Sometimes I think about how lucky I am to have fallen into design. To have carved out a great living doing something that I really enjoy. To be able exercise my creativity, create things and to solve interesting problems on a daily basis. It is pretty fucking dope and surreal when I think about it and I try not to forget that. Despite what I write on this blog I don‘t take myself too seriously. Shits just fun and games and I just try to enjoy the ride, learn new things and make the most of everything.
Make no mistake things do go haywire sometimes, but they are never as bad as they seem. Most of the time no one is going to die if something goes wrong, digital design is very forgiving as we can just patch things up, fix and iterate things. It might be a shitstorm for a while but it will pass. The same can not be said for the medical profession where mistakes can cost someones life and it is highly stressful. Or in corporate jobs where things can become so monotonous and disengaging that it feels like ground hog day. A few of my friends work in corporate environments and I can assure you it’s balls.
So if you’re a designer just remember how lucky you are to be able to do what you do. You get to create things, put it out into the world and get paid doing it. There’s a lot of heavier shit and real issues happening all around you and you get this privilege to do this for a living. Real talk: My dad came to Australia on a boat after the effects of the Vietnam war. He worked his ass off doing labour intensive jobs for years to give my brothers and I a better life. I will never forget this and I am grateful for everything he’s done and worked for. So I don’t waste this opportunity and make the most of it.
What is a better life? More money? More fame? More opportunity? Perhaps. But I find most of those things to be more of a social trap, with society dangling this carrot in front of you. I think having the freedom to choose how you live your life and what you want to do is that better life. I don’t have to worry about food, shelter or the basic necessities anymore. Nor do I have to worry about my family or I getting shot or killed on the streets. So if I have the courage I can design my day to how I want and what I get up to. Focus on prioritising things that mean a lot to me and what I love doing and work around that. I define success through happiness. It is a key metric I use to measure success. And I’m happy when I’m designing and working on interesting projects. I really subscribe to the idea of flow.
The best moments in our lives are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times… The best moments usually occur if a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.
MIHALY CSIKSZENTMIHALYI
He discovered that people find genuine satisfaction during a state of consciousness called Flow. In this state they are completely absorbed in an activity, especially an activity which involves their creative abilities. During this “optimal experience” they feel “strong, alert, in effortless control, unselfconscious, and at the peak of their abilities.” In the footsteps of Maslow, Csikszentmihalyi insists that happiness does not simply happen. It must be prepared for and cultivated by each person, by setting challenges that are neither too demanding nor too simple for ones abilities.”
This is the exact feeling I get when I look at a blank canvas when I start a project. I look at all the research I’ve done, and think about the massive hurdle in front of me. I always wonder whether or not I’m going to deliver something great. I find that joy occurs when you have a connection to the work, that you really believe in it. Then I put on the headphones and turn it up to 11. Looking at this canvas and the design riddle that I am trying to solve, I slowly piece together the parts. Translating my thoughts onto paper and pixels. The best moments are when I become so focused that nothing else around me matters, I get in “in the zone” and in this zen state of flow. I look at the clock and next thing I know 4 hours have gone by. I look at this canvas and theres something there. I gave life to something that didn’t exist before. It’s too much fun and I don’t want to stop, I want to ride this momentum of flow/inspiration whatever you want to call it.
And then I keep at it for a few days and the happiest is when three things happen. I hit this point where I think this it! This is what I’ve been searching for all this time, this is the solution that I’ve been trying to meld and peel away. Iteration after iteration. I become so fucking satisfied. Another peak is when the client loves it and stands behind the work. It feels like we’re a team and we created something great together. That I haven’t let their trust and investment in me down, that I delivered on my promise. Thirdly is seeing the work out there, seeing it connect with people, help people and resonate with people. Our job is fucking awesome, have fun and grab it by the horns and make the most of it. Because most people aren’t as lucky as we are. So find your happiness and do your best work!
"How do you prioritise in order to accomplish your goals? If you're trying to learn new technology, if you're working on projects, reading, business, family etc. How are you able to effectively manage and juggle these tasks? That's where I struggle the most, trying to get everything done. I think I tend to put too much pressure on myself but trying to get everything done can sometimes be overwhelming." This was a great question sent in by Ian one of our readers.
I used to never set goals, I just went with the flow. And that worked for a while – until life threw all sorts of shit in my direction that made winging it a lot less productive. So I wanted to be more purposeful with how I planned my time. And how I could get the most shit done on top of family life, health, work, business and just having a fucking good time.
How do I get so many things done?
The key is focus, which comes through prioritisation. So how do I prioritise and focus? What I do is to pick just 1 major goal for the year. So think of it as a pyramid.
At the top is your goal. Let's say hypothetically it’s:
1. Goal
Get a new job at a top tier tech firm.
2. Strategy
Next in the pyramid is brain storm as many strategies as you can which can help you accomplish your goal: So for example you could - Connect with hiring managers/design leaders, get better at the design process, create a wicked folio, learn how to code etc. Out of all the strategies pick the few that you are excited about, find effective and execute them throughout the year, which leads to step 3.
3. Actions
At the bottom of the pyramid is the actionable stuff. What do you have to do day to day and month to month to support your strategy (which will move you closer to your goal) So you can say after every weekday I’ll spend 1 hour learning how to code. So you’ll do that for 1 month. Which will make you more proficient in that area. Then in month 2 you can connect with influencers via twitter and dribbble where you spend that hour everyday tweeting people in the industry and building relationships.
So you focus on small day to day tasks that aid with 1 big goal. This will help you move whilst still managing to balance other important areas of your life. If you respect the process the results will come. If you try to do too much at once it leads to spreading yourself thin without much progress or impact. Worst yet you might feel overwhelmed or even burnout as you try to juggle too much. When you focus and see little results it also allows momentum to occur. Make yourself accountable to these daily tasks even if it’s just an hour a day. Cut out TV or anything that is not bringing great value to your life.
Effectively achieving your goals is about reverse engineering small actionable steps that help you execute on your strategies, when your strategies align together they position you closer to reaching your goal. They all stem from daily bite sized actions rather than lofty goals with no direction that you try to achieve in one night.
If you are feeling overwhelmed for prolonged periods, take a break because it'll lead to burnout. Don’t be too hard on yourself – patience is key.
