About Michael

Michael in his flight attendant uniform standing next to an Air Canada logo.

Like many others in our industry, my journey into digital product design came about in an unconventional way. After my studies in psychology, I travelled the world for nearly 14 years as a flight attendant. Looking back, I feel so lucky to have had the experience. I gained a deep understanding of people and their cultures. These insights could never have been learned through a psychology textbook, but only acquired through empathy and by immersing myself in the places they call home.

In time I found myself craving a creative outlet, so I started a swimwear brand where I learned rather quickly that if you build it, they will not come. That lit a fire in me. For 6 years, I built my eCommerce business from the ground up. I learned everything from web design, customer experience, user experience, digital marketing, SEO, customer relations, photography, videography, editing, graphic design, pattern making, and much-MUCH-more. But the things that solidified my path to success in eCommerce were the passion, consistency, and unwavering dedication needed to be an entrepreneur.

When Covid took over the world and people took shelter, the travel industry collapsed and I found myself out of a job and a business. That abrupt shift in my life made me realize that everything I had done up until that point; my education in psychology, my empathy and understanding of people through travel, and my dedication and hard work in building my online business, had all been leading me to a career in digital product design. So, I took on some freelance work as companies scrambled to get an online presence.

When Google launched their UX design professional certificate, I was one of the first to enroll. As they are one of the world’s leaders in user experience, it was obvious that it would give me the credibility that future employers would look for all while refining and building on my skills as a valuable digital product designer. 

I can honestly say that I’ve found my calling and it shows through the impactful user experiences I’ve created, but most of all, as I grow and mature I know my best work is yet to come.

Michael sitting amongst his design tools.

Connect with Michael

Certificates

IDEO univeristy logo

Impactful Presentations

IDEO University

Issued: April 16, 2023

IDEO univeristy logo

Designing Strategy

IDEO University

Issued: February 18, 2023

Deque university logo

Device-Independent User Input Methods

Deque University

Issued: January 30, 2023

Deque university logo

Custom JavaScript/ARIA Widgets

Issued: January 29, 2023

Deque university logo

Web Accessibility Testing: Screen Readers

Deque University

Issued: January 29, 2023

Deque university logo

Web Accessibility Testing: Basic Methods and Tools

Deque University

Issued: January 14, 2023

Deque university logo

iOS Accessibility Features

Deque University

Issued: December 12, 2022

Deque university logo

Android Accessibility Features

Deque University

Issued: December 3, 2022

Deque university logo

Form Labels, Instructions, and Validation

Deque University

Issued: December 3, 2022

Deque university logo

Multimedia, Animations, and Motion

Deque University

Issued: December 2, 2022

Deque university logo

Responsive Design and Zoom

Deque University

Issued: November 26, 2022

Deque university logo

Images, SVG, and Canvas

Deque University

Issued: November 26, 2022

Deque university logo

Visual Design and Colors

Deque University

Issued: November 26, 2022

Deque university logo

WCAG Conformance Testing, Detailed Methodology

Deque University

Issued: November 20, 2022

Deque university logo

Mobile App Accessibility Fundamentals

Deque University

Issued: November 19, 2022

Deque university logo

Semantic Structure and Navigation

Deque University

Issued: November 18, 2022

Deque university logo

Designing an Accessible User Experience

Deque University

Issued: March 17, 2022

Deque university logo

Accessibility Fundamentals - Disabilities, Guidelines, & Laws

Deque University

Issued: February 22, 2022

Accessibility: How to Design for All

Interaction Design Foundation

Issued: June 25, 2021

Conducting Usability Testing

Interaction Design Foundation

Issued: June 22, 2021

UX Management: Strategy and Tactics

Interaction Design Foundation

Issued: June 18, 2021

Human-Computer Interaction - HCI

Interaction Design Foundation

Issued: June 3, 2021

UI Design Patterns for Successful Software

Interaction Design Foundation

Issued: June 1, 2021

Google UX Design Professional Certificate

Google

Issued: May 14, 2021

Design a User Experience for Social Good...

Google

Issued: May 13, 2021

Responsive Web Design in Adobe XD

Google

Issued: April 29, 2021

Create High-Fidelity Designs and Prototypes in Figma

Google

Issued: April 14, 2021

Conduct UX Research and Test Early Concepts

Google

Issued: April 3, 2021

Build Wireframes and Low-Fidelity Prototypes

Google

Issued: March 31, 2021

Start the UX Design Process: Empathize, Define, and Ideate

Google

Issued: March 23, 2021

Adobe Photoshop CC – Essentials

InstructorHQ

Issued: March 21, 2021

Foundations of User Experience (UX) Design

Google

Issued: March 15, 2021

A jack of all trades is a master of none, but almost always better than a master of one!