This week, we talk about enhancing the performance of design teams, a more efficient developer handoff process, and how to develop strong opinions. In the Sidebar, we talk about the tradeoffs of career progression and overall life happiness. At what point are you willing to pause or downgrade your career ambitions for a better life outside of work? Sponsor: BestPracticer helps you find the right design coach to support you to grow faster. You’ll be matched with an experienced coach from a leadin...
Apr 07, 2022•29 min•Ep. 435
This week, we make the case for designing product icons and discuss what to do if your team doesn’t want to invest in great iconography. In the Sidebar, we talk about how to incorporate default typefaces into your design system. The Sidebar: The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails . Latest VIP Patrons: Christian Rotzoll Zack Meredith JS Zach Ge...
Mar 23, 2022•25 min•Ep. 434
This week, we spent more time exploring the traits of a good designer manager. In the Sidebar, we talk about the design details of Apple’s Studio Display and Mac Studio. The Sidebar: The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails . Latest VIP Patrons: Steve Jelte Bijkerk Oliver Stahl Kevin Hwang Yan Wu Parker Henderson Sam Xia James Morgan Hoyin Bradl...
Mar 16, 2022•28 min•Ep. 433
This week, we talk about transitioning industries and how to bridge the quality gap in a new field. In the Sidebar, we talk about storytelling and the surprising insights that can be found in engagement data. The Sidebar: The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content going forward! Sign up at patreon.com/designdetails . Latest VIP Patrons: Chris Calletta Anna Barta Jan Früchtl Michael Le Albin Groen k...
Mar 02, 2022•23 min•Ep. 432
This week, we talk about design file sources of truth, Snapchat's evolution, and the qualities of great managers. In the Sidebar, we talk about building a YouTube channel from scratch, the opportunity for designers on YouTube, and ways to de-risk a new creative exploration. Golden Ratio Supporters: Zeplin lets designers spend more time on design, and less time prepping design files for the team. Effortlessly build user journeys with native connectors, flow groups, and text labels — no more maint...
Feb 24, 2022•33 min•Ep. 431
This week, we talk about the messy nature of remote onboarding and share our tips to make it suck just a little less. In the Sidebar, we talk about the visual design for the heads up display used in televised sports. Golden Ratio Supporters: Zeplin lets designers spend more time on design, and less time prepping design files for the team. Effortlessly build user journeys with native connectors, flow groups, and text labels — no more maintaining extra layers in your design tool. Zeplin is so much...
Feb 17, 2022•28 min•Ep. 430
This week, we talk about teaching versus micromanaging, or how to give feedback as a manager in a productive and growth-oriented way. In the Sidebar, Marshall shares his tips and tricks for organizing icon systems in Figma. Golden Ratio Supporters: Zeplin lets designers spend more time on design, and less time prepping design files for the team. Effortlessly build user journeys with native connectors, flow groups, and text labels — no more maintaining extra layers in your design tool. Zeplin is ...
Feb 10, 2022•26 min•Ep. 429
This week, we sat down with Mark McGranaghan and Adam Wiggins to talk about building creative tools, designing across devices and platforms, creating career capital, starting design podcasts, and more. Golden Ratio Supporters: Zeplin lets designers spend more time on design, and less time prepping design files for the team. Effortlessly build user journeys with native connectors, flow groups, and text labels — no more maintaining extra layers in your design tool. Zeplin is so much more than just...
Feb 03, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 428
This week, we share some (hopefully) non-obvious paths to level up at work and exceed the expectations for a senior++ product designer. In the Sidebar, we talk about the importance of giving blunt feedback, and share ways to do it tactfully and with kindness. Golden Ratio Supporters: Play — Play is the first native iOS design tool made for teams creating mobile products. Design, prototype, and collaborate, directly from your phone. With Play you can experience your design as you create it while ...
Jan 27, 2022•35 min•Ep. 427
This week, we share tips for crafting component variants to avoid the dreaded variant-explosion problem. In the Sidebar, we talk about Tesla’s latest UI refresh, where we see auto interfaces going in the future, and share some of our favorite car dashboard design details. Golden Ratio Supporters: Play — Play is the first native iOS design tool made for teams creating mobile products. Design, prototype, and collaborate, directly from your phone. With Play you can experience your design as you cre...
