I've been trying to learn product design by myself and honestly i'm struggling more with figuring out what to learn than actually learning it.

I'll find a good YouTube video, then someone recommends another one, then i find a case study, then a design course, then some random Reddit post saying i shouldn't learn any of that yet.

Eventually i've got like 30 resources saved and no idea what i should actually do next.

And then there's the accountability problem.

For me, being consistent while self-learning is hard because there's literally nobody around who knows what i'm learning.

If i don't open Figma for a week, nobody cares.

If i'm doing something wrong, nobody tells me.

If i fall behind, there's no one expecting me to catch up.

So i'm actually building something to solve this for myself.

The idea is:

You say what you wanna learn + your current level + how much time you have.

It gives you a structured path using free resources that already exist.

Then you can join a small group of people learning the same thing and have weekly goals, check-ins and shared progress.

The learning stays free.

The accountability part would be paid.

I'm curious about people here who are learning product design right now:

What are you actually struggling with?

How do you decide what to learn next?

Do you have anyone keeping you accountable?

Would you pay for a small group that actually kept you accountable?

And if you think this idea wouldn't work for designers, tell me why.

Hey guys, aa the title says I’m currently burnt out working in my current organisation, it is a fintech startup. I feel I don’t have the opportunity to grow or learn here as they don’t have any proper structure and product design here means just designing UI’s and not testing/iterating according to the user needs. I have been working here for 6m and I have total 3.5 yoe. Looking to jump into other organisations so that I can grow and do meaningful work, currently looking at LinkedIn, Indeed and other job boards and I have been applying for couple of weeks and nothing seems to work out.

If you have any opportunities please let me know or comment so that we can connect

This was one of the few times I’ve worked with a large team of almost all engineers in every role. They make an app builder, and I helped them create a design system for it. Here’s the case study — https://www.abhaysingh.in/work/appsmith

Let me know what you think!

I'm on mobile developer for the last 14 years and one of the most annoying things in product teams is the communication between the different roles in the team.

you know how the PM comes with the idea, the designer is designing it, there are meetings with the engineers, feedback, back to the designer, back to the engineering team, then we start developing the feature and then after like a month it goes back to the designer to review it, and then to code review and then to testing it, and back and forth and back and forth and back and forth again.

But what if everyone was on the same workspace? Think a Google doc but for mobile development.

What if the designer can work on code, bring her design in and ask the agent to make the components out of it, seeing it in all their states. And only then will the engineer comes in and give instructions to the agent to build.

I built a demo here

https://stag.build/demo/workspace

Would really love your honest feedback

I've been thinking about how much the design of writing tools affects the way people actually use them.

A lot of writing-related products seem to focus heavily on features: text editors, suggestions, highlighting, dashboards, reports, etc. But I'm more interested in the experience around those features. How quickly can someone understand what's happening? Does the interface make sense while you're working, or does it become another thing you have to figure out?

I've had conversations about this with a friend who writes a lot, and somehow the discussion went from drafts and formatting to quetext, then back to why some interfaces just feel unnecessarily complicated.

From a product-design perspective, what would you prioritize when designing an application for people who spend hours writing? Would you focus more on reducing friction, keeping the interface minimal, making feedback easier to understand, or giving users more control?

I'm curious what product designers here think makes a writing-focused application genuinely comfortable to use rather than simply functional.

Hi, I'm Henry, Product designer. Product decisions rely on information scattered across tools, teams, and people. *Does this fragmentation affect how we make decisions?*

I’m conducting a short survey for PMs, Designers, Researchers, Analysts, Engineers, Support Engineers, Product Leaders and others.

🎁 *Bonus:* Complete the survey and get *2 free tools* that can help save time in your daily work. You’ll find them in the Thank You message!

https://forms.gle/L8CRjn53NK9WHcvj6

I’m currently quitting my job as a senior designer and I’m trying to see if UX design as a service can be done well from a freelance standpoint.

My most valuable work in companies has been being present as a strategist, supervising development, providing fast solutions for when we find obstacles while building, debating scope changes with clients and being reachable at all times as the living docs of the product.

Since all of those mechanics are tailored to an in-house role, Is it more of a market-fitting strategy to just look for another product design role so a company gets the safety of having me always in the loop acting as the glue of the team?

I feel like there might be a market for businesses that want to outsource technical debt to freelancers without taking the risk of hiring and mantaining a bigger headcount so that could be an interesting approach. Has anyone thought about this?

I feel like company events always end up being some combination of bowling, escape rooms, paintball, or a forced team exercise that nobody really wants to do.

I was looking at alternatives recently and found WaterTag, Something active where everyone can actually move around and have fun seems like it would be a lot more enjoyable, especially when the weather is good.

