Inspired by my instructor Martin Thaler's "100 Things I learned in Product Design School", I decided to write down my own short collection of learnings, as I reflected upon my time in the Foundation semester at the Institute of Design as a first-year Master of Design student from August to December 2024. I hope these bite-sized thoughts can be inspiring and provoking for other aspiring designers.

1. You must do with what you have

2. Paper and pen(or sharpie) are the fastest way out

3. It often isn’t what, but why

4. Creativity is nothing without an objective

5. If your hands can only go so far, then start stretching them

6. Technology is a tool, not an answer 

7. If you don’t ask then you won’t know

8. Another try is about as close to the end as you will get 

9. If you can’t convince me you can’t convince anyone

10. Constraints are your friends

11. What do you mean you don’t have a point of view?

12. You are only the best if you compare yourself to what is less than you

13. There’s always a better solution you haven’t thought of

14. A crappy thing will always beat an amazing idea of a thing

15. Tell only those stories the child inside of you can understand

16. There is power in design decisions

17. People never mean what they say because you can't fully understand what they mean

18. If only one observes, the patterns are evident

19. Trust the process — fast is not better

20. Zoom in and out as often as possible

21. Don’t be afraid to start over — be scrappy and reuse what you can

22. You are not your designs, but your designs speak to who you are

23. Good taste is the mirror of the fragile

24. If one does not understand it, then it is not a successful design — no matter what

25. Listen to all, speak to few

26. There are tools you can use, your judgment being a very good one

27. Share your feedback with kindness 

28. What is good enough for you might be too much or too little for someone else

29. Averages are nobody’s data

30. People find it hard to criticize complex data — designers must ask hard questions

31. If a menu just gave you a headache…

32. A designer designs everything

33. You are not the audience. You are not your audience.

34. Competition will take you further than praise

35. Imitate, Standardize, Iterate, Innovate — in this order

36. Seek standards to achieve, then seek higher ones

37. Futuring is important if you want to stay relevant

38. Ask why when presented with a how, then propose a new way

39. Divide and conquer: trust your team

40. Time management will make or break your career

41. Budget time to fail

42. Always learn something new while you’re at it

43. Keep tabs: people, places, sketches

44. There isn’t a right answer — don’t trust who says otherwise

45. Progress can happen in silence 

46. Let your design files rest in peace — turn off your laptop

47. Your mom is as good a designer as you are

48. Good designers' most underrated skill is self-awareness 

49. You don’t have to agree with everyone — no one owes you anything

50. Living in design terms is demanding