Okaaaaay, My fellow PMs, Do you secretly wish to drive your designers insane to the point they quit their jobs to become Chowdeck riders? No problem! I got you. Just do these 8 things over and over again and theyâll be thoroughly miserable.
- The Mystery Objective:
You know those moments your designer is asking for clarity on the product, tell them "Just make it awesome!" Sure, and while theyâre at it, do you also want them to solve world peace? God forbid that you should give your designers a clear goal to work towards, whether it's boosting conversions, or improving onboarding flow. Ambiguity may be the enemy of great design who really cares about that anyway?
- Scope Creep:
Send your designers a message now, tell them, "Can we just squeeze in this one tiny feature?" You know it's not tiny, and it'll blow up their carefully balanced design, but again, who cares?? Why should you respect the agreed-upon scope or even renegotiate timelines and deliverables together? Itâs only a tiny feature after all.
- What is Feedback?:
Next time your designers ask if the current design iteration matches the vision, just tell them, "I'll know it when I see it." because of course designers are supposed to be psychic. Do not give specific feedback, reference examples, and be willing to iterate together. Your gut reactions should be enough joor.
- Death by a Thousand Revisions:
Ensure you make endless tweaks without clear direction, this is perfect for destroying morale and will result in a Frankenstein design. Never consolidate feedback from stakeholders, so you can prioritize the changes with the highest returns.
- Trend-Chaser:
"I saw this cool animation on Dribbble, let's do that!" Even though that animation doesnât solve a critical user problem, and is just a distraction. Why should you focus on usability first, when you can obsess over aesthetics.
- "My Cousin's Kid Could Design This":
Tell them! Please disrespect your designer's expertise. Who do they think they are? Why ask questions to understand their design choices when you can just be dismissive? It's not like there's any strategic thinking behind their decisions anyway.
- Accessibility? Who Cares About That Anyway?:
Inclusive design? Nobody should bother you about all of that, youâll cross that brigde when you get there. Thereâs absolutely no need to work with your designers to consider users of all abilities from the very beginning.
- Silence is Golden:
Always remember to ghost on your designers when they need feedback. Even a quick "Looks good, let's move forward!" should never cross your lips. Always leave them hanging and throw in a little passive-aggression to spice things up. đ
In the unlikely instance that you actually care about your designers and you want to have a good working relationship with them, here are some tips that will ensure they smile when they see your Slack message:
Learn Design Fundamentals: You don't need to become a Figma master, but grasp the basics: color theory, typography, visual hierarchy, and UI patterns. This gives you a common language to discuss design decisions.
Advocate for User Research: Data wins arguments and designers LOVE data. Fight for the time and resources to conduct user interviews, and usability tests, and gather feedback throughout the design process. Involve your designers in analyzing the results!
Celebrate Wins Big AND Small: Did a new design drastically improve a conversion rate? Shout it from the rooftops! Acknowledge your designer's role during team updates and give specific praise. You can also buy them milky donuts. Let them know you value their contribution.
Build Trust Through Transparency: Be upfront about timelines, constraints, and those inevitable scope changes. Giving designers a heads-up lets them proactively suggest solutions instead of scrambling at the last minute.
Schedule Dedicated Design Reviews: Don't just treat design as an after-thought. Set aside time for focused review sessions with relevant stakeholders. This gives designers the space to explain their rationale and get constructive feedback.
Facilitate, Don't Dictate: Trust your designers to explore creative solutions. Guide them with a clear problem statement, then give them room to impress you. Micromanaging stifles innovation.
Bonus Tip: Always ask your designers what YOU can do to make collaboration smoother, theyâll love you for it.
But of course, I know you donât care about your designers so youâll never apply these tips. Till we meet again.
Stay Wicked.