078 - Bossy UX - Why I’m Calling BS on the Doom-and-Gloom Era

Jake Zukowski has worked as Vice President of Global Design and Research at HelloFresh, led design teams at Frog and Fjord (now Accenture Song), and contributed his expertise to innovative companies like Magic Leap, Microsoft, and Expedia. Today, he’s the founder and CEO of Cosmic Plumbing, where he creates professional astrology and tarot tools.In this episode, Sophia and Jake unpack CTA prioritization—how to balance user needs with business goals, why “contra CTAs” matter for ethical UX, and how to navigate tough stakeholder convos to build trust and deliver real, lasting value.LINKS:Connect with Jake on LinkedIn!Sign up for OOUX FoundationsJoin the waitlist for Cohort 12 of the OOUX Masterclass (Fall 2026)Continue the conversation on the OOUX Forum!

A viral LinkedIn post claims UX is “just battles and compromises.” In this episode, Sophia gets spicy about why that’s wrong. Tune in for a soapbox rant on why we shouldn’t settle for burnout culture — and how to reclaim UX as the world-changing craft it was meant to be.LINKS:Join Cohort 11 of the OOUX Masterclass! Doors close August 29th at 11:59 PM EDT!Follow Sophia on LinkedIn! Continue the conversation on the OOUX Forum!

What if prioritizing relationships could boost your bottom line? In this 10th ORCA Series installment, Sophia is joined by former VP of design at Hello Fresh, Certified OOUX Strategist, and Cohort 11 Mentor, Jake Zukowski, to explore how ORCA’s Relationship Prio helps businesses build trust, create clarity around revenue objects, and design strategies that work for both users and businesses.LINKS:1. Join Cohort 11 of the OOUX Certification! Doors are open until Friday 8/29 at 11:59 PM EDT.2. Check out all the amazing testimonials for the OOUX Certification on OOUX.com/testimonials.3. Continue the conversation on the OOUX Forum!

Advanced OOUXer Karen Hewell joins me to share how she’s helping government agencies shift from page-based chaos to object-based clarity. We talk breaking silos, creating shared ownership, and making massive content ecosystems easier to manage (and actually intuitive). 🎯LINKS:Keep up with Karen's work at Anthro-techFollow Karen on LinkedInGet on the waitlist for Cohort 11 of The OOUX Certification Program!Continue the conversation on The OOUX Forum!

In this ninth installment of the ORCA Series, Sophia kicks off the Prioritization round with Object Prioritization. Tune in as she shares how this step can bring clarity to your design process and your project backlog — plus a personal story on tackling creative chaos with compassion and strategy.LINKS:Get 20 powerful strategies to elevate your practice IMMEDIATELY with the UX Level-Up!Start your OOUX journey the RIGHT way with OOUX Foundations. Enroll here!Continue the conversation on the OOUX Forum!

In this episode, Sophia gets real about the tension between OOUX in theory vs. the messy reality of the real world. Learn how to ask those jaw-dropping, scope-shifting “why?” questions without annoying leadership. She breaks it down into four pro-level steps so you can bring more clarity, alignment, and confidence to your work.LINKS:Join the UX Level-Up free on OOUX.com/levelup! Join the conversation on the OOUX Forum

In this episode of the podcast, Sophia announces a rebrand of the OOUX Podcast: The UX Level-Up! Going forward, the show will center around the five Level-Ups (featured in The UX Level-Up). She also asks a game-changing question that reframes the purpose of our OOUX work, and gives her own answer to that question, laying out an ambitious vision for OOUX and the ORCA process going forward.LINKS:Join the waitlist for The UX Level-UpJoin the waitlist for OOUX Foundations

Frameworks don’t kill creativity — they set it free.In this episode, we're breaking down why UX designers who jump into UI too soon miss the real opportunity for innovation.I’ll show you how ORCA (Objects, Relationships, Calls-to-Action, Attributes) gives you real material to build with — fueling true creativity, better ideas, and a serious competitive edge.🎧 Tune in to rethink your brainstorming, unleash deeper innovation, and start sketching systems, not just screens.LINKS:Join the waitlist for OOUX Foundations!

In this more personal solo episode, Sophia shares how she uses OOUX to help her learn and understand complicated things faster, why it's important to budget for and invest in self improvement, plus why OOUX is great for helping you step away from the screens to embody what you're trying to understand. Join us for OOUX Foundations!

The UX job market is rough. Veterans are being laid off, juniors are struggling to find jobs, and yet, digital experiences are clunky and getting worse. What gives?In this raw and honest solo-episode, Sophia explores why UX has been set up to fail — why big problems remain unsolved, and why leadership often undervalues UX work. You'll hear how we've been pushed into pixel-pushing and spackling over the cracks of complexity instead of tackling structural solutions. And why that's not good enough anymore.But there’s hope. UX can evolve, and we can take back our craft. Discover the Five Core Level-Ups that will empower you to redefine your role and bring deeper meaning into your work.If you are ready for a deep dive into Sophia’s practical how-to, Join our  90-minute, totally free training: The UX Level-Up. You'll learn 20 actionable strategies to start leveling up immediately—yes, right after the training.👉 Register here: https://www.ooux.com/levelupLet’s stop spackling. Let’s build better.