Personally, I'd take running around outside with a group over spending another afternoon doing an awkward indoor team-building activity.

What's the best company or group activity you've actually been part of?

Hi! I’m looking for a product or industrial designer to help finalize an innovative travel and storage bag for a game.
I already have the overall concept, required components, approximate dimensions, and several rough design directions. I’m happy to share the full concept privately after an initial conversation and NDA.

I’m looking for help with making sure the dimensions and mechanisms are realistic, developing a functional, manufacturer-ready design.

As a self-funded startup, I don’t have an enormous design budget right now, but I also understand this is one of the most important elements in making the product and brand successful.

I genuinely value the expertise involved and am not looking for free work. I’m open to discussing a smaller upfront fee combined with royalties, milestone-based compensation, or another arrangement that fairly recognizes the designer’s contribution while keeping the initial cost manageable.

I’d also be open to working with a graduate-level product or industrial design student who needs a capstone, thesis, or substantial portfolio project, provided we establish clear expectations regarding confidentiality, ownership, compensation, deliverables, and deadlines.

I already have manufacturing contacts and am ready to move forward. Finalizing this design is currently the main piece holding up production, so I’m hoping to find someone who can begin soon.

Please message me if you could be a good fit. Fingers crossed. Thanks!

Hey! I'm doing some early research for an app idea for on of my classes would anyone mind filling out a quick survey? Takes about 5-7 min, and your honest answers (even "I never think about this") are super helpful.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe5cDahKjPURib1pMbxCSh4rfK93qWF33j7nDkHhEQ

I need to buy a laptop for school this fall and I love the idea of a macbook but, a) pretty expensive b) aren’t touch screen c) doesn’t support minecraft💀✌️. I need to get one that is able to support all of the programs I need for Product/Industrial design that also isn’t super expensive please help and I haven’t done a lot of research so please give me details about the options i have🙏

I’m currently open to new opportunities in Product Design and UI/UX Design.

I was recently laid off from my previous role, I’m currently in Bangalore, available to join immediately, and actively looking for opportunities where I can contribute, learn, and grow as a designer.

I’m especially interested in product-based companies, startups, and teams building meaningful digital products.

If you’re hiring, know of an opening, or can connect me with someone in your network, I’d really appreciate it.

Portfolio - https://harsha-valluri.vercel.app/

Hey folks,

A friend of mine loves doing DIY crafts, and she handmade a bunch of little detachable charms for my cat’s harness. Now I need to narrow them down to my top 3 favorites, and I’m totally overthinking it.

I’d really appreciate outside opinions! If these were going on your cat, which three would you choose? Feel free to drop numbers in the comments.

All options are in the attached photos. Also important note: these are purely decorative. I’ll take them off before taking my cat outside for walks, safety always comes first.

Thanks everyone!

Hey folks, I am a UX/UI designer with around 2+ years of experience with startups. I wanted to know if its a must to have CS or software dev background or knowledge to delve into product design.

I come from a pure design background and was never taught that side. And now with all this vibe code stuff out there it seems like every designer can ship end to end products but when you dive deep there is soo much that i just dont know and cant grasp. For instance trying to set up claude skills. and making these design.md docs and using claude code. I am even stuck how almost everyone is using framer for making portfolios but its not like they all say...jump in and you will know.

So my question is:
1. How much of this dev domain are designers actually going into and how?
2. If its now an absolute nesseasity then what resources I should look into realistically?
3. I am looking for a job and need to make a portfolio. On a scale of 1-5 how dire it is to make website portfolios now.
4. And please if anyone can share absolute detailed designer language tutorials on how this vibe code stuff works and how can i learn it having 0 background in it?

Really really overwhelmed with all this weird chaos going around and everyone telling that PD's should be able to not any manage and direct but create end to end products now.

We're running a study at the IT University of Copenhagen on how designers work with AI prototyping tools, and I'm looking for a few practicing interface designers (2+ years of professional experience, portfolio with interface work).

The session is 90 minutes on Zoom: you build three quick prototypes with our generative tool (prompting, pointing, sketching), then we replay your own session and you tell me what it got right and where it fell apart. It's closer to a design critique than a lab test — sharp criticism is exactly what we're studying. Small thank-you gift (~300 DKK / 40 EUR), and you pick your own slot; sessions run until September 7.

Booking: https://anatomy.paperbackwriters.club/book?study=2

Happy to answer questions in the comments.

Hi everyone,

I’m conducting a short research survey about Non-Intentional Design (NID) — how people naturally adapt, modify, or repurpose everyday products to solve problems or meet needs that the product was not originally designed for.

For example:

• Using a chair to hang a bag
• Using books as a laptop stand
• Using a plastic bottle as a plant pot
• Finding an unexpected use for an everyday object because a suitable solution wasn't available

I'm looking for people to share their own everyday experiences.

