Ross Chapman A weekly collection of product design, user research, cycling and coolness from @rosschapman of @etchuk 299 subscribers 109 issues Subscribe to my list This thingy has to be empti pwieshh Are you a robot? π€
#106 Apr 9, 2018 I made a podcast π #106 β No deep, meaningful theme this week folks. I MADE A PODCAST β‘οΈI've wanted to do one for years, but th
#105 Mar 26, 2018 Keep in the present moment β³ #105 β "Anything that keeps me in the present moment, is an asset" - Phil DeekerSubject inspired by a quote
#104 Mar 16, 2018 Love what you do π #104 β And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking.
#103 Mar 9, 2018 If you're going to do it, do it right β #103 β Steve Jobs: Oh, yeah, no we have wonderful arguments.Β Walt Mossberg: And do you win them all?Β Jobs: O
#102 Mar 2, 2018 Procrastination (and a trip to a cold destination!) π¨π #102 β This week I flew to Copenhagen to attend the Design Sprint Workshop with Jake Knapp and Berlin-based
#101 Feb 23, 2018 Design sprint #101 β Next Monday, I'm attending Jake Knapp's (the inventor of the Design Sprint) workshop with AJ&Smar
#100 Feb 16, 2018 HOLY MOLY π― #100 β 100 issues. That's big! I have never stuck to something like I have with these weekly issues and I ho
#99 Jan 13, 2018 99 ideas but you gotta pick just 1 π² #99 β Issue 99 - crazy! That's two years of sharing insights, adapting the format and content based on feed
#98 Jan 5, 2018 Start fresh π³ #98 β Welcome back! I hope you had a good break.Β This week we've been running two design sprints here at Et
#97 Dec 17, 2017 Christmas rush issue βοΈ #97 β We are running two design sprints concurrently this week which mean's it's probably been the busiest
#96 Dec 4, 2017 Emo design π¨βπ€ #96 β The term "emotional design" seems to be gaining traction, but should it? I've linked to a couple of a
#95 Nov 21, 2017 Finish what you started β² #95 β Some designers like to start, but they find finishing hard. The enthusiasm from starting something ne
#94 Nov 8, 2017 Empathy is not an emotion, it's a skill π³ #94 β Empathy is about standing in someone else's shoes, feeling with his or her heart, seeing with his or
#93 Oct 30, 2017 Originality π€₯ #93 β Many years ago, I was working as a digital designer at an international business school. I was doing
#92 Oct 23, 2017 Find that balance π #92 β A little later than usual - sorry!I was reminded by this quote from Yoda this past weekend:Β "You must
#91 Oct 13, 2017 Why I put out stuff βοΈ #91 β I've received some good qualitative feedback from the last issue, as well as from the audio recording
#90 Oct 6, 2017 Learning from the genius of great filmmakers π #90 β This week, I've been looking into other industries to gain some perspective and knowledge that I can
#89 Sep 27, 2017 Deep understanding π #89 β I'm reminded this week that great design can only be achieved once deeply understanding the problem.
#88 Sep 14, 2017 Share, don't care π #88 β Last Friday, Etch hosted the Summer Summit: An afternoon of digital and drinks. I shared my views on
#87 Sep 2, 2017 Coping with the workload π #87 β The long break is over and I'm back!I've been reading a couple of booksΒ and it's really made me think
#86 Aug 8, 2017 Summer vacation βοΈ #86 β I'm on my summer holidays next week, so no issue from me this or next Friday (and sorry this issue is
#85 Jul 28, 2017 More workshops, less meetings βοΈ #85 β This week, we met with a new client who works in the events sector and ran a requirements gathering w
#84 Jul 21, 2017 Know yourself to improve yourself π¨βπ¨ #84 β Do you know what your role is? Understanding that can help you decide on the next step. It did for me
#83 Jul 16, 2017 Designers can sell too π€ #83 β It's been a while since I sent my first proposal for a design project. Luckily, times have changed an
#82 Jul 7, 2017 Tomato timing for discipline π #82 β I've been looking at improving focus this week, and it seems it's a common problem in the industry. I
#81 Jul 5, 2017 Don't forget the "U" in "UX" π©βπ #81 β In a bid to improve our design process, I've been evaluating each part and this week, I've been looki
#80 Jun 30, 2017 Product design process π¦ #80 β This week, I've been trying to discover how to improve our product design process for a design agency
#79 Jun 23, 2017 I've joined Etch βοΈ #79 β Who?Β Etch UK is a user experience design and marketing studio.Β Why? You had better read this Medium p
#78 Jun 9, 2017 I'm leaving Wiggle π #78 β Well, if you somehow missed the subject line, then read again - I'm leaving Wiggle.I'm stepping out o
#77 Jun 2, 2017 Where do you get your inspiration? π #77 β When you're part of an in-house design team, sometimes you can get under-nourished. I make sure I'm k
#76 May 26, 2017 Copy that π #76 β Copy guides are so important. They detail tone of voice. They talk about the direction words should f
#75 May 19, 2017 Complexion reduction βοΈ #75 β βI strive for two things in design: simplicity and clarity. Great design is born of those two things.