Jan 20, 2022•25 min•Ep. 426
This week, we talk about the art of creating unsolicited redesigns at work — how to approach them, how to wrangle complexity and rabbit holes, and what to do when you have something worth sharing. In the Sidebar, we share our strategies to become a better storyteller and presentation builder. Golden Ratio Supporters: Play — Play is the first native iOS design tool made for teams creating mobile products. Design, prototype, and collaborate, directly from your phone. With Play you can experience y...
Jan 12, 2022•36 min•Ep. 425
This week, we recap how we grew, and the things we learned, in 2021. In The Sidebar, we look forward to 2022 and talk about some of our personal and professional goals for the new year. Sponsor: Patreon is hiring product designers in San Francisco and New York City. Today, Patreon is at the heart of the creator economy. In the last 8 years, the product has grown to support more than 250k creators, who are collectively supported by more than 8 million patrons. So far, Patreon has paid out more th...
Dec 16, 2021•49 min•Ep. 424
This week, we were invited to have a rant session about the little things in modern software that drive us nuts. A complainisode! In the Sidebar, we share our strategies for having a successful design challenge interview loop. Sponsor: Patreon is hiring product designers in San Francisco and New York City. Today, Patreon is at the heart of the creator economy. In the last 8 years, the product has grown to support more than 250k creators, who are collectively supported by more than 8 million patr...
Dec 09, 2021•52 min•Ep. 423
This week, we talk about the pros and cons of working on a remote design team, and what we think the future of design organizations will look like in a post-pandemic world. In The Sidebar, we talk about how to weigh compensation against your career trajectory. Sponsor: Patreon is hiring product designers in San Francisco and New York City. Today, Patreon is at the heart of the creator economy. In the last 8 years, the product has grown to support more than 250k creators, who are collectively sup...
Dec 02, 2021•39 min•Ep. 422
This week, we discuss the humble cursor and its role in affording interactivity in software design. In The Sidebar, we talk about the long term impact of the features we build, the importance of smart defaults, and the value of time well spent in our products. Sponsor: Patreon is hiring product designers in San Francisco and New York City. Today, Patreon is at the heart of the creator economy. In the last 8 years, the product has grown to support more than 250k creators, who are collectively sup...
Nov 17, 2021•31 min•Ep. 421
This week, we share our strategies and motivations for teaching design at work. In The Sidebar, we talk about the shape of software, how we visualize the tools we build, and what it means for software to feel like something physical. Golden Ratio Supporters: Sympli brings its modern design handoff and design version control tools to your secure environment. Upgrade your collaboration workflow with Sympli's self-Hosted option. Learn more at Sympli.io . Play is the first native iOS design tool mad...
Nov 10, 2021•31 min•Ep. 420
This week, we talk about the weird and beautiful world of fictional user interfaces: why do futuristic UIs look so cool? And why aren't they usable? Is the future really going to look like this? In The Sidebar, we share our must-have macOS apps that are always installed first on a new machine. Golden Ratio Supporters: Play is the first native iOS design tool made for teams creating mobile products. Design, prototype, and collaborate, directly from your phone. With Play you can experience your de...
Nov 03, 2021•31 min•Ep. 419
This week, we reflect on why it is that talking about building a side project can often reduce your motivation to actually finish the project. We dig into our latest side project progress and share tips for maintaining momentum. In The Sidebar, we recap Google’s Pixel 6 event and share our hot takes on the latest phones and software announcements. Golden Ratio Supporters: Play is the first native iOS design tool made for teams creating mobile products. Design, prototype, and collaborate, directl...
Oct 27, 2021•37 min•Ep. 418
This week, we talk about our processes for reviewing UI and making sure that things are shipping as close to spec as possible. In The Sidebar, we recap Apple’s Unleashed event, sharing our favorite moments and spicy takes. Golden Ratio Supporters: Sympli builds design version control and developer handoff tools to help teams collaborate on screen designs. Check out their design-to-development plugins for all major design tools, including a version control app for Sketch, Sympli.io . Play is the ...
Oct 20, 2021•23 min•Ep. 417
This week, we talk about the new Stripe Press website, pasting behavior in Figma, the latest tvOS UI, and the importance of using fake data in placeholder copy. In The Sidebar, we share our tools and strategies for remembering the important things that come up in our day-to-day work. Golden Ratio Supporters: Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future...
Oct 13, 2021•36 min•Ep. 416
This week, we recall our most recent “wow” moments with the products in our lives. What are yours? In The Sidebar, we talk about different loading state strategies and their impact on the user experience. Golden Ratio Supporters: Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future of smart home services. They're hiring product designers with 2-5 years of expe...
