A place of ideal I reached through self-questioning and answering, the journey back to Zeals as a designer after once quitting.

It’s surprising that my first career started as a general employee at a publicly listed company, what made you want to become a designer?

I have loved creative activities like drawing and reading since I was young. While I admired creative professions such as designers, I didn’t study design formally in college, which made me hesitate, so I joined a major internet company as a general employee, giving up on my dream.

There, I was entrusted with responsible work, but I didn't feel like I was making use of my strength, which is "communication skills." Driven by the desire to “be in an environment where I can interact with more people,” I switched to a trading company. At that time, starting to draw as a hobby reignited my aspiration for a creative job I had once given up on. Surprisingly, Icontinued drawing while completely absorbed, without eating or sleeping. I was amazed at myself (laughs).
The work itself was fulfilling, with a lot of communication with both internal and external parties while carrying a sense of responsibility in ensuring cargo was delivered to the right place at the right time, but I began to think, “If there is something I can be passionate about to the extent of sacrificing my own life, then ‘turning that into a job would allow me to contribute even more to society!’” I started searching for a new job again. At the time, I was broadly looking at positions like designer and writer, knowing that my lack of experience would be a drawback.

How did you come to meet Zeals?

Honestly, my job search was challenging. Designer job postings require experience. At such a time, I received a scouting offer from Zeals for a UX writer (now: communication designer).

Upon hearing about it, I was moved by their passion to design communication and improve customer experience. The people working there were not “finishing work quickly to enjoy their leisure,” but rather, the “dedication to their work” was very impressive, and I remember feeling really excited.

I decided to join Zeals because I was attracted to the job of a UX writer, as it allowed me to design communication and thought that if I continued to hold my own beliefs strongly, I could do creative work as well.

What did you learn outside the company after experiencing leaving the company for the first time?

After joining as a UX writer, I became responsible for projects and handled various tasks from client interaction to advertising operations. Creating advertisements for chatbots was exactly the work I wanted to do. Rather than creating a design as a single image, I was thinking about “What feelings did the user have when they visited the client's landing page?” and “What will lead to solving the user's problems?” and creatively translating those thoughts into work.

However, there was also a conflict in self-studying knowledge in an environment without a designer, and from the desire to “master creativity at an early stage,” I resolved to hone my skills as a designer. I felt the lack of skills, but I believed that if I worked several times harder than others, I would definitely catch up, so I was not afraid of letting go of Zeals or changing jobs.

During my short time of a year and a half at a web production company, I was involved in various creative works as a web designer. Working in the creative industry, my dream was very stimulating, but there were also times I longed for the working style of my former company, Zeals, which I continued to work with on a contracted basis.
What I excelled at, communicating while being attentive to the user and designing the whole experience, as well as the passionate attitude of my colleagues working at Zeals was irreplaceable.

With a strong sense of having built skills and experience as a designer, I rejoined Zeals as a dedicated designer last December. I am generally referred to as a return employee.

Great creativity is born by communicating with members.

I believe many people are helped by Inoue-san's smile and commitment. Is there anything you are mindful of when working?

Now, I love communicating with a lot of people to the extent that I'm called "chatty," but I was originally very shy and worried about “how to communicate well with others.” This concern was resolved when I was in my second year of high school. I realized that people are not scary, and if you interact with an open mind, you can become friends. With that background, I have always been conscious of the feelings of others and am good at thinking from a marketing perspective and closely aligning with user psychology.

When thinking about design, I focus not just on making the appearance of a single advertisement beautiful, but also on “what kind of experience will be had overall” and consciously create new value while clashing opinions with communication designers and account planners. There are various teams within the company, but I don't really feel like I'm part of just one team (laughs).

Of course, I research the clients each team has, what kind of advertising operations are in place, and what appeals are made on the landing page down to the details. I also look at competing companies, check social media and forums to stay as close to the user's feelings as possible.

Can you also tell us about communication within the company?

Rather than one-sided instructions, I try to adopt a style of thinking together. Those requesting designs often struggle to see the overall picture, so I make a conscious effort to provide feedback from the perspective of someone seeing the design for the first time, “What would someone seeing it for the first time think?” and “Is it easily understandable?”

Due to the nature of the designer profession, there are often situations where I become the one being asked, and a hierarchy can unintentionally form, so I first try to let others know my personal side and create a “casual and approachable atmosphere for consultation (casual chat)” and a sense of trust in which I can be relied upon. It makes me very happy that many members, regardless of age or profession, casually approach me for consultation.

What do I think now that I have pursued an environment to work my life in?

I have personally pursued a work environment to dedicate my life to my job. After experiencing three job changes, I've realized something. What I value in my work is the three aspects of “having a high level of freedom (being in an environment where I can propose), “having a good working environment and people,” and “being able to make people smile (be able to contribute with my skills).”

Zeals was a rare environment where all of those aspects were present.
Now that I have acquired the skills of a designer and am utilizing them at Zeals, I want to contribute to this company in any capacity that I can if I can do anything to benefit it.

I may not be able to “raise Japan” all by myself, but I believe that my mission is to cherish the thought of “making the person next to me smile,” grown from my shy days, through daily communication, to make people smile, increase the number of companions I can spend time with at Zeals, and ultimately, “raise Japan” together.