Another tip is to pick a goal that by proxy will support other areas that make you happy. You should push your comfort zone a little, and some days will suck, but overall you should be enjoying the little steps. What is the point of reaching your goals when you are hating every step required to get there everyday.
Example of the framework in action
1. So if my goal this year is I’d like to help and reach 2,000 new Process Masterclass students. To achieve this goal I will need to continue to learn and apply new things (which I love doing). I will need to provide value and help students 1 on 1 as much as I can, which allows me to talk to students and see their growth which is awesome. It will allow me to support my family financially. So 1 goal can actually touch on other aspects of your life positively during the journey and not just the end result.
2. Some strategies that could work. Build awareness for the class by upping traffic from Dribbble, sponsoring Design Newsletters, Start a Youtube channel, Build my email list to bring more awareness to the class and to provide upfront value etc.
3. So 1 day to day task that I can be applying from January-March is to be posting daily on to Dribbble. Which brings people to my newsletter and the Process Masterclass site – read some of my content and see if I am a right fit for them. If I just work on this I know I will be moving a step closer to my goal. And from here I execute on various strategies every month or so.
You can use this framework to achieve your big goal for the year. What is the 1 big thing you hope to achieve this year?
I’d love to hear it – comment below, email me or tweet at me. If I can help in some small way, I would be more than happy to help you on your journey.
Today I'd like to share with you a super simple productivity framework that I use. I get asked a ton of questions about, design, career advice, freelance and how to get things done in general. So how can we get the most of “what we do” to achieve the goals that we want. This is how I approach my work most of the time.
“Do the hard jobs first. The easy jobs will take care of themselves.”
DALE CARNEGIE
It's about prioritising
The hack is simple. Do the most important tasks first. Or more specifically do the thing that will give us the most amount of impact. It’s about the output of high value activities vs. time. And then try prioritise those tasks first everyday and tracking it.
If you could only do one thing a day that would drive the most results what would that be?
Once you’ve done the high impact activities – the activities that really move you close to your goals.
Then you can move on to the secondary tasks that come our way. Answering emails etc. Don't get distracted by the secondary tasks first.
Our capacity to operate at an efficient and optimal level everyday is arguably only a few hours.
Think back to your day, how long was your most productive AND creative stretch? That’s the window that you want to maximise.
So you have to prioritise and use that peak mental energy effectively.
To be productive don't get sidetracked
Everyday, month, and year we are bombarded with a ton things that we have to do. Tasks and activities we perform that zap our mental energy. It takes up most of our time, yet it’s output doesn’t necessarily add any extensive value to what we want achieve.
It’s this vicious cycle of meetings.
Replying to emails.
Checking and consuming social media.
Working on our folios when we should be out building relationships and getting leads with clients. (If you want to freelance)
Working on tweaking our logo rather than going out there and doing the HARD thing like generating revenue.
You get the drift, it’s the law of diminishing returns.
The goal is to reserve that peak mental energy of a few hours everyday and use it for high impact activities. Prioritising like mad.
20% of the work creates 80% of the results.Focus on that high leverage work.
So you don’t have to work yourself to the ground to get results. The hard part is being honest with yourself, what is the most important thing I can do to achieve the outcome I want. What can I today? This month? This year. It won’t always be the easiest tasks, but it’ll be the most important thing you can do to leverage high volume output.
Once you identify the outcome you can brainstorm different ideas for getting stuff done.
Example of a goal and high impact activities
If my goal as a freelancer was to get clients. High impact activities would be:
Identifying who my ideal clients are
Identifying where my ideal clients exist and how I can get on their radar
Creative ways I can get the attention of my ideal clients. Creating a roadmap and strategy that I could execute against.
How to generate value and build relationships with prospective clients.
How to turn prospective clients into leads by building trust and that upfront value.
How to turn leads into paying clients.
How to turn clients into repeat clients and brand advocates.
You need to prioritise and focus most of your energy on this. Everyday I would pick a cross section of this and work on it.
80% of everything else that you do won’t matter.
Revenue is the lifeblood of a business. Your optimal time should be used to work on high impact activities as a priority. The reason we avoid these activities is sometimes we don’t face the music. It’s feels more satisfying ticking our random to do list off, even though it's not really doing anything that is generating much value, but it's easy to do and it feels like we are doing a lot.
Continuing on from the above example.
Don’t spend 6 months working on a folio in isolation.
Instead get in front of your ideal clients. Try cold emailing (it’s a lot of rejections and it’s hard, but done right it can yield results), creating content, providing value, connecting, and building awareness with that audience. Those are the hard things that you should be doing.
Work harder and smarter
Hard work is always part of the equation, but working yourself to the bone won’t necessarily garner better results, if the person who is productive leverages their time better AND works hard. Their results will be worlds apart from the person who just works hard. Focus your energy on that 20% that generates most of the results and prioritise it. The more focused you are the more it keeps leveraging on itself, creating a compounding effect.
When I’m at my best that’s how I operate. I have a clear overview for 1 month, what I hope to complete in that time, my hypothesis for what those activities will yield results wise. (Which I measure at the end) And then every week I track what I will be doing. Each day I have 1 key thing that I hope to complete. And usually 5 secondary things that are optional that I can do if I have time.
In summary
To be at your productive best, leverage and prioritise your best mental energy (which is usually in the morning, but you can define when that time is best for you) and focus on doing the hard tasks that output the highest amount of results and leverage first.
Focus on delivering on that 20% that delivers the most results.
Focus and try to accomplish 1 key thing a day.
Track your month. What were the results? How much was useful and optimal work?
Landing a client involves various touch points and progressions, like running a long race. Prospective clients will either see your work somewhere or hear about your work from referrals/friends/colleagues.
They will be keen in hiring you up to a certain percentage in their minds. Based on their current needs and the trust they have in you and your abilities. 20% sold. 50% sold. Or 80% sold etc.
Emails are the final percentages needed for prospective clients to decide whether or not they are going to hire you.
So if you’ve sold them 80% of the way with your work, and still fuck up with the final hurdle you need to up your email game. Likewise if you are a candidate that they are only 50% certain on. You can make up the other 50% with great email follow ups and communication - and maybe a zoom call.
Think of it as the finish line to a marathon. Your work, experience and reputation runs most of the marathon for you. But email is the final push you need to cross that finish line. And I find this is an area where most designers fall short and can improve drastically on.
