What makes an incredible project? Is it the client? The type of project? An exorbitant budget? While those things help to create the environment in which a great project can thrive, what truly makes a project something powerful is you.
No, this isn’t some pep talk on why you are the ultimate weapon — but yes, you are if you want to be. I am simply a web and product designer writing down my observations in order to give others the tools to make their project experiences all the better for it.
Still with me? Let me tell you about what I’ve discovered over the years working as an agency designer.
There are three approaches that have completely changed the way my projects run from start to finish. I have found that since implementing all three, my work and my interactions with clients and coworkers have blossomed. Here they are:
Unlearn previous experiences through Reframing.
Tap into your background with Connection Paths.
Take up your own space. Period.
In this article, you will find explanations of each approach and connected practical examples — as well as real-life ones from my project work at Fueled + 10up — to show you how they can be applied to projects. With that said, let’s dive in.
Approach 1: Unlearn Previous Experiences Through Reframing
While some of the things that we have learned over the years spent in design are invaluable, amidst those previous experiences, there are also the ones that hold us back.
Unlearning ingrained lessons is not an easy thing to do. Rather, I challenge you to reframe them and get into the habit of asking yourself, “Am I stopping short creatively because I have always gone this far?” or “Am I associating an implied response from others due to a previous experience and therefore not doing enough for the project?”
Let me give you some examples of thoughts that may arise on a given project and how you can reframe them in a better way.
Initial Thought
“I’ve designed cards thousands of times. Therefore, there are only so many ways you can do it.”
As you know, in 99.9% of website design projects, a card design is required. It may seem that every possible design ever imagined has been created up to this point — a fair reasoning, isn’t it? However, stifling yourself from the very get-go with this mentality will only serve to produce expected and too-well-known results.
Reframed Thought
Instead, you could approach this scenario with the following reframed thought:
“I’ve designed cards thousands of times, so let me take what I’ve learned, do some more exploration, and iterate on what could push these cards further for this particular project.”
With this new outlook, you may find yourself digging deeper to pull on creative threads, inevitably resulting in adaptive thinking. A good exercise to promote this is the Crazy 8’s design exercise. In this format, you can pull forth rapid ideas — some good, some not so good — and see what sticks. This method is meant to get your brain working through a simple solution by tackling it from multiple angles.
Real-Life Example
Here is a real-life example from one of my projects in which I had to explore cards on a deeper level. This client’s website was primarily made up of cards of varying content and complexity. In the initial stages of design, I worked to define how we could differentiate cards, with prominence in size, imagery, and color, as well as motion and hover effects.
What I landed on was a flexible system that had three tiers and harmonized well together. Knowing they had content that they wanted to be highlighted in a distinctive way, I created a Featured Card and tied it to the brand identity with the cutout shape in the image masking. I also included the glass effect on top to allude to the brand’s science background and ensure the text was accessible. For the Stacked Card, I introduced a unique hover effect pattern: depending on where the card was in a given grid, it would determine the card’s hover color. Lastly, for the Horizontal Card, I wanted to create something that had equal emphasis on the image and content and that could also stand alone well, even without an image.
While these cards include what most cards usually do, the approach I took and the visual language used was unique to the client. Instead of working on these too quickly, I ventured down a different path that took a little more thought, which led me to a result that felt in tune with the client’s needs. It also pushed me outside of what I knew to be the standard, straightforward approach.
Initial Thought
“Fast is better. Clients and project teams want me to be fast, so it’s okay if I cut down on exploration.”
In most projects, speed is indeed rewarded. It keeps the project within its budget constraints, the project managers are happy, and ultimately, the clients are happy, too. However, what it can end up doing instead is generating errors in the process and hindering design exploration.
Reframed Thought
In this scenario, you can reframe this like so:
“I like to work fast because I want the team to be successful. In addition, I want to make sure I have not only produced high-quality work but also explored whether this is the best and most creative solution for the project.”
With this new outlook, you are still looking out for what clients and project teams want (successful outcomes), but you have also enriched the experience by fully executing your design expertise rather than just churning out work.
One recommendation here is to always ensure you are communicating with your project team about the budget and timelines. Keeping yourself aware of these key goals will allow you to pace when to push for more exploration and when to dial it in.
