When we were developing Digital Directories at Mappedin, we faced a unique design challenge. It’s what I like to call a problem of “fuzzy constraints” (more on that later).

Last month I helped build and launch JUJU, a live streaming platform for artists. — JUJU was founded by artists who recognized a gap in the market for live online entertainment. On one side of that gap, you had short-form events on platforms like Instagram. These streams were not curated, the quality was inconsistent, and the only way to earn from them was with…

If you have a hard time understanding design roles, here’s a shortcut: design is a spectrum from conceptual to practical. — Research → Experience → Interface → Prototyping Research is where you gain detail on your users and the challenges they face. A talented researcher will uncover insight and empathy by monitoring and interviewing users. They’ll build tools (e.g. …

If someone at work asks their manager “Why do we hold this weekly meeting?” or “Why does our product have this feature?” the response should never be “Why not?” Why is it important? Maybe it’s mission-critical, maybe your competitors do it, or maybe it’s just “expected” in your industry. Processes are defined with good intentions but over time conditions change and when they do our instinct is to hold our ground.

As designers, sometimes we forget about our audience. We set out to build things that are trendy or technically interesting instead of powerful and meaningful. We can spend hours tweaking the aesthetic only to populate our work with meaningless placeholder content. Brutalism has set out to challenge what’s trendy. It…

As the modern movement emerged in fields like industrial design and architecture a designer’s most important asset was their understanding of materials and production. There’s a sense of modesty in the designs of the 60s and 70s. …

A few weeks ago I saw the Berliner Philharmoniker. The show was so full that the only available seats were in a balcony behind the orchestra and facing the conductor. Watching from this perspective it was clear how important the conductor is to the group. It’s rare to have such…

When a startup has plenty of funding, they take the shortest path to their vision. They get out ahead of the market to offer something new. What they build is disruptive. It’s different from what customers are asking for. In contrast, bootstrapped startups need to sell their product right away…

Every early-stage startup knows the importance of company culture. There’s no shortage of books and advice on the subject. The attitudes and motivations of early employees are amplified as the company grows. Setting the right culture from the start is critical to scaling the team successfully. Equally important (but less known) is that this also applies to customers. Naturally, as the first few are on-boarded, the team and the product will be affected by their attitudes and motivations. When aligned with your company, the right customers will accelerate everything you do. The wrong ones will set you back.