Sage with Design

One of the most impressive things you can do in life is to do your "thing" really well. It's astonishing to hear a guitar solo from a guitarist. Or when a mountain climber makes it to the top.  As a designer, there is nothing more important than to create design work that is creative, innovative, industry-changing and so obviously compelling that everyone who sees it wants to have a say in it and play a part.

Acknowledge that there is a difference between design and craft.  Designers create designs that fill a niche and solve a problem, while the aesthetics or the "pretty part" comes with craft. Design leads to breakthroughs whereas craft ensures that design achieves what it intends to.

Cheaper seltzer has more intense carbonation than premium brands. It's hard for me to justify spending 2 or 3 times the amount that generic seltzer costs. When curiosity does get to me, I'm often disappointed (with the exception of Liquid Death's Mango Chainsaw). Finer bubbles aren't satisfying, even though they're the "good" kind. There are worse things to become accustomed to. Biases can develop without us realizing. Which is good to be conscious of while designing and it's why data-driven design decisions are essential.

Design thinking is the big one. It's a non-linear way of going about identifying people's problems and designing risk-adverse solutions. Product thinking is linear and focused on making the product more efficient. Creative thinking means trying to generate new ideas that solve problems by considering different perspectives and decisions. Strategic thinking is aligning your actions with your data-driven goals. Systems thinking depends on your field and project, but it can be about seeing the wider picture of design systems and ecosystems to either improve efficiencies or better understand users. Collaborative thinking involves stakeholders sharing their ideas so the product meets their needs. Critical thinking is evaluating information to identify and solve problems. Visual thinking is how you make your drawing, prototype or render as impactful as possible. Lateral (divergent) thinking is thinking outside the box. Linear thinking is logical and straight-forward. Which ar...

The presentation starts in 15 minutes. You're nervous and looking for more confidence but it's just not there.  Confidence isn't the only tool for the underprepared. What you need is courage. Courage doesn't feel good like confidence. You take action despite fear. If you're in this situation, it means you have to learn something. And once you follow through, even if you fail, you'll be more confident next time.

The most popular way to create a 3D model is by placing sets of faces, edges and vertices (surfaces, lines, curves and points) within your 3D modeling software. Faces, edges and vertices make up a type of model called a B-rep, or Boundary Representation. This is standard for Solidworks, AutoCAD and Blender. You define the limits that represent the boundaries of your model. Ai typically does not generate B-reps, instead they make Implicit models. Implicit models have existed since the 1960s, but you may not know about them because they're a challenging specialized tool. They are comprised of math functions to achieve a 3D model.  There are no faces, edges or vertices; there is only surface. Here's an example of how to make a sphere using a B-rep or Mesh:  In Solidworks, you can create a sphere by using the sphere tool under "Features." The sphere needs to have a radius of 1000mm, so you edit it with the dimensions tool. A sphere's defined limits can also be Mesh....

You design what you think. "In America, you have to control your diet very carefully. If you feed on things that are easy and accessible, that's what you put out yourself. The kind of exciting chemical explosions which take place when you're experimenting are much more likely to occur if you make mad choices." -Tom Waits

Ideas are fleeting. Like a butterfly, an idea can appear and disappear in an instant.  The loss of epiphany can feel as burdensome as death. But really it's a person's contemplative nature that shows the surest sign of being alive.  In order to catch good ideas you have to be willing to put pen to paper. To sketch, to prototype, to experiment. You have to be willing to take risks and try new things. And a designer's greatest countermeasure to missing out on ideas is to carry a sketchbook. Putting pen to paper is a lot like borrowing a butterfly net. You won't catch butterflies by thinking about catching butterflies.

If UX research weren't essential, every successful business wouldn't prioritize it. When designing for a client, however, greater influence should be given to the stakeholders who support your business. You may know the best design practices, but if your clients aren't delighted, your vision will be irrelevant. 

No matter how much you love your job, a bad day of pinball is better than a good day at work.  

You can have passion for what you do without it consuming you. Taking time for yourself and loved ones does not reflect the absence of devotion. Without setting boundaries around a healthy work-life balance, burnout is inevitable. There are moments when stepping away from work can be the most productive thing you can do.

Coming up with a good idea can feel like fishing. Go fishing often, you'll catch a fish.

What we want isn't always good for us. Most people sabotage themselves when they get the opportunity and without full appreciation of it.  Growing up poor makes you crave a stocked refrigerator. Meat is too expensive, so you have ramen, canned beans and peanut butter and jelly day after day. So when your new job earns you some real money, it's easy to secure your better life by constantly keeping a fully stocked fridge, despite throwing out lettuce every week. Money is sacrificed for the secure feeling that comes with abundance.  User needs are prioritized first because it's easy to sell someone a solution to their technical issue. When we appeal to wants, it's based on what users tell us they want and what we already know that they will gravitate towards. Filling in blanks for user wants are risky because we venture into assumption territory.  It's damn difficult to sell someone on your word. The designer who relies on their designer's eye will appeal to their ...

When we introduce more products that are designed to be accessible to, and to serve, only the privileged, we dehumanize ourselves.

It's fun to argue about a good or bad design. The real work, though, is concerned with intent and evidence. Sequential logic and user experience data is always more valid than, "I'm just not sure if I like it."

"________ was here" carved in a tree or a bathroom stall is a lot like the Voyager Golden Records. Voyagers 1 and 2 still soar through space to explore beyond our solar system. The peaceful messages in different languages and media are there in case alien life discovers it. Each message is simple and each is a mark to show that people exist. It's a way of saying, "I am here." A meaningful message can be a funny thing. 

 Don't bring an umbrella to a brainstorm.

Many popular designers become popular by posting sketches and renderings on Instagram or TikTok.  But the truth is that drawing is a technical skill. Like learning how to be a bartender, you practice and learn new techniques until you have a style.  The difficult part is empathizing with the right stakeholders and designing something they can get behind. But that's not as exciting as drawings of hot rods and tug boats.

Which is not to say that you should settle for less. It's about utilizing resources and being realistic about expectations. It ties in with the mantra, "Fail early and fail often." But not everything is a lesson, sometimes you just don't win. 

 That's what it means to be a good designer. "If people don't either love or hate your work, you just haven't done all that much." -Tinker Hatfield