How collaboration has made me a better designer.

When I first began as a designer, I felt like my designs had to be complete before I could show them to anyone. I think this vulnerability stems from a feeling that we as designers have to think through every element before we can call a design complete. As a result, it can be tempting to design in a vacuum because showing others a design you feel is incomplete can be nervewracking, but getting out of our own heads and incorporating collaboration into our design processes can make us all better designers.

Here are four ways you can be more collaborative throughout your design process.

1. Talk with Others
   I spend most of my days independently thinking through interactions and visual concepts with prototypes, wireframes, and sketches. When I get to a place where I feel comfortable with the concept I like first reach out to my fellow designers to get quick initial reactions, advice on how to improve the work, and general tips on what’s working and what’s not. I believe it’s critical to take a step back and talk through your work with another person to make sure your design intention is coming through and the interface is intuitive enough for another person to use.
2. Embrace Design Critiques
   I always have others critique my designs before presenting any work to a client. It helps me understand what’s working, what’s not, and how it can be improved. It’s important that your designs are viewed from multiple different lenses because it’s easy to justify design decisions in your head when you’re the only person who’s seen the design, so it’s critical to get a second or third opinion on design so we can make certain the designed works and is helpful for everyone. It’s also a good idea to test your design presentation prior to having a formal client presentation. You need to know that the language you’re using to describing your design is intuitive and easy to digest.
3. Do Prototyping Testing
   A prototype can be anything. It can be a piece of paper or an interactive Figma prototype that’s used to test how a typical user engages with a product. When I’m uncertain about an assumption I have about a design, it helps to do some informal user testing with the design team and other colleagues. Testing with members of your team is a good exercise for thinking through basic user experience patterns because everyone brings a unique understanding of web accessibility standards and how to improve usability.
4. Share What Inspires You
   Browsing the internet is primarily an individual activity. We all come across something we find inspiring, but most rarely share our design inspirations with others. Having an organized space where you can share things that inspire will help everyone understand each other’s reference points. And since we’re all continuously learning from new experiences, it’s important to share what speaks to us in creative, professional, or personal ways. It will also help you keep up to date on what techniques or trends are shifting the industry.

Final Thoughts

Why am I telling you this? I believe we get better each day as individuals by engaging in challenging conversations with each other. This in turn creates a much stronger, more powerful team and helps you grow as a designer.