Fueled by coffee and whitespace
Quote
Read other notes
Why the second concept always feels safer than it should
The fallback direction you present alongside your strongest idea has a way of winning for reasons that have nothing to do with design quality.
The reference image that took over the whole project
Mood board inspiration is useful until it becomes a ceiling and recognizing that moment changes everything about how you work.
Designing something you personally dislike is its own skill
Separating your taste from your client's needs is one of the harder professional muscles to build and most designers never quite finish building it.
What your file naming says about how you think
The way you organize a project folder is a quiet record of whether you trust your own process or are just managing anxiety.
The revision that improved nothing and changed everything
Some feedback rounds produce a weaker design that somehow sells better and that tension deserves more than a shrug.
When the color palette is not yours but the problem still is
Working inside someone else's brand guidelines tests whether your design thinking is actually transferable or just habit.
The mockup you almost skipped taught you the most
Rushing past the presentation step is where most designers lose the argument they were actually winning on craft.
The version you deleted was probably the right one
That instinct to scrap your best idea five minutes in is worth questioning before you talk yourself into something safer.