Read the Persona* (please see notes below) below and then learn what your brain does. Alan is a 30 year old white male living in New York. 6 months ago, he got married in Miami Florida. It was a big event where lots of friends and family attended. He graduated from University with an MFA degree, but was also always… Read More ￫
When I start a new design (a full project or a feature) I turn off my computer. I make sure to delay the launch of a design software as much as I can. I need to make sure that I get the big picture of what I am working on. To not be distracted with the details and lose my… Read More ￫
Introduction This article will teach you two popular design workshop techniques: empathy mapping and user journey mapping. Empathy mapping is a way to characterise your target users in order to make effective design decisions. User journey mapping is a way to deconstruct a userâs experience with a product or service as a series of steps and themes. Put simply, these… Read More ￫
People are all getting familiar with the âHuman-centeredâ design process. It has become a common term especially in companies where customers always come first. But I wonder where did it all start? Who started it? What was the reason behind it? Doors. Confusing doors. Confusing doors are everywhere. They are also known as, ‘Norman Doors’. Why? Don Norman is: a… Read More ￫
âGolden Ratioâ is of great importance in the design of architecture, appliances, logos and photos. I donât want to write about it a lot, you can learn it in Wikipedia. I will say briefly: our consciousness tends to harmony and beauty, and the âgolden ratioâ is the elegant way to make a product more comfortable and nice for perception. Simply… Read More ￫
Every designer needs to set their own design principles. There, Iâve said it. In the very first line of my article. Now letâs get down to the details. Design principles are very common among large and well-established companies. Google, Atlassian, even British Government (just to name a few) have their own design rules. And thatâs pretty cool. Why? Well, it… Read More ￫
After the overwhelmingly positive interest in my Designing Data-Driven Interfaces article, I decided to write about this related and equally important topic: managing complexity. You know that unsettling feeling when youâre half way through a project and youâre presenting design concepts? No major feedback, smiles across the table, heads nodding yes. Home run right? No, that feeling scares the shit… Read More ￫
This how-to article aims at providing designers, creative thinkers or even project managers with a tool to set up, frame, organise, structure, run or manage design challenges, and projects: The Double Diamond Process revamped. The Double Diamond Process revamped In order to do so, I have come up with an own and a revamped version of the Double Diamond process…. Read More ￫
Since placeholders came along, designers have adopted them as means of storing hints. Their appeal lies in their minimal aesthetic and the fact they save space. “Since placeholders came along, designers have adopted them as means of storing hints.” Some designers go one one step further, and replace labels with placeholders. Either way, the placeholder is an Inclusive Design anti-pattern… Read More ￫
You may have heard before that it’s easy to go from bad to good but difficult to go from good to great. Practicing design for many years across a range of industries in successful companies, I have identified some consistencies in design teams that lead to (or prevent) great design. Iâve boiled those factors down into 4 principals which I… Read More ￫
When I was a young Houstonian, learning algebra my freshman year at Elsik High school (cue the old jokes, or algebra jokes) I hated showing my work. I mean I loathed it! I thought showing my work was for chumps! I thought to myself, âI donât need to do that, solving the problem and showing the answer is whatâs important.â… Read More ￫
At the beginning of last year I had the privilege of leading a team of 14 newly hired, enthused and ambitious designers at IBM Studios Austin. This team was part of a much larger group of 56 Designers and 24 Associate Offering Managersâââall starting their journey together as makers, thinkers, and innovators in one of the most significant companies in… Read More ￫