- Luck kicked me out of my comfort zone in real estate.
- Luck made me fail 13 times.
- Luck humiliated my ego.
- Luck made me move.
- Luck destroyed the company.
- Luck forced me into madness.
- Luck took me on a roller-coaster ride.
- Luck gave me burnout.
- Luck brought me to a hospital bed.
- Looking back, my ‘luck’ was never about jackpot moments.
Alex Kreger, UX Strategist & Founder of the financial UX design agency UXDA, designs leading banking and fintech products in 39 countries.
One morning, I woke up unemployed, in six-figure debt and with a newborn in my arms. Congratulations—I’ve reached the highest level of achievement.
Some people say entrepreneurship is all about luck. But if you look closely, luck often looks like a car crash in slow motion. I can confirm this with my whole life.
And here I am—leading a boutique design agency that has designed complex banking and fintech applications in 39 countries, won global design awards and received plenty of praise from our clients.
We’re not in Silicon Valley, not funded, not owned by big agencies and not fed clients by them. And this year, it’s our 10th anniversary.
How did a stubborn guy from Latvia (hope you’ve heard of this place) with no money, no team and no plan survive this roller coaster? Here’s my history of so-called “luck”—and the lessons an MBA will never tell you:
Luck kicked me out of my comfort zone in real estate.
I started working at 16, and by my 30s, I had a great career as a real estate marketing manager. A big salary, and even bigger pride—until the 2008 crash vaporized everything. Suddenly, I was jobless, six figures in debt, with a newborn daughter.
Takeaway: Sometimes the only way out of your comfort zone is by getting kicked out with steel-toed boots. Pain is a feature, not a bug.
Luck made me fail 13 times.
Hungry and broke, I tried 13 businesses. All flopped. My résumé looked less like “entrepreneur” and more like “serial loser.” Finally, I tried an online startup, inspired by Facebook. Surprise: That failed, too.
Takeaway: Losing repeatedly isn’t proof you’re cursed—it’s proof you’re still in training and the tuition fee for figuring out what game you’re actually meant to play.
Luck humiliated my ego.
My wife saved us from starvation by finding me a project manager job at a tiny web studio. We made $500 websites for clients who spent more on curtains. My new salary was 10 times less than before. My pride took the same haircut.
When your ego weighs more than your wallet, it’s time to downsize. There, I met my future cofounder.
Takeaway: To move forward, you have to drop the baggage of who you think you are. Ego doesn’t pay the bills. But hard times can be networking events in disguise.
Luck made me move.
The studio was sinking. So I started hunting clients myself. In the process, I discovered UX research and HCD design, starting to build my own methodology. That curiosity turned our standard $500 websites into $5,000 projects, then $25,000, $100,000 and eventually million-dollar engagements.
Takeaway: When you’re cornered, try the near door you’ve ignored—it might be the entrance to your future. Opportunity often hides behind the door you never thought to knock on.
Luck destroyed the company.
Within three years, we had 40 people, three offices…and sudden bankruptcy. Clients gone, owners gone, staff gone. Only my cofounder, our intern and I remained—sitting in an empty office with unpaid rent, silent phones and broken hopes.
Takeaway: Someone else’s collapse can be your construction site. Learn from the ruins.
Luck forced me into madness.
Instead of running for jobs, I pitched my cofounder: one service, one niche, the whole world. UX design for finance. Too insane, too simple. No team, no money—just pure madness. And it worked.
Takeaway: The world doesn’t need another jack-of-all-trades. It needs your sharpest knife. The narrower your niche, the bigger your world. Take your place.
Luck took me on a roller-coaster ride.
The first five years were like strapping into a roller coaster without seatbelts. We hustled 24/7, fueled by pure audacity. I took client calls while pushing my second newborn stroller. We survived conflicts, betrayals, deception, despair and enough drama to fill a Netflix series.
It was not about just building usability. To rebuild trust in an industry people love to hate, we pioneered “dopamine banking“—designing financial experiences that please users emotionally, not just functionally.
Takeaway: If you want to build something extraordinary, you’ll have to give it everything—and then some. If your users aren’t moved, you’ve only built software, not an experience.
Luck gave me burnout.
We won top design awards and received glowing coverage in publications. Our design inventions impacted the industry. Banks lined up. Clients cried with joy. Our prices rivaled the world’s top agencies. I should’ve been ecstatic.
Instead, I was empty. Burned out. A desert where passion used to be. I’d reached success but lost myself in the process.
Takeaway: Your passion can kill you if you don’t set boundaries.
Luck brought me to a hospital bed.
Covid-19 put me in a hospital bed with oxygen tubes. Couldn’t walk. Couldn’t think. Lying there, I realized I didn’t miss the contracts or invoices. I missed my daughters’ laughter, my wife’s voice, the rustle of autumn leaves. After my recovery, I changed my life, and I am still doing so.
Takeaway: Success in life isn’t only about clients, deals or awards. It’s about living—deeply, fully, with the people you love.
Looking back, my ‘luck’ was never about jackpot moments.
It was about disasters dressed as invitations to grow.
Ten years. Over 150 complex financial services designed. Dozens of global awards. A boutique agency with worldwide reach—built out of a country many bankers still can’t find on a map.
My cofounder and I didn’t build our company alone. Our real luck is our crew. UXDA became more than a company—it became a tribe of believers crazy enough to treat finance like art, and stubborn enough to keep pushing.
And yet, the biggest win of all isn’t the trophies. It’s the family I come home to—three kids who are already busy stacking up their own failures on the way to earning their luck. And I am there to support them.
In the end, luck isn’t given. It’s built—one failure, one leap, one lesson at a time.
Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?
