6 Jan 2022
6 Jan 2022
6 Jan 2022
A letter to Product designers starting out
A letter to Product designers starting out
A letter to Product designers starting out
Another crazy year has passed in my design journey, and I wanted to write some key lessons to myself. When I collected a few, I came to realize that these can be very useful for product designers starting out. So, in the spirit of the new year, I will write a letter to “past” me, in hopes that it will help “present” you.
Another crazy year has passed in my design journey, and I wanted to write some key lessons to myself. When I collected a few, I came to realize that these can be very useful for product designers starting out. So, in the spirit of the new year, I will write a letter to “past” me, in hopes that it will help “present” you.
Another crazy year has passed in my design journey, and I wanted to write some key lessons to myself. When I collected a few, I came to realize that these can be very useful for product designers starting out. So, in the spirit of the new year, I will write a letter to “past” me, in hopes that it will help “present” you.
It’s not by the book
When we learn about design thinking in school or online, we see this clean, untouched, almost surgical process, from zero to one. We see research methods step by step, ideation workshops with colored sticky notes, and cool people smiling at each other. We see flawless interface designs on 3D mockups and happy customers using them.
Unfortunately, real life is a bit different. Companies (especially in their early days) are extremely messy. You hop on as a product designer with the dream to play it by the book and generate exceptional results, and you feel let down when none of this is possible. None of your work looks like “the books”, processes are cut off, and stretched, resources do not exist, and no one besides you knows what the hell is “design thinking” anyway.
When we learn about design thinking in school or online, we see this clean, untouched, almost surgical process, from zero to one. We see research methods step by step, ideation workshops with colored sticky notes, and cool people smiling at each other. We see flawless interface designs on 3D mockups and happy customers using them.
Unfortunately, real life is a bit different. Companies (especially in their early days) are extremely messy. You hop on as a product designer with the dream to play it by the book and generate exceptional results, and you feel let down when none of this is possible. None of your work looks like “the books”, processes are cut off, and stretched, resources do not exist, and no one besides you knows what the hell is “design thinking” anyway.
When we learn about design thinking in school or online, we see this clean, untouched, almost surgical process, from zero to one. We see research methods step by step, ideation workshops with colored sticky notes, and cool people smiling at each other. We see flawless interface designs on 3D mockups and happy customers using them.
Unfortunately, real life is a bit different. Companies (especially in their early days) are extremely messy. You hop on as a product designer with the dream to play it by the book and generate exceptional results, and you feel let down when none of this is possible. None of your work looks like “the books”, processes are cut off, and stretched, resources do not exist, and no one besides you knows what the hell is “design thinking” anyway.
Respect the profession
This one is more for those who are self-taught (meaning learned online and not in a university or professional program) product designers.
Seeing many designers starting out and having feedback sessions on projects and portfolios, I came to realize that many self-taught designers lack some of the basic visual communication principles, and basic technology, and human understanding. This happens since self-taught designers are their own ‘professors’ and their own curricula, therefore they can skip to the ‘good part’ which is designing cool-looking screens and writing vague case studies with solutions that lack the right basics, tech-savviness and are biased towards what they already created.
This one is more for those who are self-taught (meaning learned online and not in a university or professional program) product designers.
Seeing many designers starting out and having feedback sessions on projects and portfolios, I came to realize that many self-taught designers lack some of the basic visual communication principles, and basic technology, and human understanding. This happens since self-taught designers are their own ‘professors’ and their own curricula, therefore they can skip to the ‘good part’ which is designing cool-looking screens and writing vague case studies with solutions that lack the right basics, tech-savviness and are biased towards what they already created.
This one is more for those who are self-taught (meaning learned online and not in a university or professional program) product designers.
Seeing many designers starting out and having feedback sessions on projects and portfolios, I came to realize that many self-taught designers lack some of the basic visual communication principles, and basic technology, and human understanding. This happens since self-taught designers are their own ‘professors’ and their own curricula, therefore they can skip to the ‘good part’ which is designing cool-looking screens and writing vague case studies with solutions that lack the right basics, tech-savviness and are biased towards what they already created.
How to define better inspiration
First of all, recognize that inspiration is (incoming cliche) a feeling. And being a feeling, different people might experience it from different triggers. But the point remains — Use the same resources, and get the same results. Find something new, and you might do something new.
Another important aspect is that inspiration does not have to be similar to the ‘thing’ you’re creating. You don’t need a visual to create a visual. Sometimes, A good line in a book about design thinking can open a new approach to creating something completely visual.
First of all, recognize that inspiration is (incoming cliche) a feeling. And being a feeling, different people might experience it from different triggers. But the point remains — Use the same resources, and get the same results. Find something new, and you might do something new.
Another important aspect is that inspiration does not have to be similar to the ‘thing’ you’re creating. You don’t need a visual to create a visual. Sometimes, A good line in a book about design thinking can open a new approach to creating something completely visual.
First of all, recognize that inspiration is (incoming cliche) a feeling. And being a feeling, different people might experience it from different triggers. But the point remains — Use the same resources, and get the same results. Find something new, and you might do something new.
Another important aspect is that inspiration does not have to be similar to the ‘thing’ you’re creating. You don’t need a visual to create a visual. Sometimes, A good line in a book about design thinking can open a new approach to creating something completely visual.
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