iSPRING DAYS 2025
10 Mistakes We Made Before Becoming Instructional Designers
Breaking into instructional design? Learn from someone who’s been through it all. Holly Owens and Sam Taylor will get together to discuss their candid experiences of becoming instructional designers.
Join this live interview to explore the 10 mistakes they made before finding success, along with practical tips to help you grow faster and more effectively.
In this session, you’ll learn:
- Explore practical strategies to avoid common ID career pitfalls
- Learn from real-life experiences to better manage stakeholder relationships
- Discover valuable tools and resources to support your growth in the field
- Get a clear path to finding your first ID job, equipped with tips to accelerate your career growth
Special perks for attendees:
- The session recording
- A certificate of attendance issued by iSpring
- An exclusive guide on transitioning to instructional design
About the presenter
Holly Owens
Instructional Designer
Meet Holly Owens, a seasoned educator, instructional technologist, and podcast host, committed to designing impactful learning experiences. With over 17 years of experience in education and corporate settings, Holly has a deep passion for educational technology and online learning. She holds dual master’s degrees in Instructional Technology and Distance Learning from the University of Maryland, Global Campus. She has taught at prestigious institutions like the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and Touro University.
Meet Holly Owens, a seasoned educator, instructional technologist, and podcast host, committed to designing impactful learning experiences. With over 17 years of experience in education and corporate settings, Holly has a deep passion for educational technology and online learning. She holds dual master’s degrees in Instructional Technology and Distance Learning from the University of Maryland, Global Campus. She has taught at prestigious institutions like the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and Touro University.
Sam Taylor
Sr. Instructional Designer
Sam Taylor is a Sr. Instructional Designer living in the San Francisco Bay Area. She taught middle school science for four years and has a Master’s Degree in Curriculum Design and Instruction. Sam has worked in the tech industry for over six years, and has spent it in the Customer Education world building out various Software as a Service (SaaS) certification programs, and is now leading the eLearning training program for Customer Experience (CX) agents at a financial tech company.
Sam Taylor is a Sr. Instructional Designer living in the San Francisco Bay Area. She taught middle school science for four years and has a Master’s Degree in Curriculum Design and Instruction. Sam has worked in the tech industry for over six years, and has spent it in the Customer Education world building out various Software as a Service (SaaS) certification programs, and is now leading the eLearning training program for Customer Experience (CX) agents at a financial tech company.
Featured webinars
How do you introduce new employees to your company and their jobs? Do you have a new hire onboarding program that helps you solve common staff issues on the grid? Are you happy about the outcome?
If it's not your first year in business, you’re probably well aware of the challenges a lot of companies face when hiring new employees. High turnover, low engagement, and enormous training costs… just to name a few. Fortunately, you can overcome many of these challenges by implementing eLearning in your workplace.
During the webinar, we will share our expertise on how a well-established process of employee onboarding and online training can help your business solve existing issues and advance to the next level.
AI can accelerate course development, helping you organize content, generate text, and create visuals. But without a clear framework, it’s easy to use AI incorrectly or produce content that misses the mark. This often leads to generic courses, inconsistent quality, and questions about the author's academic integrity.
This session will show you how to use AI as a support for your decisions — not a replacement.
Get new webinars right in your inbox
Receive invitations to upcoming webinars and workshops to your email, and be the first to know about upcoming live expert sessions.