The Layout #19
A layout of design highlights and thoughts
Welcome to The Layout #19. The substack about design that makes life a little easier with fun insights and key resources for you to level up. Now, let’s get on with it.
Do It For Yourself.
Maybe it is how we have been wired or a societal thing but there has been something recent in human history that has reframed any achievement or task we set out to do should be done because others depend on it. This means that you should do great things in order to benefit the closest to you so that you don't look selfish or arrogant. I think this mental concept needs some little tweaks.
There is nothing wrong with helping the people closest to you. Though, when the time comes to do work that is not easily understood or looks just plain weird, the people around you have a tendency to criticize you heavily because they don't see what you see. This is fine because there are always clashing ideologies in this world.
The thing is thinking of the great things that we use today in this world that were initially mocked by people close to the inventors e.g. iPhones, Cars, Planes, etc. The key is to learn to do things for yourself i.e. this means doing things that may make you look arrogant or greedy but there is a clear vision in what you do. This frees you from criticism that will harm your initial thought processes and gives you more room to experiment and create great work.
New Thing I Learned
Journaling is one of the things everybody hates. Some people start for a few days and drop it days later(me included). Watched a YouTube shortly and it showed me one key benefit of journaling apart from the clarity of mind, writing of plans, etc. was improvement in handwriting. This was an unexpected outcome. me thinks the key to journalling consistently is that should be put on par with a daily activity such as brushing your teeth. It should also be an activity that inspires joy and good feelings not a sense of dread. This goes for other habits or goals that we want to develop. I will try and start tomorrow. Wish me luck.
Resource Break
Good Practices: This website outlines some good practices in design when designing large or small scale. Click here to use.
Cover Junkie: This site displays magazine covers for design inspiration. Check it out here.
AI Design: A Twitter thread about a lot of AI tools that will change how you work. Check it out.
Join the Uxcel Train.
So Uxcel just released their mobile apps for Android and IOS. You are probably wondering what the heck is Uxcel. Well, Uxcel is a platform that can be used to improve your product design skills and take you to the next level through bite-sized courses, assessments that test your design knowledge, and games that develop your design eye. You can join their waitlist to win some prizes by using the link https://uxcel.com/waitlist#Join-form or use the web version to get instant access by using my referral link https://app.uxcel.com/join/KIN6UMEAY9ZE. Thank you very much.
Classical music to start the day
Let’s travel back to a distant world.
Have a wonderful week and keep creating. Please subscribe and share with your friends if you found this helpful. Thank you and God Bless.