Designer’s Mindset
By: Inaba Takashi
Tags: Work, Mindset, Designer, Design

1.Have three perspectives: producer, user, and business.

I try to have a good balance between the three perspectives of “creator, user, and business. Thinking that “making things is work” is completely different from thinking that “making things is part of work.

Pursuing the “appearance” and “logical consistency” of a product or service, and paying attention to details that no one else would notice, as represented by the “1px detail,” is one of the important jobs of a designer.

However, no matter how elaborate and splendid a product or service looks from the creator’s point of view, it does not necessarily mean that the users will be happy with it. Nor is it necessarily a viable business.

The value of a product or service is created only when it is used by people. At that time, it is the user who judges the “value”. Even if you are able to provide some value, you cannot continue to provide value if you do not make a profit.

2. Do not neglect the three points of “planning, execution, and review

I try to maintain a good balance between “planning, execution, and review. If you immediately jump into “doing” anything, you will feel like you are doing something, you will feel like you are moving forward, and you will feel relieved.

However, if you ask yourself, “What’s the point of all this? or “What was the result of the last action? If you can’t take a step back and ask yourself, “What’s the point of this?

For example, a meeting without goal setting may be meaningless in the first place, and a meeting without agenda setting may not change the situation before and after the meeting.

3. Focus on “moving the business forward

I try to “move the business forward” without worrying about “my evaluation. People who are obsessed with “making themselves look smart, taking credit, and proving themselves right” are instantly recognizable to those around them, but what they need to do to move their business forward is the exact opposite.

Consciously be an idiot when listening to others.

Work based on information that you don’t understand is unlikely to go well, and you will learn less when it does. Don’t pretend to understand on the spot, but ask questions until you understand everything. If you understand what you are doing and have some idea of what you are doing, you will be able to learn a lot even if you fail.

Don’t try to be a hero.

If you are willing to put the organization’s success before your own, you will be able to adopt better ideas than your own, and you will be able to delegate tasks to others who can do them better than you. If there is someone who can do it better than you, you can delegate it to them. You can even solve the problem by simply connecting people without doing anything yourself. You don’t necessarily have to take the credit and be the hero.

Don’t assert your own legitimacy.

When a problem occurs, the discussion may heat up into a debate about “whose fault it is” or “whose opinion is theoretically correct,” but the only thing that really matters is “what should be done and what can be done to move the conversation forward.

It is enough to discuss and implement a tentative response to the problem and measures to prevent recurrence, and there is no need to spend time blaming each other, saying “I am not wrong” or “Your response was wrong at that time.

4. Don’t force yourself into a “frame”.

Don’t limit your work by your “title.

I don’t care about “titles” that are just provided to me in order to advance my business. I don’t think “I’m a designer, so I do this” or “I’m a designer, so I don’t do that. Rather, I aim to systematize and eliminate my own work and create new work.

Think of it as a problem that you can solve.

When a problem arises, it means that things are not going to work out as they are now, and it is an opportunity for growth. Of course, you can’t always solve everything by making it your own. Sometimes you have to involve others, and sometimes the conclusion is that you are not going in the right direction. Still, rather than continuing to complain about the problem while blaming others for it, it is better for your mental health and for your goal of achievement to “make it your own” and try to control it.

Don’t “choose” the right answer, “make” it the right answer.

Don’t seek the absolute only “right” answer. It is natural that our preparations are not perfect, and it is natural that we do not have all the information. After we have done the best we can at the time, even if it is a bit forced, we will go ahead and execute the project and make it the right one by committing to it afterwards.