#74 May 14, 2017 Create best practice βοΈ #74 β Looking back at past issues, I've been sharing links on what some call "best practice." I'm asked wha
#73 May 8, 2017 Drive digital transformation π» #73 β Businesses leveraging digital are going to accelerate their growth. And as we learnt from last week's
#72 May 1, 2017 Conversion begins with conversation π #72 β Quoted from the father of web design: Jeffrey Zeldman. I've often strived to balance qualitative and
#71 Apr 21, 2017 If I rest, I rust β²οΈ #71 β Davie Bell was a pioneering off road cyclist and tourer/randonneur. His motto was "if I rest, I rust.
#70 Apr 12, 2017 Issue #70 π― Staying on target β I set targets in my work and even my personal life. What they do is ensure that I have a long-term pl
#69 Mar 31, 2017 You either win or you learn π Issue #69 β According to Daniel Burka, design partner at Google Ventures - you either "win or you learn" in a des
#68 Mar 27, 2017 Quality or speed π« Issue #68 β There's been a conversation recently about speed over quality - something you get with a minimum viab
#67 Mar 17, 2017 Show and tell (and sell) π Issue #67 β Never launch on a Friday? π Β Happy to share with you the new Design ManualΒ we've been working on at W
#66 Mar 14, 2017 Gender diversityβοΈ - Issue #66 β I've enjoyed reading lots of articles this past week about women in tech, cycling and design.WithΒ Int
#65 Mar 3, 2017 It's not colour. It's contrast π Issue #65 β I had a conversation with my team on Wednesday and we were talking about design. The conversation got
#64 Feb 28, 2017 Play the long game π² Issue #64 β "Play the long game ... Treat people with the intent of having a relationship forever" @GaryVeeI beli
#63 Feb 17, 2017 Push on π¨ Issue #63 β One thing athletes do well is push on. I was reminded of this with Rapha's new film Perspectives, tha
#62 Feb 10, 2017 Show off βοΈ Issue #62 β I saw a question posted on LinkedIn asking:What's the difference between a good UX professional and a
#61 Feb 2, 2017 Culture recruits π Issue #61 β Many companies local to ours are hiring, but getting mixed success. Experienced designers and develop
#60 Jan 27, 2017 Design is now different π₯ Issue #60 β Design has evolved. The role of design used to be that designers would get a brief, go away for a few
#59 Jan 20, 2017 π« Together is better π« Issue #59 β Doing things as a group is far more interesting to me than as an individual, whether that be work or
#58 Jan 13, 2017 π How not to fail π - Issue #58 β 7 out of 8 digital transformation projects result in failure, according to ForbesΒ (great share Nomens
#57 Jan 6, 2017 π Establish a routine π Issue #57 β Now most of us are back at work after a long break, I personally find it a good opportunity to look a
#56 Dec 30, 2016 Issue #56: How to do UX design β I met Thomas Barber of Svelte LondonΒ on Wednesday (after a freezing 6 hour ride from Southampton). Ov
#55 Dec 29, 2016 Issue #55: Any fool can sing at night β Give me a man who can sing in the morning ....any fool can sing at night (ref)I love the mornings. My
#54 Dec 16, 2016 Issue #54: Time well spent β I find getting to work is a pain. According to a recent report:Traffic congestion costs UK business a
#53 Dec 9, 2016 Issue #53: Bricks versus Clicks β Bricks versus Clicks. In the same week that the 309 year old Fortnum and Mason announce 12% growth in
#52 Dec 2, 2016 Issue #52: Let's go retro β I find retrospectives invaluable. Identifying what was good, bad and what you'd do differently next t
#51 Nov 25, 2016 Issue #51: Understand the problem before you design the solution β Understand the problem before you design the solution.It's Black Friday and it's really interesting f
#50 Nov 21, 2016 Issue #50: Get past the numbers β It was Frontier Conference last week! So pleasing to share some ideas and experiences, but also hear
#49 Nov 11, 2016 Issue #49: Happiness is unachievable β It's around this time of year that I start looking towards the next. What do I want to do? What do I
#48 Nov 4, 2016 Issue #48: Thinking versus making β Thinking versus making.I find an increasing amount of my time is spent thinking through problems or s
#47 Nov 2, 2016 Issue #47: Lead with design β I attended the first Leading Design Conference in London last week. It was a fantastic opportunity to
#46 Oct 21, 2016 Issue #46: Hiring people smarter than you β I went to the Evening OfΒ event last night in Southampton to hear from Rob Hampson about how he design
#45 Oct 19, 2016 Issue #45: How you do UX design β I'm getting lots of good feedback from the post I shared last time on how we do usability testing out
