How I Went From Jail to Building a Design Career.

A resilient journey from deportation to working at top tech companies.

The playbook newsletter is officially launching today and this post is deeply personal to me. This story shaped who I am and the path that brought me here.

Back in 2006-2007 (no old shaming please), the design industry was unrecognizable compared to today. Mostly boomer agencies, with the occasional web startup gig if you were lucky, especially in France.

I was stuck in a local company in my hometown, rotting away and wasting time.

What started as a one-month trip to New York to visit a close friend turned into me overstaying, working in restaurants to survive. I fell hard for the city—a literal spark. Learning a new language, hustling, figuring things out as I went.

I knew the risks but at this stage of my life, going back home wasn’t an option.

I started as a busboy. Two months later, I was managing the place. A restaurant near Union Square. That’s where I met my mentor Matias Corea, co-founder of Behance.

Through him and Scott Belsky, I found myself spending time at Behance, surrounded b…