Product tools have created a leadership crisis
Weekly curated resources for designers — thinkers and makers.
“On the surface level, software tools homogenize our thinking; we reach for the solutions that the tools we have at hand are designed to create. But tools for the mind are even worse: our methodologies, frameworks, canvases, and processes succumb to what John Cutler calls the Way of Ways until they replace the initial goal entirely. The mission statement inevitably shifts from “make good software” to “follow the method” with predictable results.”
Product tools have created a leadership crisis →
What do Meta, Uber, Dropbox, and Okta have in common? →
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Editor picks
Is ‘Systems Thinking’ the new buzzword in UX? →
We’ve got to get comfortable with the uncomfortable.Design systems: we often build castles over ancient ruins →
Relying on old foundations and communications.How human nature, AI, and interest rates ruined it for everybody →
A long explanation of why the UX market is not what it was.
The UX Collective is an independent design publication that elevates unheard design voices and helps designers think more critically about their work.
Pinterest’s new body type ranges deliver more inclusive search results →
Make me think
Everyone’s a sellout now →
“You’ve got to do it even when you feel like you have absolutely nothing to say, because the algorithm demands you post anyway. You have to do it even if you’re from a culture where doing any self-promotion is looked upon as inherently negative, or if you’re a woman for whom bragging carries an even greater social stigma than it already does.”Rethinking the startup MVP →
“Building something valuable is no longer about validating a novel idea as fast as possible. Instead, the modern MVP exercise is about building a version of an idea that is different from and better than what exists today.”Jakob has jumped the shark →
“You can BOTH recognize his initial contributions to this space AND understand people you hold in high esteem can be problematic and sometimes need to take a seat and listen.”
Little gems this week
Why is the world losing color? →
UX’s year of existential crisis →
Tools and resources
Figma variables →
Diving into primitive & semantic.The Cynefin framework →
Navigating complexity in UX.The universal color palette →
Supporting a global design system at scale.
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