The Power of Design Systems: My Journey from Aesthetics to Cohesion
Photo by Balázs Kétyi on Unsplash
My Early Years in Design: Aesthetics Above All
In the early stages of my career, I was captivated by the beauty of design. I would spend hours browsing platforms like Dribbble and Behance, marvelling at the stunning aesthetics and intricate animations that designers showcased. Every elegant logo, website, app, or character illustration would leave me in awe. In my mind, the essence of great design was synonymous with impeccable aesthetics.
This perspective was akin to how many outside the design world perceive art. The focus was on appearances, much like the allure of Apple's beautifully designed products, showcased with the tagline of "great design." Craft, with its delicate attention to detail, mattered significantly, and visual polish was the measure of success in design.
This perspective was akin to how many outside the design world perceive art. The focus was on appearances, much like the allure of Apple's beautifully designed products, showcased with the tagline of "great design." Craft, with its delicate attention to detail, mattered significantly, and visual polish was the measure of success in design.
The Shift in My Perspective: Holistic Thinking
Over the years, I realized that there was more to design than mere aesthetics. Exceptional designers weren't just masters of craft; they were also champions of holistic thinking. I began to understand that great design extended beyond the surface. The best designers possessed an innate ability to look at the bigger picture, imagining how their work would function in the real world.
Inexperienced designers, like my former self, often focused narrowly on what they were creating, failing to consider how their work might fare in diverse contexts. Their designs lacked the resilience to withstand encounters with disabilities, deviations from context, or alterations in size and time.
Poor design created a single solution while giving rise to a multitude of new problems. In contrast, good design resolved problems without negatively impacting other elements within its ecosystem. This shift in perspective from craft-centric to system-centric thinking was, and still is, transformative.
Inexperienced designers, like my former self, often focused narrowly on what they were creating, failing to consider how their work might fare in diverse contexts. Their designs lacked the resilience to withstand encounters with disabilities, deviations from context, or alterations in size and time.
Poor design created a single solution while giving rise to a multitude of new problems. In contrast, good design resolved problems without negatively impacting other elements within its ecosystem. This shift in perspective from craft-centric to system-centric thinking was, and still is, transformative.
The Emergence of Design Systems
This change in my outlook coincided with the emergence of design systems. The concept of a design system, a set of guidelines, rules, and components that work in harmony to create a seamless user experience across all touchpoints, intrigued me
I discovered that a well-structured design system offers a multitude of benefits, redefining how we approach design. These include:.
Consistency: A Foundation of Trust
Design systems provide a framework for consistency. Users now expect a uniform experience, regardless of how they interact with a product. A design system ensures that all elements, from typography to color and spacing, remain consistent, building trust with users.
Efficiency: A Designer's Lifesaver
A design system streamlines the design process, saving precious time for designers and developers alike. It offers pre-designed components that can be quickly deployed to create new pages or features, eliminating the need to start from scratch with each project.
Flexibility: Balancing Uniformity and Creativity
Design systems strike a balance between uniformity and creativity, permitting the creation of new components and design patterns while adhering to established standards. This flexibility empowers teams to craft unique user experiences while staying within the overarching design system.
Scalability: Meeting the Challenges of Growth
In a rapidly evolving landscape, maintaining design consistency can be a formidable challenge. Design systems, however, offer a lifeline. They serve as a single source of truth for a product's design, fostering collaboration among multiple development teams and ensuring design continuity, even as the product expands.
I discovered that a well-structured design system offers a multitude of benefits, redefining how we approach design. These include:.
Consistency: A Foundation of Trust
Design systems provide a framework for consistency. Users now expect a uniform experience, regardless of how they interact with a product. A design system ensures that all elements, from typography to color and spacing, remain consistent, building trust with users.
Efficiency: A Designer's Lifesaver
A design system streamlines the design process, saving precious time for designers and developers alike. It offers pre-designed components that can be quickly deployed to create new pages or features, eliminating the need to start from scratch with each project.
Flexibility: Balancing Uniformity and Creativity
Design systems strike a balance between uniformity and creativity, permitting the creation of new components and design patterns while adhering to established standards. This flexibility empowers teams to craft unique user experiences while staying within the overarching design system.
Scalability: Meeting the Challenges of Growth
In a rapidly evolving landscape, maintaining design consistency can be a formidable challenge. Design systems, however, offer a lifeline. They serve as a single source of truth for a product's design, fostering collaboration among multiple development teams and ensuring design continuity, even as the product expands.
A Call to Aspiring Designers
For those on the path to becoming designers whose impact transcends a narrow scope, embracing a design system is a pivotal step. My journey has taught me invaluable lessons, and I'd like to share some advice:
Explore Extremes
Understand the limits of your design by creating the simplest and most complex versions of your work.
Share Early and Often
Sharing your work early, even through detailed notes or comments, helps you connect with your past work and understand its evolution.
Embrace Feedback
Invite others to provide feedback and engage them in discussions about their perspectives on your work.
Think Holistically
Look beyond the immediate design problem and consider the larger ecosystem in which your designs will exist.
Explore Extremes
Understand the limits of your design by creating the simplest and most complex versions of your work.
Share Early and Often
Sharing your work early, even through detailed notes or comments, helps you connect with your past work and understand its evolution.
Embrace Feedback
Invite others to provide feedback and engage them in discussions about their perspectives on your work.
Think Holistically
Look beyond the immediate design problem and consider the larger ecosystem in which your designs will exist.
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