Get Started - Volunteers
Our volunteers lead our group, and for your patience, sweat and energy we thank you.
Weâre thrilled that youâre interested in doing more with us and are excited to have you as part of our team.
We are all Volunteers
The first rule to keep in mind is that everyone, including yourself, is a volunteer. As such, we ask that you only take on that which aligns with your personal goals and at a level that is sustainable.
In the case you ever feel overwhelmed or burned out, please reach out to an E-Board Wizard for support. If you ever need to take a step back at any time, for a short period of time or a long time please let us know.
Be Selfish and Selfless
Try and find a project or team that has both a selfish aspect and a selfless aspect. That is, find a project that aligns with your personal goals but that would also benefit the larger group.
What can I do?
All Wizards are welcome to start a new project/event or they may join a current one if there is space.
Join an existing event!
Any activity you see us doing was at one point the brainchild of a Wizard just like you! Take advantage of this amazing community and do the things you want to accomplish. Start your own co-work session, join a team to organize a UX talk, form a group to study relevant topics - the opportunities are endless.
Start my own project/event!
Have an idea youâve been dreaming up? Let us know and weâll help you get started with it!
Do you have an idea for what youâd like to do?
If yes, then great! If not, take a look at the
Choosing a Project Leader
A project leader is just a person that has the desire to âmake things happenâ! Anyone can do it; you do not need to be an expert or have experience. We are all about learning through doing and gaining experience by just trying our best.
Feel free to write something in #suggestion-box to find people that may be interested in your project as well. If you have an idea but donât currently have the bandwidth to start something, add it to our
Next Steps
Once you have your idea and potentially a project leader, message a Wizard on E-Board about your proposal and to get your project on the
E-Board can also help you with resources you may need. Some examples may be: Zoom access, posting your event publicly on MeetUp, getting a banner made for your event, etc. They can also ask around for Wizards interested in joining your project if youâd prefer not to ask around yourself or if youâre having trouble reaching people.
And thatâs about it for starting your own thing!
What kinds of projects/events are there?
Projects and events generally fall into two categories: those whose audience are existing Wizards in Slack (âInternalâ) and those whose audience include non-Wizards (âExternalâ).
External Projects
Because External projects and events are how new Wizards, corporate sponsors, and other organizations see us, itâs important that there is a level of polish and professionalism with those projects and events (e.g. If youâre designing a Meetup banner, you may need to follow established design guidelines).
This means there may also be some inter-project coordination, so please be mindful of this when participating on an External project or event (i.e. Honor your commitments and if anything comes up, make sure you have a smooth handoff) E-board will often have some oversight over External projects and events.
Internal Projects
In contrast, Internal projects and events are much more hands-off. Feel free to experiment and try whatever your creativity allows. In fact, many External projects and events start out as Internal ones.
How may I help with a current project/event?
Check out our
Another way to learn about projects in need of help is to keep an eye out for postings on #channel-name. Team leads may share openings there but E-Board may also post some quarterly.
Iâm nervous to help out because Iâm not an expert
Neither are we! Our community, like the design process, is all about iteration: We try, we learn, we try again. Our aim is to cultivate a community that is open to learning from each other, even as we ourselves are learning. All we ask is to be an eager learner open to constructive criticism and.
Donât worry, we also need non-UX help!
We always need help thatâs non-domain specific: event planning, logistics.
You can learn a lot just by being around
Itâs worthwhile because when youâre involved you start building more bonds.
What is the time commitment for volunteering?
We are happy to take your help, even if thatâs just an hour or two a month. Speak to your team lead about time commitment.
If I join can I leave whenever?
Absolutely! If you feel like you need to leave or pause your work with us at any time, please just let us know. Things come up and itâs never a bad time.
Can I be in more than one group?
Absolutely! Youâre free to move around and be in multiple groups as you wish!
How should I convey my volunteer work in a resume or portfolio? You are welcome and encouraged to use your work that you do with us in your resume and portfolio. If it benefits you please talk about it!
What titles should I use? Description of work?
We are happy to provide references for our volunteers!
What team am I on?
In terms of deciding on what project or initiative you would like to focus on, UXW can be a bit of a âchoose your own adventureâ at times. Weâd love your help, so let us know what youâre interested in starting or helping out with, and we will connect you to the relevant people!
Hereâs our current list of teams and volunteers but you are also free to create your own team or event if that is what youâre interested in doing.
How do I join a team?
If youâd like to join a team please contact either a Wizard on that team (ideally the lead) or a Wizard on our Executive Board!
If youâre starting a new team, please contact a Wizard on Executive Board with a proposal of what you want to do, and they can guide you on how to do it. If you need ideas refer to this GOOGLE FORM SPREADSHEET
How do I âoff boardâ when itâs time?
If you ever need to duck out for whatever reason, please do not feel guilty at all! UXW is an ever-evolving group that is there to support the goals of our Wizards. Feel free to let either your team or any Wizard on the executive board âe-boardâ know and we will take care of it!
How do I plan an event?
If youâre interested in hosting an event, please feel free to reach out to a Wizard on eboard. Weâll help get you set up with Zoom, meetup logins and anything you might need.
Where can I find the UXW Bylaws?
You can access our [ bylaws doc here ]
The most relevant channel for Leadership is #team-updates in Slack This is our channel to share info across teams, feel free to post what youâre working on project-wise and anything that should be for leadership eyes only.
How can I make sure I get to all of the Leadership Events?
Internal Events
In addition to our regular UX Wizards Meetups, Wizards of our leadership team are invited to join us at any of our cosy events on meetup. [feel free to join, and donât be sad if you donât know about this link yet, itâs still in beta!] This is a place where we can host smaller events but also a place where we can experiment or do pilot events without worrying about too large an audience.
Gandalfâs Leadership Calendar In addition to Gandalfâs [ regular events calendar ] you can also [ subscribe to the leadership calendar ]* which has visibility into all of our team meetings.
web-based UX Events, web-based leadership calendar*
*Please note, you might need us to add your email address to get access to the leadership calendar. Drop one of us a message on Slack and weâll get you set up!
What meetings do I attend?
Attend your team meeting if youâre in a team!
If youâre starting a new team, a good tip is to develop a regular cadence for your group. To avoid burnout we can suggest a 1 hr/30 min meeting weekly or every other week.
How do I meet everyone?
Join us for our regular town halls, which are typically on the second and fourth Tuesday of every month!
Attend our town halls if you are able to! Weâll post these in the volunteer channels.
Thank you for helping make UX Wizards a better place!