Free course, 4 chapters, 27 lessons
The UX Foundation Course
Become the person in the room who understands the user when everyone else is guessing.
Start the courseWhy This Course Exists
I’ve taught hundreds of designers how to move from UI to UX since 2019.
Here’s what I’ve learned: UX isn’t something you master in 3 or 6 months. It’s an ongoing process that spans years.
But most UI designers need clarity before they dive deeper. They need to understand what UX really is, why it matters, and where to start.
This course gives you exactly that: strong UX foundations so you can continue your learning journey with confidence and direction.
No false promises. No shortcuts. Just honest, practical knowledge that will change how you think about design.
What This Course ISN’T
- ✗ A complete UX certification (you’ll have foundations, not mastery)
- ✗ Tool-specific training (we focus on thinking, not software)
- ✗ A “get a UX job in 7 days” promise (career transitions take time)
- ✗ Everything about UX (that takes years; this gives you the clarity to start)
What This Course IS
- ✓ Your launchpad into UX thinking
- ✓ Clear understanding of what UX actually involves
- ✓ Practical frameworks you’ll use for years
- ✓ Honest guidance on what to learn next
- ✓ The clarity you need before diving deeper
Who This Course Is For
UI and visual designers who can make a polished screen and want to know whether it solves the right problem. It also suits developers, product managers and career changers starting out in UX. You need no research experience, no particular tool and no sign-up.
How It Works
Each chapter follows one story, lesson by lesson. You answer before you read, play short games, and make a bet about what happens next. Every chapter ends with a test and a project you make for real.
What You’ll Be Able to Do
By the end of the four chapters you will be able to:
- Describe any product by what people do with it, and back it up with evidence
- Find the beliefs an idea rests on, and test the riskiest one first
- Interview people about what really happened, and watch them work
- Turn notes into patterns, personas and journey maps that change a decision
- Read numbers without being fooled, and write a one-page readout
The four chapters
Read them in order. Each chapter follows one story, and ends with a test and a project.
- 1
Design for behaviour, not screens
Learn to see a product the way its users do. See what it does for them, not how it looks. By the end, you can describe any product by what people do with it, and back it up with evidence.
- 2
Find out if you're wrong, before you build
Learn to see the beliefs inside every idea, and to find out which ones are wrong before you build. By the end, you can turn any feature request into a few small tests.
- 3
Ask what happened, not what people want
Learn to interview people about what really happened, and to watch them work. By the end, you can plan and run an interview that finds the real problem, not a wish list.
- 4
Turn notes into decisions
Learn to turn a pile of notes into a decision. By the end, you can find the real pattern and keep the case that doesn't fit. You can read numbers without being fooled, and write it all on one page.
Planned next
Not written yet, and no date. The four chapters above are a complete course on their own.
- 5
Biases: theirs and yours
Spot the mental shortcuts in your users’ choices, and the ones in your own decisions.
- 6
Taste: tell good from familiar
Predict where people will get stuck before you test, and say why.
- 7
Working with AI
Use AI to sort your research without letting it make things up.
More chapters
Get one email when chapter 5 is out
Chapters 1 to 4 are done. Three more are planned, but they are not written yet and there is no date. Leave your email and you will get one message when chapter 5 is ready. Nothing else.
Frequently asked questions
Is the UX foundation course really free?
Yes. All 27 lessons are free to read, with no sign-up, no email and no trial. The course pages carry no ads.
Who is this course for?
UI and visual designers who want to understand what UX involves, and anyone starting out in UX. You need no research experience and no particular tool.
How long does it take?
About 8 hours in total, across 4 chapters. Most lessons take fifteen minutes. One chapter a week, with time to try each lesson on your own work, takes about a month.
Do I get a certificate?
No. The course gives you foundations, not a credential. What you can show instead is the work: each chapter ends with a project you make for real, like a behaviour brief, an assumption map, an interview kit and a research readout.
Do I need to read the lessons in order?
Yes, if you can. Each chapter follows one story, and each lesson opens where the last one stopped. Your answers save in your browser, so you can stop and come back.
Will there be more chapters?
Yes, three more are planned: Biases: theirs and yours, Taste: tell good from familiar, Working with AI. They are not written yet and there is no date. Leave your email on this page to get one message when chapter 5 is out.
What should I learn after this course?
The design fundamentals series, in order: the elements of design, the principles, and the Gestalt principles of perception. Then the UX articles on research, psychology and bias.
Written by