Elena Petkovska

Founder of Omnilyst OÜ

The User Persona Template Set That Helped 5,000+ Designers Worldwide Build Better Products

Product Design

Sep 15, 2025

The User Persona Template Set That Helped 5,000+ Designers Worldwide Build Better Products

Make sure what you're building is needed, before you make it perfect. Strong UX starts with user-centered design and real-world feedback.

Elena Petkovska

If You're Building an App Without a Technical Background, Stop and Read These 10 Hidden Costs Before You Go Live with Your AI-Built App

Product Design

Sep 1, 2025

If You're Building an App Without a Technical Background, Stop and Read These 10 Hidden Costs Before You Go Live with Your AI-Built App

Launching an AI app with no-code tools? Avoid these 10 hidden traps that destroy early startups, from API costs to prompt issues, data handling, and GDPR risks

Elena Petkovska

Is UC Santa Cruz “Coding for Everyone: C and C++ Specialization” Worth Your Time in 2025?

Education

Aug 18, 2025

Is UC Santa Cruz “Coding for Everyone: C and C++ Specialization” Worth Your Time in 2025?

A practical assessment based on completing the UC Santa Cruz C & C++ Specialization, outlining who benefits most, where it falls short, and how it fits into the 2025 tech landscape.

Elena Petkovska

Jul 7, 2025

Why Your "Human Voice" Isn't As Unique As You Think: Authenticity, AI, and What Actually Builds Trust

Your unique voice might be a remix of everything you've consumed. What that changes about building authentic brands in the AI era.

Elena Petkovska

From Products to Philosophies: How Nike, Davidoff, and Patagonia Built Movements Through Strategic Communication

Brand

Jun 30, 2025

From Products to Philosophies: How Nike, Davidoff, and Patagonia Built Movements Through Strategic Communication

How Nike, Davidoff, and Patagonia transformed from product sellers into cultural movements through strategic content. Examining the specific turning points where these brands stopped selling products and started selling philosophies.

Elena Petkovska

Jun 23, 2025

We Created a Free Course on Brand Voice for Small Businesses That Can't Afford Marketing Teams

Build a complete brand voice strategy from scratch and walk away with a custom-made PDF based on your own answers. You’ll have it ready before your coffee gets cold.

Elena Petkovska

Startups

Jun 9, 2025

The 5-Day Rebrand That Transformed How People Saw Our Platform Omnilyst: From Generic SaaS to Brand With Improved Identity

We moved from corporate dark navy to human-centered design in five days and conversion rates increased 35 percent. Why brand clarity mattered more than adding new features.

Elena Petkovska

Is Taking the Google UX Design Professional Certificate Program Still Worthwhile in 2025?

Education

May 5, 2025

Is Taking the Google UX Design Professional Certificate Program Still Worthwhile in 2025?

A practical review of the Google UX Design Certificate based on direct experience, breaking down its strengths, limitations, and how it fits into 2025’s competitive design landscape.

Elena Petkovska

Apr 28, 2025

One Year After Startup Weekend: What We Built, What We Learned, and What Comes Next

What a Techstars Startup Weekend actually looks like inside those 54 hours, and how we went from weekend prototype to completing the EIT Grand Finals few months later

Elena Petkovska

Is the Google Digital Marketing & E-Commerce Certificate Worth It in 2025

Education

Apr 21, 2025

Is the Google Digital Marketing & E-Commerce Certificate Worth It in 2025

A full breakdown of the 7-course program from the inside. What I gained, what I didn’t, and who this certification helps most in today’s job market.

Elena Petkovska

Public Speaking

Apr 7, 2025

From Perfect Slides on Two Hours Sleep to Confident Delivery: What Actually Matters in Public Speaking

The preparation framework that prevents common failure patterns, including when to stop practicing and why all-nighters guarantee poor delivery.

Elena Petkovska

From Participant to Mentor: What UWC Deutschland's Program Taught Me Over Three Years

Education

Mar 31, 2025

From Participant to Mentor: What UWC Deutschland's Program Taught Me Over Three Years

A Reflection on UWC's Global Mission, the Berlin Short Course, and Mentoring Fellowship Projects Across Europe.

Elena Petkovska

EIT Jumpstarter 2025: Interview By BAU Accelerator

Interviews

Mar 17, 2025

EIT Jumpstarter 2025: Interview By BAU Accelerator

Ahead of the official opening of applications for this year, we spoke with Elena Petkovska, founder of the startup Omnilyst, to reach the finals of last year’s program and present its startup in Budapest.

Elena Petkovska

Beyond Celebration: Read These Stories of European Women - It’s Time We Start Recognising Impact, Not Just the Buzzwords

Interviews

Mar 8, 2025

Beyond Celebration: Read These Stories of European Women - It’s Time We Start Recognising Impact, Not Just the Buzzwords

On November 29th, we met in person at the EIT Manufacturing RIS Hubs Conference in Budapest, after completing the 2024 Women Innovators Training Program under the EIT Regional Innovation Scheme

Elena Petkovska

What a Week-Long Facilitation Training in the Netherlands Taught Me About Leading International Teams

Education

Mar 3, 2025

What a Week-Long Facilitation Training in the Netherlands Taught Me About Leading International Teams

On a week in Ommen learning facilitation by doing it daily, researching Amsterdam's housing crisis as a case study, and discovering why leading workshops for people from eight countries teaches more than any methodology textbook ever could

Elena Petkovska

What International Debates Taught Me About Working Across Borders

Education

Feb 24, 2025

What International Debates Taught Me About Working Across Borders

On multiple days of structured discussion with participants from seventy countries, the assumptions that collapse when context disappears, and why distributed teams require a different kind of communication entirely

Elena Petkovska

What Building an International Youth Platform Taught Me About NGOs

Education

Feb 17, 2025

What Building an International Youth Platform Taught Me About NGOs

On creating Not Too Young with teams from Slovakia, Germany, and Greece, what coordinating across borders actually requires, and why clarity about mission matters more than enthusiasm ever will.