I've had prospective clients make initial deposits of $10k+ solely on email. They hadn’t heard my voice or even seen me up until that point. It’s was done out of trust and purely based on my work, reputation and our emails.
With repeat clients deposits have gone up to $35k before work commences.
Emails communicate quickly to prospective clients if:
You can communicate well
If you are competent
If you can solve their needs
If they can trust you
How can you get better at it
Learn to communicate well. At the heart of great communication it’s all about understanding people. People will give you clues about who they are by the tone and language they use in their emails. What needs do they have and how can you solve their problem. Are you in their price range? Are you available? And can you hit their timelines?
Don’t think about yourself. Think about your prospective client and try to be in their shoes. If you are hiring a designer for X industry what attributes and capabilities would you yourself require. And try to reverse engineer the situation and meet those requirements.
Here are some useful actionable steps that you can put into place right away
1. People like people who are relatable
Be genuine but learn to reciprocate with the same language that prospective clients use. If you get a casual email it’s about balancing it out and using a similar tone. If they are throwing in one of these bad boys 🙂 feel free to use one in your email responses too. If they are more serious it's best to save the fuck yeahs!!!! For home. Most of the time people want to work with individuals who are on the same page as them. Someone they can relate to. It’s an instinctual thing, that’s why people with similar interests hang out together. Or people who go for the same sports teams have a bond for example, language can also do this.
2. People like people who are helpful
Try to help out up front. What I don’t mean, is to do a mock design for free because prospective clients need it URGENTLY or need you to do a TEST. Instead think about where else can you help with that's not days to weeks worth of free work. What advice can you quickly give that can provide up front value for the prospective client, so they can trust your expertise. Perhaps it’s a suggestion on their site that they should consider, which could drastically improve their bottom line. It doesn’t matter if they don’t hire you or take your idea. I’ve found that the more good will you give out, you will receive just as much in return eventually.
3. People like people who are experts
Prospective clients have reached out to you for a reason. They like your work or have been referred to by someone. Next is to know your stuff. Answer any queries they may have. And ask questions that are important to their project. Be confident and get what you need to know to deliver the best possible solution for them. And don’t end with ‘let me know what you think’. Create clear and actionable steps. Post this if we were to work together, my process involves “X” and “Y” as our next steps. Much more authoritative.
4. Learn to scope out project requirements well and build relationships
Your next steps is to find out the project requirements. Price, Timeline, Value and Proposition. What price do you require, what's the time involved, when can you complete it by, what value will you bring to the table and how do you propose to do all this? Think about what YOU require and then think about what the prospective client requires. The key is to match up both of your requirements. This is an art form in itself. Learn to price on value (which I will go into more detail in another post) and learn to say no when the requirements don’t match up. So learn to qualify prospective clients and see if they are the kinds of organisations and individuals that you would like to work with.
Various prospective clients have various needs of assurance. Sometimes it’s 20 emails back and forth. Sometimes it’s 5. Sometimes enquiries will require on and off emails for a few months.
5. It’s all about building a relationship and trust
Finally looking at the overall chain. This is what draws prospective clients to you.
Your work – so make your work available and present it in the best light possible. Create proposals or credential documents that are custom to the project. After a while you’ll have a base one that you can tweak and adjust as needed for different prospective clients.
Experience – if your clients industry is something you have done successful projects for in the past use them as testimonials. If you are doing an ecommerce project for example - show examples of successful clients you've worked with in that space. Put it into the above document.
Reputation - where can they find you on the web and what does it say about you. Make sure some credentials can be found as it builds trust. Social validation is HUGE. People can see that I’m a real person via dribbble, behance, twitter and instagram.
Finally be authentic and be a good person. For the select projects I take on I genuinely give a shit about the success of the project. I always put in my best effort and try to make the client happy. And prospective clients can sense that. So start building trust, one email at a time.
Good luck and start landing awesome clients with great emails.
Written by Nguyen LePosted under DESIGN TIPS /UX DESIGN/ BUSINESS –From studio projects, to startup projects, to freelancing, to side hustles - this is my system for breaking down design projects
I have a simple method for breaking down a design project. And it starts with answering these key questions.
The 7 key questions for a design project
Who are the key user types? (Identify them)
What are the “jobs to be done” for each user type? What do they want to do efficiently?
What are the success metrics for the project team/key stakeholders? If we completed everything successfully- what would success look like? What are the key Metrics/Outcomes we are trying to move?
What is the projected timeline for the project?
What is the project worth?
Who are the stakeholders involved and what are each of their goals?
Who is on the project team?
Once you have this information you can synthesise everything together into a cohesive roadmap, strategy and execution plan with stakeholders and the project team.
All wanky sounding terms. But essentially it’s gather all the above information, make sense of the above information into a clear set of goals, create a plan based on said and agreed goals. Put the plan into action with the team. Design, Prototype, Test, and Iterate across the lifecycle of the project. Once you make things put it in front of people. But not just anyone the people who will use the product/service you are designing.
I use an agile methodology. We test and learn along the way. More partnerships with everyone involved. Vs. Let’s make everything in a cave do a big reveal with the client. Then just launch everything into the world at the end in a step by step manner.
Project example
Let’s have a look at the above project in action for a hospital website.
1. Who are the key user types? (Identify them)
Patients
People to be admitted
Visitors/Family+Friends of patients
Staff/Doctors
Staff/Nurses
Staff/Administrators
Carers on behalf of patients
2. What are the “jobs to be done” for each user type? What do they want to do efficiently?
Patients - need to find a specific room
Patients - need to know appointment times
Patients - need to know which ward and wing they are admitted under
Patients - want to learn more about doctors and surgeons
Patients - want to get in touch with a specific doctor/surgeon
Etc. Do for all user types
3. What are the success metrics for the project team/key stakeholders? If we completed everything successfully- what would success look like? What key Metrics/Outcomes we are trying to move?
