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Design

Allison Grayce Marshall
STAFF
Allison Grayce Marshall
Treehouse Guest Teacher

Advice for Designers (and everyone else, too!)

Hey Guys!

I came across this really inspiring interview with Hartmurt Esslinger, the founder of Frog Design, and I wanted to share it with you.

http://vimeo.com/59679411

The video is titled "Advice for Designers" but I think his words can be inspiring to anyone who is a member of Treehouse.

  1. Trust Yourself
  2. Form Follows Emotion
  3. Make Models (Prototype)
  4. Think Outside the Screen
  5. Go Above and Beyond

My favorite point he made was that "It's not about aesthetics and being cool or whatever, it's about improving real life." It doesn't matter if your site is skeuomorphic or flat or uses a trendy font or color scheme... it's about solving problems. (I'll actually be touching on this topic a bit in my UX courses.) If what you create as a result wins some awards and starts some trends, then that's a nice bonus. :)

Would love to hear what you guys got out of this video!

Allison

4 Answers

Fantastic and inspiring video Allison, really enjoyed it. Thank you for sharing! :smiley:

samiff
samiff
31,206 Points

Liked the part about creating models. I think rapid prototyping and using whatever it is you're crafting is so important from the start. There has to be something physical to interact with to gauge an emotional response and help guide development.

Would be interested in hearing more about the book, wish there was a digital format.

Adam Soucie
PLUS
Adam Soucie
Courses Plus Student 8,710 Points

I really like the part about going above and beyond. It's something I was taught at Disney, but never fully understood until I left.

It goes back to the research aspect Allison mentions in the first UX Foundations series. You have to find out what the user needs, wants, and what they don't even realize they need & want, then find a way to incorporate all of it into a design. It's not always possible, but 3 out of 4 is usually pretty good.

That's awesome Allison! I have his book, "A Fine Line", and I would suggest anyone read it. It's full of great insight! Thanks Allison:)