You don't understand

This is not design. We do not create ‘flat’ re-imaginings of existing products with altered typography. Whimsically creating photo-realistic objects in the belief that it’s a good product concept doesn’t encapsulate what our job is about. Why publish a mockup with no explanation or reasoning? It must be because our outstanding design sagacity and prior works exempt us from any discourse on the output. Wrong.

Design is a process, methodical in approach, focused on outcomes with measurable goals that impact a product or service for the better.

We creatives often berate people such as Marissa Mayer for her infamous 41 shades of blue experiment, but if caring not for the performance of one’s product nor the experience of end users, then why care about any other aspect? Patently, creating with constraints can be challenging. However, we strive and succeed in finding solutions. Design problems are rarely satiated through your “I couldn’t sleep” Photoshop sessions. Data, both qualitative and quantitative, corroborate or contradict our hypothesis while giving solid foundations for future development. By no means should data control every pixel; it instead aids us in creating a set of axioms, supporting further decision-making, ensuring the next design discussion is fuelled by neither ego nor rank.

If one cannot measure one’s efforts, toward what goal does one march? At best you are a generic artist. You have no consideration or empathy for users, nor have you taken any time to construct understanding.

Assimilate knowledge. Evaluate results.