Elena Petkovska

What Actually Happens Inside a Front-End Development Internship

Career

Feb 10, 2025

What Actually Happens Inside a Front-End Development Internship

In this internship at Unlimited Coders, I realised something most juniors don’t get warned about: overdelivering without permission can look like you can’t follow instructions. This changed the way I approach tasks forever.

Elena Petkovska

How Working in Leipzig Taught Me That Professional Growth Requires Being Slightly Annoying

Education

Feb 3, 2025

How Working in Leipzig Taught Me That Professional Growth Requires Being Slightly Annoying

On an internship in Germany, the discipline of fifteen-minute lunch breaks, and why persistently asking for more work is the fastest way to learn anything.

Elena Petkovska

The Language Barrier Nobody Talks About: What Mastering English Actually Unlocks

Education

Jan 27, 2025

The Language Barrier Nobody Talks About: What Mastering English Actually Unlocks

On the strange method that worked, why reading books I did not understand changed everything, and what I now help other founders overcome the same.

Elena Petkovska

Research Papers

Jan 20, 2025

From Brand Conceptualization to Server-Side Implementation: The Full Stack Reality of Building Commercial Web Applications

How user interface theory, database architecture, responsive breakpoints, and checkout flow optimization intersect in ways design textbooks don't address, plus the performance implications of high-resolution artwork galleries on WordPress infrastructure.

Elena Petkovska

Exhibitions

Jan 13, 2025

What 500+ Design Projects and 1000 Visitors Taught Me About Public Portfolio Exhibitions

Designing for screens is one thing. Explaining those designs to a crowd of 1000 people — including confused grandmothers and sharp recruiters — is another.

Elena Petkovska

Beyond the Final Presentation and The 3-6 Month Timeline Myth: What Design School Graduate Employment Data Reveals

Career

Jan 6, 2025

Beyond the Final Presentation and The 3-6 Month Timeline Myth: What Design School Graduate Employment Data Reveals

Analysis of Design Education ROI, Regional Employment Gaps, and the Skills That Transfer vs. Those That Don't

Elena Petkovska

What C++ Teaches That No Other Language Does: Memory, Speed, and the Systems Thinking That Outlasts Every Framework

Research Papers

Dec 23, 2024

What C++ Teaches That No Other Language Does: Memory, Speed, and the Systems Thinking That Outlasts Every Framework

From Syntax to Systems: What 1000 Programs and Prof. Ira Pohl's Curriculum Taught Me About the Computational Foundations That Outlast Every Framework

Elena Petkovska

Dec 15, 2024

AI in Action: What Building Automation Tools for Companies Taught Me About the Gap Between AI Hype and AI Implementation

On attending the 14th International Summer School at the Faculty of Economics, collaborating with software companies, and learning what it actually takes to automate workflows that matter.

Elena Petkovska

Elena Petkovska

The User Persona Template Set That Helped 5,000+ Designers Worldwide Build Better Products

If You're Building an App Without a Technical Background, Stop and Read These 10 Hidden Costs Before You Go Live with Your AI-Built App

Is UC Santa Cruz “Coding for Everyone: C and C++ Specialization” Worth Your Time in 2025?

Why Your "Human Voice" Isn't As Unique As You Think: Authenticity, AI, and What Actually Builds Trust

From Products to Philosophies: How Nike, Davidoff, and Patagonia Built Movements Through Strategic Communication

We Created a Free Course on Brand Voice for Small Businesses That Can't Afford Marketing Teams

The 5-Day Rebrand That Transformed How People Saw Our Platform Omnilyst: From Generic SaaS to Brand With Improved Identity

Is Taking the Google UX Design Professional Certificate Program Still Worthwhile in 2025?

One Year After Startup Weekend: What We Built, What We Learned, and What Comes Next

Is the Google Digital Marketing & E-Commerce Certificate Worth It in 2025

From Perfect Slides on Two Hours Sleep to Confident Delivery: What Actually Matters in Public Speaking

From Participant to Mentor: What UWC Deutschland's Program Taught Me Over Three Years

EIT Jumpstarter 2025: Interview By BAU Accelerator

Beyond Celebration: Read These Stories of European Women - It’s Time We Start Recognising Impact, Not Just the Buzzwords

What a Week-Long Facilitation Training in the Netherlands Taught Me About Leading International Teams

What International Debates Taught Me About Working Across Borders

What Building an International Youth Platform Taught Me About NGOs

What Actually Happens Inside a Front-End Development Internship

How Working in Leipzig Taught Me That Professional Growth Requires Being Slightly Annoying

The Language Barrier Nobody Talks About: What Mastering English Actually Unlocks

From Brand Conceptualization to Server-Side Implementation: The Full Stack Reality of Building Commercial Web Applications

What 500+ Design Projects and 1000 Visitors Taught Me About Public Portfolio Exhibitions

Beyond the Final Presentation and The 3-6 Month Timeline Myth: What Design School Graduate Employment Data Reveals

What C++ Teaches That No Other Language Does: Memory, Speed, and the Systems Thinking That Outlasts Every Framework

AI in Action: What Building Automation Tools for Companies Taught Me About the Gap Between AI Hype and AI Implementation

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