Design prioritisation: The real superpower for great design

Everyone thinks design is about polish. But It’s a signal. Not to the tech. Not to the features. To the intention behind them. Here’s the pattern: At pre-seed, the only signal that matters is usability. Can someone actually demo it without breaking? At seed, the signal shifts. Investors, customers, and hires want to know who you are. That’s when a landing page and an identity with some shelf life carry you into Series A. By Series A, the signal is scalability. Conversion, clarity, and consistency across every touchpoint. That’s when most rebrands happen. I’ve seen it play out over and over. The teams that invest in design at the right moment raise faster, attract users more naturally, and build teams that are proud to stand behind their product. The mistake is thinking design is just polish. It isn’t. Design is a signal. It shows the world you’re intentional. And intention is what buys you time with the people who matter most.

Design is Redesign. ...yes, you read that right. Truth is, your first draft will rarely be the final product, and that’s okay. It’s the process. Until you can make it work (deliver value), it often isn't good enough, yet. Here’s what I have learned: 📍A design that looks great but frustrates users is a failed design. That’s why every iteration matters. Each redesign should move you closer to three goals: 📍Making life easier for your users 📍Making navigation feel invisible 📍Strengthening your business outcomes (yes, because ROI counts just as much) So before you roll out that new feature, ask yourself: 📍Do users really need this? 📍Will it make their journey smoother, not harder? 📍Does it add value to the business outcome? You see, design is a cycle of constant refinement, and a good design is iterative. I like to think that the difference between good design and great design isn’t talent. It’s iteration. It’s the courage to redesign, again and again. What’s the toughest redesign decision you’ve had to make?

Design without clarity is chaos. That’s the first thought that came to my mind after diving deep into the world of design systems this week. I had the privilege of attending a lesson with Kent Mashasha in my Talent for Startups program, and one key takeaway stood out: A design system is more than just colors, fonts, or components. It’s about creating consistency, clarity, and scalability in how we build products and experiences. In today’s fast-paced digital environment, where design must align with both user needs and business goals, having a well-structured design system is like having a shared language between designers, developers, and marketers. It reduces guesswork, saves time, and ensures that the end result feels seamless for the user. I’m especially grateful to Kent Mashasha for breaking down such a complex topic into practical, relatable lessons. He made it clear that design systems are not just for “big tech” — they’re valuable even for startups and small businesses that want to build trustworthy, consistent brands. My biggest lesson: A design system isn’t about restriction — it’s about freedom. The freedom to focus on creativity, innovation, and solving real problems, while the system takes care of consistency. Thank you, Kent Mashasha for the insights! How do you and your team approach consistency in design — do you rely on a system, or are you still figuring it out?

Thinking about design takes time and effort. You need to understand users, test flows, compare solutions, and align stakeholders. It is not easy, it asks for patience, empathy, and structure. But ignoring design is much worse. When design is not considered, products often become confusing, inaccessible, or even unusable. Small oversights add up to support costs, frustrated users, and missed opportunities. Teams end up spending more time and money fixing problems later than they would have by investing in design up front. Design is not just about how something looks. It is the bridge between information and understanding, between a product and the people who use it. Thinking about design may feel hard in the moment, but not thinking about it creates long-term risks that can break trust, waste resources, and harm the business. "Thinking about design is hard, but not thinking about it can be disastrous." Ralph Caplan

We optimize for clicks, conversions, and completion—but overlook emotion, hesitation, and context. The result? Interfaces that feel fast but not friendly. Functional but not fulfilling. Emotionally intelligent design flips the script. It doesn’t just remove friction—it replaces it with flow. It listens, adapts, and responds with empathy. And in doing so, it builds trust, loyalty, and joy. Emotionally intelligent interfaces don’t just work—they feel right. And in a world of digital fatigue, that feeling is everything.

Investors don’t believe in products without design vision... If you still think design is just about buttons, fonts, and “making things pretty” — you’re already losing the game. Strong products don’t die because the code is bad. They die because no one can understand them, trust them, or fall in love with them from the very first second. A product designer is not a “decorator.” They’re the connecting hub that keeps the whole thing from falling apart: — users get clarity on the value, — founders’ and investors’ hypotheses make sense, — developers know exactly what to build (and why), — and investors finally see: “Okay, this is a real product.” ⚡️ The truth is simple: products aren’t born in the founder’s head, in the codebase, or even in the metrics. They’re born at the point where a designer absorbs the entire context — users, market, team, money — and translates it into a tangible, human experience. Design = a shared language that aligns everyone around the same vision. Without it → teams talk past each other, and the product falls apart. So forget “making it pretty.” Design is about uniting the market, the idea, the team, and the end user. Only then will investors believe, customers buy, and the team move in the same direction.

