Being a product designer was not my first career path of choice. Initially a science student; food technology to be exact, and was very set to be a scientist. Then life threw a curveball somehow & to continue pursuing science career path is no longer an option. It didn't stop me though, so I looked for alternate career path & eventually discovered product design.
When life gives you lemon, might as well make a lemonade
The various aspects involved (brainstorming, doing research, designing, writing, etc) in the designing process piqued my interest right away. It's pretty much the same things I do on my studied-field; same trailer different park situation, so I believe the skills I've studied/already possessed can be useful & possibly honed in this newly-discovered field. I also admire the idea of being able to improve and even possibly change people's life through design, so that's my cue to shoot my shot at UI/UX design.