It’s been over a decade since I last posted anything personal online (beyond the odd comment or share). In that time, how we show up online has shifted. New platforms, new expectations, and now an AI-driven era.
So why create a personal website in 2025?
Good question. I asked myself that too.
Between LinkedIn’s algorithm, Substack, and AI search, you don’t need a website to be found. But that’s not why I’m doing it.
I’m building this site as an intentional space to:
- Share what I’ve learned in leadership, UX, and product design
- Experiment with new tools and ideas (especially around AI and interaction)
- Document the work, not just the wins
- And maybe most importantly, to own a little slice of the internet that’s mine (again)
I’m also treating this like a product launch. I’ll be transparent about the data behind it: what worked, what didn’t, where traffic came from, and how engagement shifts once I post about it on LinkedIn.
Over the next few weeks, the focus is simple. Establish a baseline for organic traffic. First task: get the sitemaps into Google and Bing.
Shoutout
Quick thank you to Venessa Bennett. She’s been a major motivator in getting this off the ground. If you haven't already, check out her work.
Who I’m Writing For
- Other product designers and UX engineers
- Engineers curious about UX and product design
- People in my professional circles who might only stick around for 5 minutes (and that’s fine).
My rule of thumb: keep it simple, keep it useful.
Launch Features
That old saying about being your own worst customer holds true here. For launch, I focused on the essentials:
- Homepage
First impressions matter. It needs to communicate quickly who I am, what I do, and the value I bring. - About page
A space to expand on leadership, experience and values. - Resume page
Straightforward skills and background. - Case studies
Not just polished results, but process and learnings (the good, the bad, the messy). - Blog
A place to capture thinking that would otherwise disappear.
Tech Stack
Sure, you can spin up a site with WordPress, Squarespace, Framer, or even Canva these days (and Figma Make is there for the brave too). But I wanted control, flexibility, and a separation between content and code. So I went with:
Prismic.io for content
Structured, API-first, easy to build with. I've long wanted to build out a site where all content is managed by a Content API
Next.js for the frontend
I’ve wanted to explore SSR/CSR properly, and this is the perfect opportunity.
What I'll track
Like any product, this site needs goals. Because you can’t manage what you don’t measure, over the next 12 months, I’ll track:
Metric | Baseline | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Baseline traffic | Organic only | Add sitemap to crawlers, then watch before/after LinkedIn post |
Visitor sources | TBD | Referrers + countries |
Page engagement | TBD | Which pages, how long |
Shares/discussions generated | TBD | Track blog posts specifically |
LinkedIn follower count | 395 | Track month to month |
X follower count | 1,925 | Track month to month |
Final Thought
So much of what we make online belongs to someone else’s platform.
This is a space I can own, shape, and grow. A record of work, thinking, and experiments in progress. A personal corner of the web to keep me honest, curious, and moving forward.
Simple as that. ✌️