UX for Business

Meta Design: Design According to Your Problems

“Your Process” Isn’t One Process. Be Flexible.

The temptation to be lazy when solving problems is always there and always a factor.

I started this book by talking about all the lazy boot camps and UX courses and teachers who try to make it sound like design is one process (often illustrated as two diamonds) that can be applied to all situations. Although that might be reasonable as an abstract concept, in reality your design process will (and should) adapt to what you’re working on.

Keep the principles of VDP, but apply them differently depending on the problem and the context.

Only Consider Solutions You Have Researched First

The more experience you have, the more often you will see a potential solution quickly. It might look like something you have worked on before, or it might remind you of something you read about. But every company, product, customer, and context comes with its own constraints, limitations, and opportunities.

Resist that urge to build that first idea. Do the research anyway.

A well-researched solution has a lot less risk in it. If you assume that everything looks like that other solution you were already familiar with, there is a chance you are wrong. Even if your research confirms that you were right, now you know! Knowing is always better than assuming.

Saying “always research first” might sound ...