, she demonstrates how hard work and dedication can make significant career transitions possible.

Quotes from the talk

Photo of Cara Lam
Cara LamContent Designer, Instagram

"So, what are we going to talk about in the next 20 minutes? First, let's walk through my career trajectory, how I faked it till I made it, how you can create a killer resume and portfolio, and how you can ace common interview questions and mock exercises."

[00:18]

Photo of Cara Lam
Cara LamContent Designer, Instagram

"In one of the interviews for Capco, the executive director asked me: 'Cara, do you have any formal training in UX?' I semi-panicked, because I did not. And so I told her, 'I don't have any formal training in UX, but I took a lot of online courses on LinkedIn and also read a lot of books, and so I'm more than willing and happy to learn on a job.'"

[13:34]

Photo of Cara Lam
Cara LamContent Designer, Instagram

"I know it's a lot of pressure to just come up with suggestions live in real time in front of the interviewer, so take a deep breath, and it's completely okay to take a few minutes to study the design and content first.

And before you even suggest any content - ask questions, because likely you're not going to know a lot of background information or context."

[15:20]

About Perspectives Conf

This talk is part of Track #1 - Breaking into content design of the 2022 edition of our conference.

Perspectives Conf is the world’s first event specifically focused on the careers side of content. It’s been carefully curated to help people at all levels navigate the many facets of working in content – from being the first content person to hiring and growing a team.

Want to know when the next video from Perspectives Conf is published on our website? Sign up for our weekly newsletter in the box below to get notified.

Join our free newsletter

Each week we share peer interviews, fresh jobs, links and resources to help your career grow.


See our privacy policy and website terms and conditions.
Join our free newsletter
See our privacy policy and website terms.
Join our free newsletter
See our privacy policy and website terms.
Related jobs
Pleo UX Content Designer Full-Time Montréal, CA Content Design Sep 11th Hot
Richmond and Wandsworth Councils Digital Content Designer Full-Time London, UK Content Design Sep 11th Hot
Cognizant Content Designer Full-Time Chester, UK Content Design Sep 11th
hackajob Content Designer Full-Time London, UK Content Design Sep 11th
The Scottish Government Content Designer £35k-40k/yr Full-Time Glasgow, UK Content Design Sep 11th
GCS Compliance Content Designer £300-400/d Full-Time London, UK Content Design Sep 13th
Publicis Media Content Designer Full-Time London, UK Content Design Sep 18th
38 open job opportunities

0 new jobs added in the last week.

Popular areas
Popular cities
Hiring? We'll put your job ad in front of a growing community of content professionals. Post a job
Join our free newsletter

Each week we share peer interviews, fresh jobs, links and resources to help your career grow.

It's free. See our privacy policy.
Thanks! We'll email you weekly with new resources.