Real-Life Example
I experienced this on a project of mine when a client’s piece of feedback seemed clear-cut, but as we entered a third round of design surrounding it, it revealed that it was much more complicated.
The client, Cleveland Public Library, had approved a set of wireframes for their homepage that illustrated a very content-heavy hero, but when it came to the design phase, they were delighted by a simpler, more bold design for a block that I created in my preliminary design explorations. At first, I thought it was obvious: let’s just give them a dialed-in, simple hero design and be done with it. I knew the hours were precious on this project, and I wanted to save time for later on as we got into the finer design details of the pages. However, this was an error on my part.
After taking a step back and removing speed as a key factor during this phase of the project, I found the solution they actually needed: a content-heavy hero showcasing the breadth of their offerings, melded with the boldness of the more pared-down design. And guess what? This variant was approved instantly!
Now that I have shown you two examples of how to unlearn previous experiences, I hope you can see the value of reframing those moments in order to tap into a more uninhibited and unexplored creative path. Of course, you should expect that it will take several implementations to start feeling the shift towards inherent thinking — even I need to remind myself to pause and reframe, like in the last example. Rome wasn’t built in a day, as they say!
Try This
I challenge you to identify a few moments on a recent project where you could have paused, reflected, and used more creativity. What would you have done differently?
Approach 2: Tap Into Your Background With Connection Paths
I know I just talked about unlearning some of our previous experiences to unlock creativity, but what about the ones we may want to tap into to push us even further? Every designer has an array of passions, memories, and experiences that have culminated into what makes us who we are today. We often have a work self — professional and poised, and a personal self — exploding with hobbies. How can we take those unique facets of our personalities and apply them to our projects?
Creating connections with projects and clients on a deeper level is a major way to make use of our personal experiences and knowledge. It can help to add inspiration where you otherwise may not have found that same spark on a project or subject matter.
Let me walk you through what I like to call the Three Connection Paths. I’ll also show you how you can pull from these and apply them to your projects.
Direct Path
This connection path is one in which you have overlapping interests with the client or subject matter.
An example of this is a client from the video game industry, and you play their video games. Seems like an obvious connection! You can bring in your knowledge and love for the game industry and their work. You could propose easter eggs and tie-ins to their games on their website. It’s a match made in heaven.
Cross Path
This connection path is one in which you cross at a singular point with the client or subject matter.
An example of this is a client, which is a major restaurant chain, and you used to work in the food industry. With your background, you understand what it is like to work at a restaurant, so you might suggest what CTA’s or fun graphics would be important for a staff-centric site.
Network Path
This connection path is one in which you are tethered to the client or subject matter through who you know.
An example of this is a client in the engineering field, and one of your family members is an engineer. You can then ask your family members for insights or what would be a good user experience for them on a redesigned website.
Sometimes, you won’t be so lucky as to align with a client in one of the Three Connection Paths, but you can still find ways to add a layered experience through other means, such as your skillset and research. In the last example, say you know nothing about engineering nor have a connection to someone who does, but you are an excellent copy editor outside of work. You can propose tweaking the verbiage on their hero section to emphasize their goals all the more. This shows care and thoughtfulness, giving the client an experience they are sure to appreciate.
Real-Life Example
A real-life example in which I implemented a Direct Connection Path on a project was for Comics Kingdom’s website redesign. When I was younger, I wanted to be a manga creator, so this client being an intermediary between comic readers and creators resonated with me. Not only that, but I still practice illustration, so I knew I had to bring this skill set to the table, even though it was not part of the original scope of work.
I allowed myself to lean into that spark I felt. I hand-sketched a few illustrations in Procreate for their website that felt personal and tied to the joy that comics evoke. Beyond that, I found a way to incorporate my knowledge of manga into a background pattern that pulled inspiration from nawa-ami (a traditional cross-hatching style to denote deep thought) and mixed it with the motif of fingerprints — the idea of identity and the artist’s own mark on their work.
Due to my deep passion, I was able to cultivate an excellent collaborative relationship with the client, which led to a very successful launch and being invited to speak on their podcast. This experience solidified my belief that through tapping into Connection Paths, you can forge not only amazing projects but also partnerships.
