Design rules, a new level and design thinking

The best ideas of recent weeks from The Design Times Telegram channel.

There are no rules in design

Apart from the task, all the rules in design are useless. They are either too broad and talk about trivial things, or too narrow and depend on the industry.

Ignoring the experience gained by the industry is stupid, but even more stupid - to use it without thinking.

Therefore, the best strategy is to study successful services, to comprehend their design solutions and to think which of them are able to help in your project.
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“So does Google!” - not an argument.

“So does Google, because it thus solves a similar problem” - is another matter.

Entry to a new level

The main problem of the growth of a designer is the tasks of the same type, which prevent a breakthrough in his career. Besides the fact that the designer is wasting his time, he is also incredibly bored, because of which even the simplest tasks are poorly solved.

The most logical way out of this situation is the change of work. But how to find a better place if in the current job you solved only the same type of tasks and you even have nothing to show?

From this it begs only one way out - to set yourself ambitious tasks yourself.

I know about five people of different ages who, through a personal project, were able to reach a new professional and financial level.

A well-made personal project allows you to find clients, get job offers or use it as a demonstration of your level when looking for a new place.

Of course, the first time a great project does not work, therefore patience is a key role in building a career.

If you see five great works in a designer's portfolio, do not forget that there used to be other works of a much worse level.

New works were added, old ones were deleted. It's not about talent and not about inspiration. The success of any specialist always determines the willingness to invest time and effort in this business.

Art Director

Many domestic designers call themselves art directors, despite the fact that they are not in fact. Wanting to appear authoritative, they hang regalia on themselves, not understanding their essence.

The main task of the creative leader - using his experience, correct the direction of designers. Thanks to this, novice specialists are growing, and an experienced designer does not waste time on a routine and can conduct several projects in parallel. And when the art director picks up mockups, his potential benefit to the company decreases significantly.

The main tool of the designer is the brain and the graphic editor, and the main weapon of the art director is experience. And in order to use it for the benefit of the company, the hands of its inexperienced colleagues should become the main tool of the art director.

Design thinking

In all our beautiful profession, most of all I wonder about the recurring hype around the term “design thinking”.

And while the summary of design thinkers is not overwhelmed with HeadHunter, I will tell you a couple of stories from personal experience related to this term.

Once I visited a mitap dedicated to design thinking. Designers from large companies were invited there and many people came to listen to them. Answering the question of what is design thinking, the speakers noticeably sharpened, because their explanations were too reminiscent of the story about the design we all used to (we can't all gather to just discuss the design).

The second case is participation in “design-thinking sessions” for large banks. During them, the thought did not leave me that without special terms this event would not take place. The chairman of the bank cannot say that on Monday he goes in for design. A "session of design thinking" sounds much more convincing.

Quote: "Design thinking is a method for developing user-oriented products, services and services."

Isn't that what we call design?

Do not fall for a beautiful term and an attractive poster, but better study the subject more deeply and everything will become clear.

The designer should not have the skills of design thinking. The designer just has to think.

(Not) designer confidence

I was surprised when I learned that many designers are experiencing uncertainty while working. They say design is not for everyone and they should do something else. And I guess where this opinion comes from.

Seeing the honed works of the best specialists, it’s hard to believe that these ruffles once had bad works.

I will tell you a secret.

Many successful designers deliberately create the appearance of their uniqueness, thereby reducing their potential for competition. Because of this, young designers lose heart, faith and confidence in their capabilities are reduced.

Every successful designer now had a terrible job. Everyone started out small and, project by project, improved their skills.

In our profession (like any other), patience and regular practice mean much more than talent .

Where does the vision come from

In most cases, the designer from the very beginning has a vision of the project and he can only demonstrate it to the world. The only question is where this vision comes from.

Vision is a synthesis of experience and acquired knowledge.

The vision of the project will allow to reject some ideas in favor of those who correspond to this vision. As a result, the product being developed reflects the vision of its creators, as was the case with Steve Jobs and Johnny Ive, who created the Apple philosophy.

How to get the “right” vision is difficult to say. A good idea is to be inspired by someone else: reading books from innovators and studying successful products.

For a start, this may be enough, and then everything will depend on your ability to analyze experience and make better decisions based on it .

How to make a boring task interesting

Every designer periodically has to solve boring tasks. For example, make a contact page, place a footer or create a modal window design. All this has already been invented many times and the best way is to take a working solution and apply it to your task.

But there are cases when it is necessary to create something new for an extraordinary project or so that work does not become a routine.

The only way to make a boring task interesting is to treat it as a challenge.

Well, you were given the task to make the design of the “About the Company” page. This task will seem boring to many, but why not try to make this page unique, the best in the world?

Many experienced professionals use this setup in their work. In the hands of the designer there is typography, grid, images, composition, colors and logic. Think about which of these tools you can use to make a boring task a breakthrough one.

Writing skill

Thanks to the work of our colleagues, instant messengers are becoming more convenient and most of the business communication goes into chat rooms. In this situation, the voice and appearance fade into the background, giving way to the ability to correctly express their thoughts in correspondence.

Many people underestimate the skill of writing, despite the fact that competent speech helps to communicate and defend their ideas, thereby increasing the authority in the company.

To correctly express your thoughts you need:
1. Formulate a specific question or thought before typing a message.
2. Write a full message, not a few small ones.
3. Re-read the message before sending to make sure that the thought is conveyed correctly, the tone corresponds to the subject and the other person will understand everything.

You will look more professional than most colleagues, using only these three simple rules.

How to relax designer

Some people think that before moving away from the monitor, you need to finish all the work, although a break can significantly increase the creativity and performance of the brain. It is difficult to create a unique solution in a routine, so the designer needs to make pauses in his work.

Below are a few ways to escape from work for the good of the cause.

For ideas: reading, walking (without headphones, to allow the brain to wander).
For inspiration: movies, music and any quality work.
For health: live communication, sports.
For consciousness: meditation.
For everything: travel.

In addition, you need to be able to turn off the phone. The Internet has become a whole world, so try to switch between online and offline less often, otherwise you can remain between the living and the virtual world without having proved yourself anywhere.