Reduce inbound support calls
Be able to schedule patients in seamlessly
Have clear patient data that is accessible to admin staff
Improve the current mobile experience
4. What is the projected timeline for the project?
Tenders will be reviewed. A vendor will be selected on 21 January. The project will commence on the 1st of February with a projected completion date of 14th June. (We will be advised further by the selected vendor)
5. What is the project worth?
$285,000 budget for design and development
6. Who are the stakeholders involved and what are each of their goals? (Add goals to each of these stakeholders by interviewing them)
Head of Marketing - Sam Plight
IT lead - Vinesh Ramjik
Admin & Operations Manager - Stephanie Rice
Project Lead - Hanh Zo
CEO - Amanda Francis
7. Who is on the project team?
Creative Director - Nguyen Le
Design Lead - Justin Grathje
Copywriter - Tait Hill
Producer - Varenka Schill
Director of Technology - Lauren Powell
Once you have all this synthesize it together. Collaborate and divide and conquer together 🙂
A lot has been written about UX or more correctly UX design. UX is just user experiences, and we have experiences with all sorts of things in our everyday lives. From using a fork to sitting in a chair. Even you in this very moment, am reading this on a phone, tablet or desktop. This is an experience and you are a user 😉
I’ve been working in this field and craft for over 10 years. And have seen so many wanky terms get thrown around without much weight or meaning. The buzzword of that month or that year. Web 2.0, cutting-edge, social media, usability, UX and so on. In resistance to the early 2000s when designers were trying to rack awards through self indulgent flash designs, came about those that thought about usability. Good information architecture, site mapping, heuristic evaluations and usability testing. To make things more understandable.
When the era of masturbatory design died companies needed to jump ship. Most companies began championing usability and UX design in direct response to this. Thinking it was one in the same. All smoke and mirrors. How do I know? Because I peddled some of that bullshit. But the more I uncovered in time, I realised there was truth and substance within the hype. But it is much more than the facade that companies are putting on today. Or what a lot of design schools and UX schools teach.
I’d say the term is a lot clearer today, but I still see a lot of weird shit floating around. I don’t care about textbook examples. I care about results, about driving growth, and about people. About users. So let’s start by what UX design is not. UX design is not about drawing boxes or wireframing. And it's not about doing cool new interactions. “Wow that’s great UX!!!!!” No that’s a nifty prototype interaction. It’s not information architecture or having photos of you putting post it notes on the wall. Or a list of check box items you tick off. User Personas etc.
UX design is very simple. The objective is trying to design a great experience for the user, one that exceeds expectations and delivers on extended value. Simple stuff. But that comes in a variety of shapes and forms. A great experience for one market or audience may be horrible for another. Sometimes you want a place to know your name and strike a conversation with you, ask you how your day was etc. (Starbucks experience) Other times you just want empowerment to get something fixed immediately without having to call a call centre. Or to rely on someone else. Utility tools to enable you to achieve this. (Google, Airbnb) When there are hundreds of different touch points with a brand or product how do you create a consistently great experience? Therein lies the challenges.
In today's landscape. The experience and the service IS the brand.
UX design is about anticipation, intention and outcome.
You anticipate what users want by first understanding who they are.
What they intend to do.
And the outcome they hope to have.
It’s about a person’s expectations with your brand and product and then delivering beyond that promise. To deliver a great experience, through a designed system. What users say, feel, think and do is at the heart of designing for a great experience. That’s the aim of the game. You can only service someone if you know who they are and understand what they want. Their hopes, dream, fears, motivations and feelings. It is a very human approach. Remember we don’t design the experience itself, because that comes down to the individual. What someone feels and experiences is personal, we don’t design that experience. But we facilitate the interaction and the product that can positively influence that experience. And how it fits into their lives and their story. Before you get to pixels it is important to see this vision. So why does this matter from a business standpoint?
The goal of UX design in business is to “improve customer satisfaction and loyalty through the utility, ease of use, and pleasure provided in the interaction with a product.
OXFORD JOURNAL
This is not only the right thing to do, because first of all we are not creating junk. We are delivering value by being good to people and not fucking them over, it acts as a competitive advantage in a crowded marketplace. Part marketing, part design, part business vision. In a world of shareability, with more information and more transparency you can’t get away with average or shitty experiences anymore. You'll get sprung out and people know about it quickly. Unless you are the only service provider people will go somewhere else. (Netflix vs. Blockbuster, Uber vs. Taxis, Airbnb vs. Hotels) Likewise if you exceed people’s expectations you are creating brand advocacy and loyalists. There’s a whole framework around this called a Net Promoter Score prevalent in business and particularly startups.
Net Promoter or Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a management tool that can be used to gauge the loyalty of a firm's customer relationships. It serves as an alternative to traditional customer satisfaction research and claims to be correlated with revenue growth.
Nothing is more powerful than word of mouth advocacy from someone you trust. The best experiences think about psychology and human behaviour. Knowing when to be invisible, when to be fun, when to be reliable etc.
That’s why nimble startups can disrupt huge organisations, through utilising good design and delivering great experiences. (Of course I am not disillusioned that there are many more variables at play, but today design does play a pivotal role in this competitive landscape)
At the heart of a project, this is what we should try to uncover and consider. What do people say they want? What do they really want? What do people want to achieve? What are the edge cases? (Make this great as well) What are people's expectations? How can we deliver and then exceed that? What do you want people to feel? What are they actually feeling? Does the story and design we’ve crafted deliver on great outcomes and a great experience for users? If not where are the weak points and how can we fix this.
There are many UX design tools to aid us with this, and they sit within a bigger framework. The methodology and process I use is Design Thinking and the lean startup model. We look at data/analytics, observations, user insights etc. This article is not about those techniques but more about a mindset and an approach to thinking about UX design.
Too many people care about ticking checkboxes and requirements to cover their asses rather than what people actually experience and the outcome that generates. I’ve seen process riddled research, equate to work that was no different than if there was no research done at all. Or usability tests done once, not hoping to find pitfalls but were bias in their execution just to validate what was already there. (Changes are wasted billable hours) The best designed experiences occur through a constant iterative loop. There’ll be a lot of problems and fuckups. Technological restraints. Resource restraints. They are gradual steps. Observing, watching and listening to what users are saying, doing and feeling. And constantly executing and evolving based on that. Prototyping, testing, doing live A/B tests and surveys. An ever changing product, that constantly changes. Understanding that end to end process at every touchpoint. So create a lot of prototypes, go live and get as much feedback/data from users as possible. Prototype > Test > Launch > Listen > Test > Grow. Repeat.
And then you fall back on this: What are people's expectations? And how can we deliver on that expectation and exceed it? Surveys, observations and a good NPS.
