Viewing the world through UX design

When most people hear the term UX design, they think of websites and apps. Buttons, menus, loading speeds, user flows — all the digital stuff. But UX, or user experience, extends far beyond screens. It’s all around us, baked into the world we interact with every day. And once you start thinking like a UX designer, it’s hard to stop seeing where things could — and should — be better.

The other day, I went to a park for a bit of fresh air and a walk. Simple enough, right? But as I approached the entrance, I was met with a steep hill. It was a struggle with a stroller. I couldn’t help but think — what if someone was in a wheelchair? Or using a walker? Or simply had mobility issues? How would they get in?

This wasn’t some remote hiking trail — it was a public park, meant to be a space for everyone. Families, children, elderly folks, people with disabilities. Yet the very entrance said otherwise. There was no ramp. No alternate path. Just a steep incline that silently excluded a significant part of the community.

To actually access the park with the stroller, I had to find a completely different entrance — one that took me around the entire block and added an extra 30–45 minutes to what should’ve been a short walk. It was frustrating, yes, but more importantly, it was revealing.

This isn’t just a design flaw — it’s a UX issue.

Good UX is about empathy. It's about designing for the real, messy, diverse lives of people. It's about removing friction, making things intuitive, inclusive, and accessible. Whether it’s a website navigation menu or the path into a city park, the core principles are the same.

A simple ramp could’ve made all the difference.

Designers — and urban planners, engineers, architects — need to think like UX designers. How do people interact with the environment? What do they need? What obstacles are in their way, and how can we remove them?

We shouldn't wait for someone to point out that something doesn’t work. We should be proactively designing for inclusivity, anticipating needs, and recognizing that accessibility isn’t a feature — it’s a fundamental.

UX isn’t just about clicks and screens. It’s about people. And once you start seeing the world through that lens, you realize: everything is UX.