Try This
Look at what projects you currently have and see which of the Three Connection Paths you could use to build that bond with the client or the subject matter. If you don’t see one of the Three Connection Paths aligning, then what skills or research could you bring to the table instead?
Approach 3: Take Up Your Own Space
The last — and arguably most important — approach to leveling up your projects is taking up your own space. I’m not referring to physical space like strong-arming those around you. What I’m referring to is the space in which designers take to be vocal about their design decisions.
A lot of designers find this practice uncomfortable. Whether it stems from having not been given that space to practice as a beginner designer, higher ranking designers not leaving the room for those less vocal, or even you yourself feeling like someone else might be better suited to talk to a particular point.
Don’t Retreat
Similarly, some designers find themselves retreating when receiving feedback. Instead of standing behind the reasoning of their designs or asking follow-up questions, it seems easier to simply go along with the requested change in order to make the client or team member providing the feedback happy. Even if you disagree with the request, does it feel like you need to execute it just because the client — or someone you feel outranks you — told you to?
You Are The Expert
There is another option, one in which you can mark yourself as the design expert you are and get comfortable in the discomfort.
Saying you don’t agree and explaining why helps solidify you as a strong decision-maker and confident designer. Tying it back to why you made the decision in the first place is key.
Illuminating your opinions and reasoning in conversations is what will get those around you to trust in your decisions. Hiding them away or conceding to client whims isn’t going to show those around you that you have the knowledge to make the proper recommendations for a project.
The Middle Ground
Now, I’m not saying that you will need to always disagree with the provided feedback to show that you have a backbone. Far from it. I think there is a time and place for when you need to lean into your expertise, and a time and place for when you need to find a middle ground and/or collaborate. Collaborating with coworkers and clients lets them peek into the “why” behind the design decisions being made.
Example
A great example of this is a client questioning you on a particular font size, saying it feels too large and out of place.
You have two options:
You could say that you will make it smaller.
Or you could dig deeper.
If you have been paying attention thus far, you’d know that option 2. is the route I would suggest. So, instead of just changing the font size, you should ask for specifics. For example, is the type hierarchy feeling off — the relationship of that heading to the body font it is paired with? You can ask if the size feels large in other instances since perhaps this is your H2 font, so it would need to be changed across the board. Calling attention to why you chose this size using data-informed UX design, accessibility, brand, or storytelling reasons all amplify your decision-making skills before the client, so including that information here helps.
If, after the discussion, the client still wants to go with changing the font size, at least you have given your reasoning and shown that you didn’t thoughtlessly make a decision — you made the design choice after taking into consideration multiple factors and putting in a lot of thought. Over time, this will build trust in you as the design expert on projects.
Real-Life Example
An example in which I showcased taking up my own space was from a recent project I worked on for Hilton Stories in their collaboration with Wicked. After conceptualizing a grand takeover experience complete with a storytelling undertone, one of the clients wanted to remove the page-loading animation with the idea of having more branded elements elsewhere.
While most of my team was ready to execute this, I read between the lines and realized that we could solve the issue by including clear verbiage of the collaboration on the loading animation as well as adding logos and a video spot to the interior pages. By sticking up for a key piece of my designs, I was able to show that I was aligned with not only my design decisions but the major goals of the project. This solution made the clients happy and allowed for a successful launch with the loading animation that the Fueled + 10up team and I worked so hard on.
Try This
The next time you receive feedback, pause for a moment. Take in carefully what is being said and ask questions before responding. Analyze if it makes sense to go against the design decisions you made. If it doesn’t, tell the client why. Have that open dialogue and see where you land. This will be uncomfortable at first, but over time, it will get easier.
Remember, you made your decisions for a reason. Now is the time to back up your design work and ultimately back up yourself and your decisions. So, take up your own space unapologetically.
Conclusion
Now that you have learned all about the three approaches, there is nothing stopping you from trialing these on your next project. From unlearning previous experiences through Reframing to tapping into your background with Connection Paths, you can lay the groundwork for how your past can be used to shape your future interactions. When taking up your own space, start small as you begin to advocate for your designs, and always try to connect to the “whys” so you instill trust in your clients and members of your design team.
As Robin Williams so eloquently delivered in the Dead Poets Society, “No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world.” In this case, you don’t need to apply it so widely as the entire world, maybe just to your workplace for now.