Sep 29, 2021•26 min•Ep. 415
This week, we talk about design mentorship: what does an effective mentor do, how to find a mentor, how to avoid giving bad career advice, and more. In The Sidebar, we talk about obsessing over the pixels, wasting time on unimportant details, and how to tell the difference between polish and procrastination. Golden Ratio Supporters: Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product desi...
Sep 22, 2021•31 min•Ep. 414
This week, we talk about how we combat perfectionism in our side projects, the value of shipping, and why sharing a project too early can backfire. In the Sidebar, we recap Apple’s September event with our hot takes and spicy opinions. Golden Ratio Supporters: Plume empowers a billion smart devices in homes and small businesses through a suite of adaptive WiFi, AI security, and parental control. They're hiring product designers to build the future of smart home services. They're hiring product d...
Sep 16, 2021•35 min•Ep. 413
This week, we follow up on last week’s conversation about designing at agencies, hiring contractors, Yelp’s app icons, and Bock’s Constant. In the Sidebar, we talk about designing with your mind’s eye and how learning to brain-prototype will help fast-track your growth as a designer. Latest VIP Patrons: Darion Xinran Wang Ólafur Sverrir Kjartansson Adam Collier Genghis Mendoza Moj Andrei Slobtsov Chase Simmons Justin Baughn Derek Shirk Misael Abreu If you’re in New York, come meet up at Makeshif...
Sep 08, 2021•33 min•Ep. 412
This week, we compare agency vs. in-house design work, dissect the tradeoffs, and share interview tips for anyone moving from an agency to a product company. In The Sidebar, we share our favorite Keynote tips and tricks and our top strategy for telling a more clear story in a deck. Sponsor: Baronfig makes tools for thinkers: guided journals, simple notebooks, writing instruments, bags, desk organizers, travel accessories, and more. Their products are beautiful, functional, and simple — we use th...
Aug 25, 2021•27 min•Ep. 411
This week, we talk about Twitter’s new follow buttons. Are they a mistake? Or a fix for something broken that we’d all become used to? Our opinions on buttons emerge! In The Sidebar, we talk about what to do with time off. Sponsor: Baronfig makes tools for thinkers: guided journals, simple notebooks, writing instruments, bags, desk organizers, travel accessories, and more. Their products are beautiful, functional, and simple — we use them and love them. Use the promo code DESIGNDETAILS21 to get ...
Aug 18, 2021•22 min•Ep. 410
This week, we talk about Yelp’s new logo and app icons, Apple’s new child safety initiatives, and the miniature masterpieces of the Olympic pictograms. In the Sidebar, we curate practical negotiation tips, strategies, and concepts to help you through a job change. Sponsor: Baronfig makes tools for thinkers: guided journals, simple notebooks, writing instruments, bags, desk organizers, travel accessories, and more. Their products are beautiful, functional, and simple — we use them and love them. ...
Aug 11, 2021•33 min•Ep. 409
This week, we talk about the new Pixel 6 announcement, how it stacks up against the competition, and what we’re most excited about. In The Sidebar, we share our design regrets: things we shipped that ended up being mistakes in hindsight. Sponsor: Baronfig makes tools for thinkers: guided journals, simple notebooks, writing instruments, bags, desk organizers, travel accessories, and more. Their products are beautiful, functional, and simple – we use them and love them. Use the promo code DESIGNDE...
Aug 04, 2021•28 min•Ep. 408
This week, we dig into questions like: who should design a team’s visual style guide? And: who should break a tie in subjective aesthetic arguments? In The Sidebar, we share our tips and strategies for succeeding as a new designer in a large organization. Latest VIP Patrons: Max Kaplun Dave Michael Schultz MJ Zach Ouderkerken Chris Doner Michelle Luo Anton Demetruis Nate Ulrich Cindy Rhodes Tobias Negele Ted Chang The Sidebar: The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters...
Jul 28, 2021•25 min•Ep. 407
This week, we talk about the new Microsoft emoji, a cool Android 12 feature, the joy of watching Apple iterate in public, and the new “King of Buttons” aka the Steam Deck. In The Sidebar, we talk about the challenge of having work that is NDA-locked, or never shipped at all. Latest VIP Patrons: Alex Dylan Raphael Lee Karina Kedo Justin Stahl The Sidebar: The Sidebar is an exclusive weekly segment for our Patreon supporters. You can subscribe starting at $1 per month for access to bonus content g...
Jul 21, 2021•33 min•Ep. 406