The biggest challenge I see in design projects? Bridging what users truly need with what clients expect. Too often, projects tilt to one side: • Designs that look great but confuse real users. • Or solutions that check business boxes but don’t connect emotionally with people. I’ve been on both ends of that spectrum. Early in my career, I once designed a stunning dashboard that the client loved, until their users tested it and struggled with the basics. That moment taught me: design isn’t successful until it works for both sides. Here’s what I’ve found works better: 👉 Co-create early: Bring clients into the discovery process so they see how user insights shape decisions. 👉 Frame feedback around outcomes: Instead of “this color isn’t nice,” we ask, “does this help users complete their tasks faster?” 👉 Show, don’t just tell: Use prototypes, not just mockups, so everyone can feel the flow before it’s built. For instance: Instead of saying “let’s change the navigation layout,” I say: “Users took 3x longer to find this feature. What if we simplified the menu so they get there in one click?” That way, it’s not a debate of taste. It’s a conversation about results. The real secret? ✨ When users win, clients win too. Engagement goes up, frustration drops, and the business achieves its goals faster. So here’s my question to you: Founders and clients, are you looking for design that feels beautiful and performs beautifully for your users? Let’s talk. 🚀

𝗥𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗹𝗮𝗴𝘀 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 Good design is an investment, but the process of getting there can make or break the outcome. Over the years, I’ve noticed some common red flags that derail projects before they even take off: 🔴 Only focusing on aesthetics If the conversation is only about colors and fonts, without considering user experience, the end product may look good but won’t perform. 🔴 Skipping user research Design without understanding the target audience is just guesswork. Even a little research goes a long way. 🔴 No clear goals or success metrics When there’s no alignment on what “success” looks like, it’s easy to end up with endless revisions and frustrated teams. 🔴 Treating design as a one-off task Design is iterative. If you expect a perfect solution in one shot, you’ll miss out on valuable testing and improvements. The truth is, design isn’t just about making things pretty. It’s about solving problems for real people and that requires strategy, clarity, and collaboration. Businesses that avoid these are the ones who see design translate into growth, retention, and trust.

How Design Thinking Can Reshape Your Company: If your company disappeared today, would your customers truly miss it? The answer depends on one thing: are you solving real human problems? Every successful business starts with this core principle. But here’s the truth: a problem that isn’t clearly identified can’t be solved. Once you define the challenge, the path to a solution becomes clearer. And across industries and communities, there are endless problems waiting for innovative answers. This is where design thinking changes the game. Design thinking is a human-centered approach to innovation. It ensures solutions are practical, creative, and people-focused. Here’s the flow: Define: Get crystal clear on the real problem. Ideate: Brainstorm freely, explore possibilities, and think beyond limits. Prototype: Build a quick, low-cost version to test your idea. Test: Put it in the hands of real users. Collect feedback. Iterate: Refine, adjust, and improve until it clicks. 🌍 Companies That Nailed It: Apple (Steve Jobs): Designed products around people, not tech. The iPhone reshaped how the world communicates. Apple Airbnb (Brian Chesky & Joe Gebbia): Used design thinking to transform poor listings into a world-class hospitality brand. Airbnb Tesla (Elon Musk): Looked at transport through sustainability and design, creating a movement not just cars.Tesla P&G (A.G. Lafley): Embedded design thinking into culture, giving birth to innovations like the Swiffer. Procter & Gamble These companies prove one thing: putting people first wins. Just to mention but a few. 💡 Why Your Business Needs It: Positions you as a problem solver, not just a product seller. Keeps you innovative, relevant, and competitive. Builds customer loyalty by addressing what truly matters to them. When you solve meaningful problems, your business isn’t just seen as a brand; it’s seen as an institution of value. Companies that use design thinking don’t just survive, they thrive. They adapt, innovate, and stay relevant across decades. 👉 Ask yourself today: Are we truly solving human problems? Are our solutions designed around people, not products? How can we embed design thinking into our culture right now? Start small. Pick one real problem. Prototype a simple solution. Test it. Learn. Improve. Your customers don’t just want products but they want solutions. And design thinking helps you deliver exactly that. Founders, over to you: Have you applied design thinking in your business? What problem did it help you solve and how did it reshape your company? Share your experience in the comments and I’d love to learn from your journey. Please repost my Article Business Insider Tech AllTech Magazine Impact Entrepreneur Harvard Business School ReadWrite Sesamers Impact Loop #designthinking #solutions #innovations #operations #businessstrategy ##startup

The definition of design keeps getting bigger. I started in small environments, sometimes acting as a creative department of one. That meant doing my job and parts of several others. It wasn’t always ideal, but it made me a rounded designer. I learned to think creatively, interact with clients, ask why before what, and focus on outcomes. For a while, that kind of breadth felt like the exception. Now it feels like the norm. With AI tools collapsing the distance from idea to functional product, everyone is doing everything. My brain doesn’t naturally click with code, but now there’s a tool for that. I can uncover a problem, generate a solution, and ship it faster than ever. At first it was frustrating. Too many hats, too much noise. But over time I built a few small tools for myself, and they worked. That was the aha moment: design really is becoming more democratic. If you thought it was accessible before, just wait. The definition of design keeps getting bigger. And I really think that’s a good thing. Image Caption:
 Design: bigger, faster, wider.