Over time your product becomes more proactive, invisible and integrated into one’s life. As opposed to one that is reactive. Those are the best systems. Or products that constantly provide value to one’s lives.
The purpose of your product may be: Utility/function – Solving a pain point Entertainment – Delivering value through entertainment Empowerment / Community – Connecting people and allowing a platform to have people at the center of the product/design system.
Get the basics right. Make it functional, usable, beautiful, fun, delightful. And then make it so good that you create brand advocates/brand loyalists that spread the message. (Think of the cult of Mac and Apple users) That you your users and create communities around that. That is the leverage of good UX design. And in my opinion just kill the UX part. It’s simply good design.
By 2020 customers will manage 85% of their relationship with an enterprise without interacting with a human.
HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW
So why should you care as a designer?
You have an opportunity to be a change maker. Digital products will shape and ARE shaping the future. You find perfection through iteration and process. Digital product designers, think holistically about the design from a craft point of view, a business feasibility POV and an advocacy for designing great user experiences. Competency in UX design, is part of that spectrum for being a highly valuable designer. Capable of bringing value to any a large business, a startup, an agency or your own business. So to which we end. Do you know what users think about your work? And do you care enough to understand them. SHARE
Collectively as designers we try to design solutions and experiences that are beautiful and useful using various tools and techniques. But at the core of what we do is the servicing of user needs and delivering on business objectives. Satisfying these 2 pillars are the benchmarks to our success. Creating beautiful and emotive work is a byproduct of these goals and occur through constant discovery, prototyping and iterations.
Design/Product Teams unite people with various skills and disciplines to complement each other towards a shared vision. Illustrators, developers, researchers, product designers, visual designers etc. As mentioned in last weeks article about what UX design represents. This week I wanted to share an actionable framework that can help you with your next project.
Lean UX by Jeff Gothelf
It is a great framework/canvas created by Jeff Gothelf, the author of LEAN UX – Designing great products with agile teams. Digital product design is a messy and iterative process. In my opinion the best work doesn’t occur in silos, where one team comes up with all the thinking, then one team does wires and then we’ll get the visual designers to make it look good. It’s not as clear cut and checklist focused as that.
But more collaborative and scrappy. It appears through a lot of listening, testing, observing, prototyping and getting feedback loops that are both quantitative and qualitative from a live market and from users. The Lean Canvas allows us to focus on, business problems, business outcomes, users & customers, user benefits and how they intertwine with the business problem and developing a lot of different "solutions" to discuss, prototype and test.
At the end of the day your customers don’t care whether you’re agile, lean or practice design thinking. They care about great products and services that solve meaningful problems for them in effective ways. The more you can focus your teams on these things the better their process will be.
JEFF GOTHELF
Not in your job description
Depending on your experience and organisational structure this workflow might not be in your “job description”. But thinking holistically about a projects approach and what you are trying to solve, builds key skills and mindset shifts that help you create better work.
Whether you are starting out or just learning the craft side, take a moment to look through this. Or if you are more experienced and am looking for opportunities to improve and tweak your process and approach, this is a great tool to start delving a bit deeper. And becoming the catalyst for getting various team members on board. It’s a great exercise in bringing clarity for our 2 main pillars of success – business objectives and kick ass user experiences.
See if you can map this Lean UX canvas to a project you are working on.
Once again this is a tool to springboard ideas and bring clarity to a proejct, it is NOT a guarantee to success or a great design. It allows you to sort many ideas and converge and prototype the best ones. I hope this tool serves you well.
When I started my career I loved doing the work, but I was always afraid to ask questions. I just wanted to jump right on to the tools quickly because that's where I felt comfortable and safe. I felt like it wasn’t my place to ask questions, as I wasn’t a senior. Just do what I’m told, I thought to myself. But the problem with that was I didn’t have all the info I needed to do my job to the best of my ability.
Internal dialogue from my junior designer days
It went something like this. *Cue internal dialogue* Hm...I think I get it. Better not ask stupid questions or I might look dumb. Hmm….not sure what they said there but maybe I’ll just review it again back at my desk. Oh no..just missed what the client said there, damn better not ask them to repeat themselves. Don’t look like you’re not paying attention! And don't look dumb!*End internal dialogue. It’s here that I feel like grabbing my younger self and say “Dude just f*cking ask!!” Take the guess work out and learn to ask questions.
When I became a Creative Director – the best designers I’d ever worked with, scratch that, the best people I’d ever worked with not just designers, always asked questions. Even when they asked so called “dumb” questions, I never thought they were “dumb at all”.
Quite the opposite, I just knew that they were diligent. Even if it may be obvious, being proactive and asking a lot of questions means you won’t leave any stone unturned. To me that just seemed detail oriented rather than just action on misinformed assumptions. And it’s particularly important when you didn’t understand it the first time round. This is an extremely valuable lesson that I learnt along the way.
It's better to use 5 mins to ask a question and get clarity, than it is to work off of an assumption and waste days to weeks.
The power of asking applies to more than just asking questions about our immediate work
It applies to lots challenges that we face as a designer and in our everyday lives. Things that are just slightly out of our comfort zones. Like asking for a payrise. Asking for design feedback early on. Asking for a partnership. Asking for mentorship. Asking users what they think, feel, see and do. For example:
Recently I asked my readers about a new project I was thinking of launching called Vault – a repository of my main design resources over the years. I asked for product interest and in effect product validation. Was there a market for this? Did people want it? Rather than make assumptions, and guess, I politely asked if there was interest. In the end the response was a resounding yes. So I went ahead and started working on the project.
Because sometimes we won’t know until we ask
The outcome is binary. We tend to let bad self talk stop as from asking for what we want/need– “I don’t want to appear stupid”, “I don’t want to face getting rejected” or “they’ll probably say no anyway”. We assume things and make our self talk seem factual, when in reality it is not. Sometimes we just need to simply practice the art of asking.
Now asking politely and nicely is NOT the same as demanding. Asking is friendly, it’s affirmative but unlike demanding we don’t expect people to say yes. We don’t get pissed when it doesn’t have an outcome we expect to happen. Asking is simply a means of getting feedback.
The key to asking the right way is to learn to give a lot first
Be generous with your time, knowledge and efforts. Only then when you ask are people more than happy to help you or just to listen.
