Building a Career in UI/UX Design in 7 Easy Steps

No matter how functional the backend codes are and how big a problem a product is designed to solve, if the user interface and experience (UI/UX) don’t appeal to the end users, then it would at best, be a very useful product that will remain ignored.

UI/UX Design is about translating user requirements that align with business objectives into style guides, design systems, design patterns, and attractive user interfaces.

The Harde UI/UX Design course offers the foundational knowledge to mastering UI/UX Design as a career.

Photo by Muhammad Salim on Unsplash

How do I start?

Step 1- Familiarize yourself with UI principles.

Before practicing design, it’s important to familiarize yourself with key design principles and the creative process. Here are some steps to get started:

1. Colour: Understand color vocabulary, fundamentals, and the psychology behind colors.
2. Balance: Study symmetry and asymmetry in design.
3. Contrast
4. Typography: Choosing fonts and creating readable text on the web
5. Consistency: Create intuitive and usable designs by maintaining consistency.

Photo by Sharon Pittaway on Unsplash

Step 2: Understand the creative UX process:

The UX design process consists of four phases: Discover, Define, Develop, and Deliver. Each phase contributes to the overall success of a design project:

1. Discover: Conduct research, gather inspiration, and generate ideas.
2. Define: Refine ideas and create a clear creative brief.
3. Develop: Create and iterate on solutions through prototyping and testing.
4. Deliver: Finalize, produce, and launch the project.

Step 3: Train your eye for design.

Knowing design principles is great, but sometimes it’s not enough. You also have to train your eye to see good design and bad design and to identify strengths and weaknesses in designs.

The most effective way to train your eye for design is through inspiration. Before opening a blank canvas and staring at it for half an hour, know that the only way to be creative is through research. Sometimes the mind can’t create ideas on its own, you have to first look at other designs to start creating your own, especially when you’re a beginner.

So, look at what other designers are doing on Dribble, and whenever you come across pretty designs or something relevant to your project, save it in your notes and mention what you like about it, you can also take screenshots. This way, you will have a collection of inspirational designs for you to start.

Here are my favorite websites for inspiration:

onepagelove.com- One Page website designs for your inspiration.

awwwards.com Awards website that promotes design talent.

dribbble.com A community of designers sharing their work.

pttrns.com- A collection of mobile design patterns.

uimovement.com- The best UI design inspiration, every day

Photo by Alessandro Bianchi on Unsplash

Step 4: Read design articles regularly.

To stay updated with design trends and gain insights, make a habit of reading design news and blogs. Medium and Smashing Magazine are great sources for informative articles. By learning from others’ experiences, you can expand your knowledge and improve your skills.

Step 5: Practice by working on fake projects.

Even without clients or job experience, you can enhance your skills by undertaking personal design projects. Redesign a website or app you frequently use, or create your own app concept. Dribbble can provide inspiration for such projects.

Step 6: Learn the latest web design tools.

There are tons of design tools out there, but you don’t need to know all of them. Get to know the best ones out there, choose your favorites and stay updated with the newest features and trends.

Here are the latest tools that I use in my design process:

• Sketch for interface design
• Figma for collaborative interface design
• Balsamiq for low-fidelity wireframing
• Adobe XD for interface design and prototyping
• Marvel App for making mockups interactive
• Invision App for prototyping and collaboration

Step 7: Seek mentorship and offer mentorship

Joining a community of designers can greatly accelerate your learning process. They can provide feedback, share tips, and offer valuable insights based on their experience. You can join our Discord Community here to connect with other designers. Additionally, consider mentoring others as a way to further deepen your understanding and knowledge of design.

The UI/UX — Designing Irresistible Interfaces for Grand User Experiences Course at Harde Business School is specifically designed to equip you with practical knowledge and theoretical foundations in UI/UX design. It aims to enhance your skills and help you apply what you learn to your professional endeavors.

Prepare for an immersive learning experience at Harde Business School that will challenge your thinking, intrigue your mind, and transform your results. Get ready to unleash the WOW factor.