Process

I like to think of my approach to design as scrappy and common sense based.

If I could sum up how I generally work, in three phrases, they would be:

  • maximize contextual awareness (marinate)
  • form follows function (design with a utilitarian purpose)
  • make things that are good for people and the planet (be excellent to each other)

A one-size-fits-all approach usually kind of sucks. Here are some funny roadmaps of different project scenarios and ways I would probably try to handle them:

idea -> smallest thing -> ship -> watch -> learn
๐Ÿ’ก        ๐Ÿ“ฆ              ๐Ÿš€      ๐Ÿ‘€       ๐Ÿ““
|
(holds breath)
ยฏ_(ใƒ„)_/ยฏ
system -> check logs -> sweep crumbs -> keep lights on
โš™๏ธ        ๐Ÿ“‹             ๐Ÿงน               ๐Ÿ’ก
|
(quiet win)
ยฏ_(ใƒ„)_/ยฏ
spaghetti -> pause -> untangle -> label -> relief
๐Ÿ         |         |          |        ๐Ÿ™‚
(deep sigh) (focus)   (clarity)
ยฏ_(ใƒ„)_/ยฏ
what if? -> try thing -> observe -> learn -> note it
๐Ÿค”          ๐Ÿงช            ๐Ÿ‘€        ๐Ÿ““       ๐Ÿ—‚๏ธ
|
(maybe???)
ยฏ_(ใƒ„)_/ยฏ
idea -> rough thing -> test -> oops -> fix -> try again
๐Ÿ’ก       ๐Ÿงฑ           ๐Ÿ‘ฉโ€๐Ÿ”ฌ     ๐Ÿ˜ฌ      ๐Ÿ”ง        ๐Ÿ”
|
(shrug fast)
ยฏ_(ใƒ„)_/ยฏ
values -> people -> needs -> design -> build
โค๏ธ        ๐Ÿ‘ฅ        ๐Ÿ“‹        โœ๏ธ        ๐Ÿ› ๏ธ
|
(calm)
ยฏ_(ใƒ„)_/ยฏ
scientist ๐Ÿค designer
โ€ฆ
observe -> hypothesize -> test -> analyze -> revise
๐Ÿ‘€ ๐Ÿค” ๐Ÿงช ๐Ÿ“ˆ ๐Ÿ”„
|
(shrugs wisely)
ยฏ_(ใƒ„)_/ยฏ
โ€ฆ
marinate -> form follows function -> be excellent to each other
โ€ฆ
pay attention -> be useful -> be kind
|
(still learning)
ยฏ_(ใƒ„)_/ยฏ

โ€ฆ

Check out my personal design philosophy and some resources for sparking creativity.