So next time you want to understand or achieve something try by simply asking. Have the courage to find your voice. Ask for that payrise. Ask for that interview at a dream job. Ask questions. Ask for feedback. Ask to find the possibilities because the worse case is a ‘no’ and the best case is a ‘yes’.
Asking seems daunting but it’s powerful because it frees you from the dreaded ‘what if?’
Key takeaways
Learn to ask questions
Ask for a pay rise. Ask to work for somebody. Ask for mentorship.
Asking is not the same as demanding, it is a means of confirmation and getting feedback
Worst case is someone says ‘NO’, but you won’t know if you don’t ask. If you don't ask it’s always a 100% no, where as is if you ask you’ve upped your odds by having a potential for a yes. The more ask you the more chances you get to get a resounding yes!
No matter where you are in your career there is always room to grow and improve. That is not to say that you don’t appreciate where you are at currently. Or the importance to enjoy the here and now. But to me progress is what makes life interesting. Recently I thought about what I’d tell myself if I was starting out 5 years ago or 10 years ago or last year. What are some universal truths that can help us grow.
I try to think about what can help you find your own truth, what can help your career, what can help you make more money, $100,000 or $1,000,000+? What can bring us happiness. I believe the formula for achieving all of these things is actually quite simple. And whilst the formula and steps are simple, the execution is far from easy. And that’s why most people don’t proceed. Because it can be uncomfortable, difficult or inconvenient.
I don’t have time ← the most common reason. It’s not that you don’t have time, but what you want to achieve and the small steps required to get there is not a priority. It is not prioritised. Or you try to use pure will power and make new years resolutions that you don’t commit to.
Instead focus and work on 1-2 small things, because trying to do too many things at once is not going to work out.
So focus on 1 or 2 main goals and build momentum, gradually. It’s a powerful asset. I’m actually seriously lazy, yet people wonder how I get so much stuff done. I prioritise and create habits. I never thought I’d consistently write every week and post to you, yet years later here I am still writing and enjoying it more and more.
If you asked me a few years ago if I thought I would be writing and building an audience, I’d tell you “nah fuck that I’m too lazy” or “I don’t have time”. So I set up little challenges for myself and in a way trick myself to get things done, cause when I look back and when I’m in the zone I really enjoy it and I am glad started and persevered.
Enough self talk thought let's dig in.
Here are some things that have seriously helped me grow. And I truly believe they can help you step up as a designer and help you grow in 2022 as well. No matter what your goals are. This is more high level shit and not the tactical side of stepping up as a designer. Like use this font for 2022. This technology and trend is the latest craze. That stuff matters but I think these universal steps matter more.
1. Read / Learn
Reading is something that I wish I did more of throughout my career. For a few years there I didn’t read much. Books were things I read in school and I would pick up the odd book here and there. Mainly biographies and visual stuff but nothing specific. When I started reading again 5 years ago, it lead to massive growth personally, creatively and financially. I was like fuck all this time so many nuggets of wisdom waiting to be picked up. It’s like there’s literally gold and treasure hidden in these books and many of us pass up on it. Me included.
Author's gift you their experience and thoughts, they allow you to see different perspectives and results that would need another lifetime to experience and understand. From emperors 2000, to monks, to small business owners, to design legends. When it comes to ROI nothing beats a book, when it's the right one for you. It’s funny how powerful words can be.
Please get into the habit of reading – I’ve learnt so much and helped internalise so many great thoughts and process to grow as a person, designer and entrepreneur/maker. I find that if you zone in on specific topics you can use them as building blocks for each other. Most people vaguely know that they should read, but that old reason creeps up on us. “I don’t have time”, or “I just want to unwind”. But 30 mins a day is all you need.
I think the most important habit for change is to just do it. Action is better than inaction. For example: some days I don’t feel like exercising but I know if I do just 10 minutes that’s enough. It keeps the momentum going and the next day I can do 1 hour etc. because of that momentum. You feel accountable, because you think I can’t stop today I’ve been going for 47 days already.
Each year I hope to read a minimum of 12 books. If you extract that out it’s only 1 book per month. Here are some of my favourites from the last few years to get you started. Notice how the most influential books for your design career don't necessarily have to be books about design.
Shoe Dog - Phil Knight
Meditations - Marcus Aurelius
When Breath Becomes Air - Paul Kalanithi
Principles - Ray Dalio
Sprint - Jake Knapp from Google Ventures
Flow - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
The key is just to start with 1. 1 book, 1 page or 1 hour. Blogs and articles are also great resources for SPECIFIC tidbits of knowledge too. I read posts and watch watch videos from people like Steven Bartlett, Seth Godin, Paul Jarvis and Bryan Harris and have learnt a ton from them. But find people and companies that inspire YOU and what you are about. Don’t have analysis paralysis and just get started. And if you are not the reading type you could try audio books which are great as well.
Like I said earlier it’s all easier said than done. If I asked myself to read more a few years ago – I’d probably think ‘yeah I know books are great’ but I would never get around to it. Don’t make the mistake I did and brush it off. There’s a difference between knowing something can help versus doing something about it. Now I feel like shaking my old self and saying “FUCKING get on to it dude! You’re going to love it. Give it a chance just start reading a small amount first and go from there. You’ll learn so much and be a better person and designer for it.”
Find a topic that you are interested in and passionate about and build knowledge around that. From there read on things that can be complementary to what you want to achieve.
Want to start freelancing? What to learn how to make more money? Want to be a happier? Want to learn about type? Want to prototype? Read up on it.
2. Apply what you read / learn
I was watching an interview recently and a trait that many millionaires and billionaires have in common is, when they learn something new they execute it faster than the most people. Reading is great but if you don’t internalise it and take action, then progress is not going to happen or eventuate. Reading for the sake of reading is not going to help. The light bulb needs to go off and for you to have the “Aha moments” for it to be worthwhile.
So if you only read 2 books this year, but executed and applied the shit out of what you’ve learnt then it’s better than reading 20 books and doing nothing at all. I like to join the dots between what I read and how it can be applied specifically to my situation.
If I read about Phil Knight I’m not going to start a shoe company, but I can understand about grit, determination and brand building for example. Connecting the dots is important. It also allows me to internalise certain values and truths rather than just plain tactics. The lessons I’ve learnt so far have given me perspective and confidence to pursue what I want to do. Every time I execute I can see what’s working and what isn’t working and adjust from there. Pretty simple stuff. But done many times over it and it really starts to have impact on your career and life.