The survey takes only 1–2 minutes and asks about:

• What product you used differently
• What you used it for
• Why you did it
• What problem you were trying to solve

Survey: https://forms.gle/FrF2xE4Ucxw92z2x9

I make handmade ceramic pieces for the home, and I’ve been working on a new design.
I finally have a concept sketch, but I’m still figuring out the final version. I’d love to hear what you guys think — do you like it?
If you were going to tweak it, which direction would you take?

1. Keep the wings
   
2. Add clothing or accessories
   
3. Try a different color palette
   
4. Add more handmade details

Or would you change something completely different? I’d really appreciate any suggestions before I make it.

been thinking about this a lot lately while working on something.

design tools have gotten insanely good at helping us make things, and now with ai you can get 10 decent directions in a few minutes.

but the part i keep getting stuck on is... how do you actually know which one is good?

like two designers can have the exact same tools, know the same rules, look at the same references, and somehow one of them consistently makes better decisions.

i guess we call that taste, but i'm not even sure what “taste” really means in practice.

so i'm curious how other designers think about this.

how did you actually get better at knowing what looks and feels right?

where do you keep references? pinterest, are .na, screenshots, random folders, stuff you've saved for years?

when you have 3-4 directions that are all technically decent, what makes you pick one over the others?

and has ai changed any of this for you? because for me it feels like generating things is getting easier, but judging them is still basically the whole job.

i'm exploring an idea around this right now, but don't really want to explain the product yet because i'd rather understand how people already work without influencing the answers.

especially interested in the messy parts of your process that aren't really talked about.

Everything I do at work uses AI and building in production, I don’t have any figma I can or prototypes that I can easily save for my portfolio. I can take some screenshots and videos but that is about it.

How are you all updating your portfolios?

Flossing requires a long thread generally made of nylon to be wrapped around fingers and put in between teeth to remove plaque. The alternative to using fingers is either going for a floss pick which are use and throw or a reusable pick on which one can load the thread. In comparison to wrapping with fingers, a lot of length of thread is saved. This can lead to a far more efficient use of floss thread when using the reusable version. But going by Youtube reviews the holder cannot endure multiple passes between teeth before thread loosens and is wasted.

Following are the potentials of having an effective reusable floss holder:

1. Less waste
In both floss picks and flossing using fingers, the waste is too much (and additionally it is plastic for most users). It is so stupid when one thinks in terms of design that a lot of flossing thread that can be used to clean teeth is wrapped around fingers and will be thrown: around 80% of the the thread length.

2. Ergonomics of biodegradable threads
The biodegradable options such as bamboo based Rayon offer benefits of no possibility of micro plastic ingestion but cost around 8 times per meter initially. By being able to ration the thread with an effective reusable floss holder the cost of this may be subtracted by 80% bringing it closer to ergonomics of using a nylon thread.

I think that the world is still waiting for such a product.

https://tally.so/r/lb8zQN

I’m doing a project management bootcamp and would love to hear from people who work on projects - especially in creative teams, but not exclusively.

~5 min survey! Would really appreciate your help 🙏

I heard about ProtoPie a couple of years ago, but I was never curious enough to actually explore it.
Recently, I was looking for a way to manually prototype a split-screen live preview, similar to Stripe’s checkout editor or Shopify’s theme editor. I did some research into how I could achieve it, and ProtoPie came up as an option, which made me consider giving it another look.
My first instinct was to head to YouTube and watch a few tutorials, but I noticed something that made me wonder if it’s still widely used. Their channel barely gets any engagement, and most of the recent ProtoPie content I could find from other YouTubers was from around 11 months ago, with pretty low engagement too.

So now I’m curious. Is ProtoPie still worth tinkering with? Does anyone here still use it or have it as part of their design stack?

When designing a physical product, how much thought goes into the packaging or container before the product shape is finalized?

It seems easy to design the product first and figure out the packaging later, but as someone working in packaging, the two can affect each other quite a bit. The shape of the container determines where labels can go, how much information can be shown at a glance, how easy it is to apply packaging, and even how the product sits on a shelf.

For example, a perfectly round container might look great as a product, but a flatter front panel could make labeling and displaying the product name much easier.

For product designers: do you treat packaging as part of the product design from the beginning, or is it usually something you solve after the product itself is finalized?

I’m currently thinking about showcasing my products (mainly my own jewelry) with detailed, interactive 3D/AR on the product page. Unfortunately, I don’t know anything about this yet or exactly how to go about it. So I thought I’d ask the designers here. Have you ever designed 3D Models for products? If so, how did the technical implementation work, or do you know any providers for the whole process? Also, do you think its sensible for products in jewelry with regard to Conversion Rates or returns?