seriously though… Hands-on experience, quiet moments at the tops of trees, and a lifetime of tireless self-study have taught me:

Time is relative to the thing that’s experiencing it
If you want to affect a system, pay close attention to pivot points, timing and tension
Feedback loops often work slower than we’d like
Risk is something that should cause deliberation, not fear
Effective communication is defined by the setting, the message and the listener
If no one’s hurt and nothing irreplaceable is broken, you should go home knowing that you’ve had a good day

Toolkit

User Interviewing

SME Interviewing

Needs Analysis

Insights Analysis

Secondary Research

Journey Mapping

User Scenarios / Personas

Presentation Design

Workshop Facilitation

Heuristic Evaluation

Wireframing

Program Management

Parallel Experience Analysis

Feedback Loop Analysis

Photo Editing

Copywriting/editing

Creative Direction

Strategic Planning

Business Model Canvas

Systems Mapping

Methodology Acquisition

Testimonials

“I've never met someone that learned and retained so much in my life. I look for ways to keep him involved in any project I'm working on.” - Leah Noble Davidson - Lead UX Designer at HP

“Kyle was one of my top students in the Certificate in Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship at Portland State University. He showed a level of dedication, talent, and attention to quality that I associate with the top entrepreneurs I've worked with.” - Jacen Greene - Director, Impact Entrepreneurs

“Kyle is extremely skilled at creating emotionally resonant narratives, and his thoughtful feedback helped me pinpoint (and improve!) the weak parts of my talk, ultimately helping me form a stronger connection with my audience.” - Kate Garklavs - Content Team Lead at 18F

“Kyle is a voracious learner, and excels in both self-teaching and learning from others. He is a project minded thinker, with a powerful visual and aesthetic sense. If a project that seemed way beyond my abilities was dropped in my lap, Kyle could be counted on to out-think, out-learn, or out-work any problem.” - Brian S. Ellis - Writer / English Teacher at PCC

“Working with a small team on tight deadlines, Kyle could quickly dive into complex subject matter and produce content to support work being done by others or to take the lead on a project and build out a framework for others to follow.” - Dylan Evanston - Senior Technology Analyst at Sparksta LLC

Truth

The people I work with care about the systems that they belong to and are hungry to create positive change—if we work together, it’s because you want that too.