So don’t just hoard information for the sake of it. Internalise and use it or else it is wasted. Don’t delay to take action. Jump on it.
3. Model people who have done it
A great way to grow as a designer is to model someone. Find someone who is doing what you want to do and learn from them. Directly or indirectly. Get on their radar. Or follow in their footsteps. Whether that’s the craft side of the work that you admire. Or they are running the kind of business you’d want to run one day. Learn to be able to connect and communicate with people.
Most people in our industry are friendlier than you think. Many years ago I emailed a designer I really admired and to be honest I never expected a response, because I kind of put him on pedestal. And then 30mins later I received a nice email from him. Don’t be afraid to chat and reach out to people. If you don’t have access to someone or they don’t respond – you can learn by modeling them.
What are the steps they took to do what they do and get to where they want to be? I used to do so much in isolation which was mistake. With social media now it is even easier to connect. I wish I reached out to more people and modeled what they did. Seeing someone achieve what you want to do shows you that it’s possible. You can be a pioneer, but if what you want to achieve has been done before leave your ego at the door, someone has carved a path – use it and follow them. Or follow them for a while and then carve your own path.
4. Mindset
In line with reading and modeling is to have a growth mindset. Be open to grow the way you think. When I started $40/hr was stratospheric stuff. Of course you need to pay your dues, but reading, executing and modeling people can really give you dramatic mindset shifts.
Then you hit $30k in a week, and other people you respect are hitting $500,000 a week running ethical businesses that are providing a ton of value to others. And then your mindset shifts – commerce and making cool stuff can co-exist, you don’t have to sell your soul to the man. Or like me you look at companies like airbnb for inspiration. Normalise this – and use it as your benchmark. Before any money hits the bank you are already wealthy because of the mindset that you have for yourself.
A growth mindset shows you that opportunities are all around us. Hidden inside those books are pieces of gold that help us expand, think bigger and to do better work. There are also lessons for us to live a meaningful life. To think bigger and to act more purposefully. Purpose and growth for me = happiness. Money is the enabler but happiness is the true benchmark. When you challenge your current preconceived notions to doing other things, it feels scary and uncomfortable but sometimes that’s what it takes to step up. Choose to step up with your mindset.
5. Respect the process and don’t just focus on the end result
And finally stop focusing on the destination, focus on the journey. Being a Creative Director sounds cool, running the most sought after design studio is cool, working for a top tech company is cool, working for yourself and not wearing pants is cool.
But before any of that focus on the process and not just the end result. It’s like running a marathon just keep thinking 1 foot after the next and move in the direction that you want to go. If you treat it like a sprint you’ll fizzle out and never get there. 42km seems daunting, but if you have patience and thrive in the hustle, enjoy it and put one foot in front of the other. Before you’ll know it you’ll hit your destination.
I hope you start reading, start internalising and executing, model people who have done it, have the right mindset and respect the process. Start achieving your goals in 2022 and beyond. Remember to enjoy the ride!
That laptop beach lifestyle, exotic locations, work from anywhere in the world and have more autonomy and freedom in your life. That’s the lifestyle that’s painted amd depicted, if you run your own lifestyle business, are a freelancer or a remote worker. Whilst this image can be true, it is only a tiny tiny snapshot in time and the reality is not as pretty as Instagram makes it out to be.
The reality
A lot the times you are just in your pjs working behind your desk, eating toast as crumbs fall off your plate and onto your keyboard - as you scream “fuck!” with toast in your mouth so more crumbs fall out as you watch YouTube. All the while you wonder whether or not you should wear proper pants for the day. And you decide ‘yes’ you should wear proper pants for the day. And finally you fight procrastination to get real work done.
It’s 11:37am on the clock, crap times slipping by. Maybe just 1 more youtube video….That’s probably a more accurate depiction.
Jokes aside, I’m not saying that working remotely and travelling to different countries isn’t possible. Or Tim Ferris 4 Hour work week is a lie. It is actually isn’t. I’m testament that these things are possible and this lifestyle IS fucking pretty badass. But it’s not all Pina Coladas, there’s a lot of work to be done. So if you are lazy it’s going to be hard to compete. You have to be self motivated and to be happy you have to enjoy the process.
The world is definitely changing remote work and the size of the gig and freelancer economy is growing. In design and in tech - freelancing is not a short term thing, there are freelancers who have been successful and have been at it for years. And have turned it into a career.
The devastating global pandemic that has shook the world, in effect changed the landscape of work for many. It has sped up the adoption of remote work and freelance opportunities. With companies like Facebook (now Meta), Apple and many traditional corporations offering remote work options for employees. It has exploded growth for the digital freelance economy and remote work.
Back then it was only companies like Basecamp and Invision that were fully remote teams. Now there seems to be a hybrid with many more companies going fully remote.
“Freelancers aren't being forced into it. Most freelancers are doing independent work by choice. 61% said they fell into this category, up from 53% in 2014. Fundamentally, people are realizing they have a choice, and this is a better choice" says Kasriel.
And they don't want to turn back, in the majority of cases. In one reflection of freelancers’ satisfaction, 51% said no amount of money would lure them to a traditional job.” From Forbers article Freelance Economy Continues to Roar.
My journey so far
I’ve been an independent designer for close to 5 years. 2 of those years was doing predominantly client freelance work. The latter 3 was creating my design courses, running this blog/newsletter and doing design consulting and design work.
5 years on - I love what I do. It’s a pretty sweet gig for my personality. I’d say there’s a ton more highs than lows.
Remote work and the gig economy is growing and is a real opportunity for many to find a happier work environment and career. I have buddies that are successfully freelancing ranging from working in house sometimes to working purely remotely. Others couldn’t get enough work so decided to go back to full time.
The purpose of this post is to share with you the possibilities. If you are considering going freelance fulltime, joining a great remote company or live a similar lifestyle to mine. I’ve summed up the 5 pros and cons below.
I started off my soon to be 5 year independent designer / self employed / I can do whatever the fuck I want / oh god this is hard why did I quit? / Maybe I should get a job again / Wow this Creative Director role is paying $200k / Oh I can never work in an office again this freedom is amazing!!! / Oh shit got to do my taxes/ Wow I just worked on this cool project that helped so many people / Wow that’s a lot of money / job.
What are the Pros?
1. Autonomy
With remote work you are free to set your schedule however you like. Want to start work later? Go for it. If you work for an organisation it’s all about creating results. How you get there is up to you.
This autonomy is priceless as you can be most productive in a manner that is best suited to you - no mandatory 8 hours or 40 hour weeks. Set a target for the day, the week, the month and the quarter. It’s about hyper productivity and getting results not water cooler talk.
Your hours and schedule is yours to create. In a way you are in control of your time and destiny.
2. Freedom
Inline with autonomy. You have freedom over the kind of work you do, your location and how you manage it all. You don’t have a set number of paid leave that you have. (Depending if you are a remote employee or freelancer) But the world becomes your oyster. If the weather is good - maybe you’ll go do something outdoors for a few hours before you work, or just take the day off altogether. You can have bursts of focused work for months and then take time off.
This freedom - gives you no alarm clocks, deadlines become your responsibility. You are free to produce your best work in an environment that best suits you. This can help you focus on your happiness. This freedom allows me a ton of time to spend time wtih my 2 young children and my wife, which is something I don’t take for granted. If I worked in an office I’d be out the door by 8:30am.
I live in Melbourne but have done work in an apartment in Paris, in Sydney, at my brothers home in Tokyo, and other parts of Europe. The power of the internet and cloud services have made work for designers to be accessbile nearly anywhere.
3. Skillset building
When there is no set schedule - you can add learning in to a part of your work philoshopy. Once you hit your revenue targets, output targets, closed clients, and completed work on your terms. You have more time readily available to keep scaling what you can do. You start to choose to read both as a hobby and as work. In an office enivornment there is only so much attention and energy we can give. After a commute, working in an office, get home most people are zapped and opt for passive entertainment. TV, Youtube, Netflix.
When you’ve worked half the day and spend the other half reading, watching and learning you open up your mindset and skill set. Learning from mentors, books, videos, courses you name it. This self learning becomes inherently part of your job. The more you learn, the more you apply, the more you apply the more results you get and it keeps going on. You start to invest in yourself more.
4. Unlimited upside
When you work for a company within a year there is a ceiling on what you can achieve. You can scale your operation. You can make as much money as the value you create in the marketplace. The same can not be said if you are an employee. This will apply more to a solo founder than say a remote worker. Unless the company you work for and you get a windfall from an IPO you, you’d be hard pressed to get a $100k payrise in one year. But it is definitely possible to jump that rate and much more if you really focus for the next few years.
5. Steady compounding growth
When you remote work you can invest in building up side projects and a personal brand by helping others. The steady compounding growth builds equity in yourself and your brand. It comes back to having more time to invest in other activities that still fall under the umbrella of “work”. Rather than just 1 on 1 client work and trading time for dollars. You can build influence and hopefully an audience on your own platform or social channels that compound over time.
What are the cons?
The freelancer economy has it’s pros but what about the flip side. It’s definitely not all mojitos and sleeping in till 10am.
1. Isolation
If you are a remote full time worker than you can have the support of others in your team and the overall company culture + retreats. However if you are a freelancer or run your own thing without multiple employees - being a independent designer can feel isolating. You are working in a different way to the majority of people who work in a company or earn a living.
You live a different life to most people. And sometimes it can create a disconnect or feel a bit isolating. If you’ve just closed $100k in that month, and am taking some time off to recharge after a month of insane focus and work not many people can relate to that. The motivation has to come innately and within you for it to be fulfilling. Otherwise it might make you feel alienated from others.
2. Uncertainty
Clients don’t always pay on time. You aren’t sure where your next lead is coming from. Will that startup idea you are pursuing pay off? We mentioned that freelancing and running your own business has nearly unlimited upside, the flip side of that is it can have a nearly unlimited downside as well. There is no steady paychecks to fall back on - you can go all in and risk it all or play it steady at the cost of growth.
Depending on how successful you are revenue and profit can come at weird intervals which can be stressful. Overall with this kind of career there is more uncertainty - which may not sit well with many people. At times I’ve thought - it might just be easier to have a job. But then I spend a day with my kids or go play tennis - and that freedom makes the uncertainty worth it. When one of my students gains success or someone replys with a thank you to my weekly newsletter - the uncertainty feels worth it.
3. It’s more work not less work
I’d say if you work remotely it’s more focused work, and you will have to wear many hats. You are the CEO, the designer, the project manager, the janitor and the person who has to manage clients, support, errors, bugs, and the person who has to follow up invoices. The will need to be stretches of “focused work” even if you do decide to take long periods of time off in the year (like I do) When there is a yin there has to be a yang for balance.
All that self learning and management means you need to get out of your comfort and may need to do more work in the beginning. Clients and customers won’t just come knocking. You have to put in the work day in and day out. And that can be daunting. There’s less time to coast and let others pick up the slack. You do this kind of work because it’s the way you operate best and the way to maximise your potential. Not to twiddle your thumbs and not wear pants on occasion.
4. Procrastination and staying focused
As mentioned for remote work, being a freelancer or running your own business. It can be difficult to stay motivated at times. Procrastination can really drain you of productivity. You have to be self disciplined to stay focused. I mentioned that you have a lot of options when you are in control of your destiny and your time.
But what do you do with that time? You can easily waste it watching squirrel videos on youtube if no one is overlooking what you are doing. If you get distracted easily you have to learn to be productive on your own accord. And this can be difficult for some to do day in and day out. And to do it for years on end.
5. Work life balance
If you struggle with work life balance it will be difficult to maintain if you do remote work or run your own business. Personally I’ve had to find work life integration. Work is a part of life as is other things in my life. When you become obsessed with what you do it can lead to blinders on - so you have to be able to integrate how this work fits into your relationships, your finances, your goals, and your over happiness and personality. Remember it’s more work not less (it can be less overtime, but in the beginning it won’t be) Once you get that integration then it’s the gravy train. But before then - you will have to experience trial and error which is a negative.
So that’s my round up - I hope it’s given a good overview of the freelance economy that’s expanding and what it’s like working this way. Hopefully it will give you a clearer look if it’s right for you. Remote work and running your own business can be extremely rewarding for the right person. It might just be you 🙂
Editors note: This article was first written just before the devastating COVID-19 pandemic that shook the world. I've made some amendments to reflect this in this article.
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