#44 Sep 29, 2016 Issue #44 - Feedback is how we learn β I'm just putting the finishing touches on to a usability testing session evaluation that we ran at th
#43 Sep 16, 2016 Issue #43 - Bringing people with you β There's no point in doing great design if you don't bring people along the process with you.Β That's b
#42 Sep 12, 2016 Issue #42 - New perspectives β I've been looking at screen readers today. It's just one experience that I haven't really investigate
#41 Sep 6, 2016 Issue #41 - Change for great and don't settle for good β Change can take a long time and that's why it's worth celebrating the rewards they bring.Β We've been
#40 Aug 22, 2016 Issue #40 - There is only hard work β Quite often, there isn't a process. More than often, people ask for one.The interesting thing about U
#39 Aug 12, 2016 Issue #39 - Keeping on keeping on β "There is an increasing demand for digital devices for children, especially in schools to provide an
#38 Aug 9, 2016 Issue #38 - Design never stops β So late publishing this issue, but not ready to disappoint!I've been designing for both iOS and the w
#37 Jul 29, 2016 Issue #37 - Fall in love with customers β Marcin Treder said this week on Twitter thatΒ "falling in love with your competitors leads to a medioc
#36 Jul 22, 2016 Issue #36 - Just Do It! π β When I went to secondary school, I had a multi-coloured Nike branded backpack. The message emblazoned
#35 Jul 20, 2016 Issue #35 - What's your priority? β I've never missed a publish date until now. What happened?! Life got in the way, and rightfully so -
#34 Jul 8, 2016 Issue #34 - Plan, adapt, DO THE RIGHT THING! β So great to pass 100 subscribers - thank you so much! That might be a relatively small number, but ha
#33 Jul 1, 2016 Issue #33 - Bucking trends and analysing spend β Copycats never prosper.In nearly every single meeting I go to, we somehow end up looking at what othe
#32 Jun 24, 2016 Issue #32 - Painting stripes on a horse and calling it a zebra β I was invited to a rather lovely wine-tasting eveningΒ yesterdayΒ on HMS Warrior, from the fab guys at
#31 Jun 17, 2016 Issue #31 - Original content from me! β I've been wary of sharing ideas in the past, fearing that I'd add to the noise I find in design. I al
#30 Jun 10, 2016 Issue #30 - Focus β Putting the hours of work in is important, but they need to be focused hours, otherwise you're going
#29 Jun 3, 2016 Issue #29 - Execution is the GAME β "Itβs impossible to have a good strategy poorly executed. Thatβs because execution actually is strate
#28 May 27, 2016 Issue #28 - Some decisions aren't yours to make β "The time is always right to do the right thing." -Β Martin Luther King, Jr.I'm asked to make decision
#27 May 21, 2016 Issue #27 - Which path will you choose? β Given a choice between increasing revenue or increasing customer happiness - which do you choose?That
#26 May 13, 2016 Issue #26 - Hot this week! β This issue starts with a bang (quite literally!).Design needs to be bold and sometimes you need to te
#25 May 9, 2016 Issue #25 - UX design, User Research and eCommerce β There's been an awakening. Have you felt it?Β Businesses are waking up to the fact that to stay in bus
#24 Apr 29, 2016 Issue #24 β Execution. It's all very well collecting great ideas, reading articles, going to conferences, writing
#23 Apr 25, 2016 Issue #23 β Knowing that I have to keep learning to keep earning means that I'm constantly challenging myself to
#22 Apr 15, 2016 Issue #22 β Apple famously doesn't use focus groups. Why? Probably because focus groups tell you what you want to
#21 Apr 11, 2016 Issue #21 β I design to solve the big problems. The problem statements where I'm able to offer the most value are
#20 Apr 4, 2016 Issue #20 β Shipping late, but shipping great!I was fortunate to meet some really inspiring people last week in L
#19 Mar 25, 2016 Issue #19 β Just prepping this issue before the Easter holidays!Last week's issue resonated well on the subject o
#18 Mar 18, 2016 Issue #18 β After talking to a couple of rather excellent people last week, I felt like making this issue about g
#17 Mar 11, 2016 Issue #17 β Yesterday, I made my way to London to visit the Retail Design Expo at Olympia, and to meet up with ne
#16 Mar 4, 2016 Issue #16 β I've been challenging the status quo most of my adult life. Why are things like this? Why do I have t
#15 Feb 29, 2016 Issue #15 β A couple of days late, but just as great!I've been sharing my 10 UX Design Hacks this past week, with
#14 Feb 19, 2016 Issue #14 β This week has been mental! Making connections, talking to people and generating new ideas (while also
#13 Feb 12, 2016 Issue #13 β We're nearly 50-strong in issue #13. Unlucky for some, but not for me - thank you for reading!The not
#12 Feb 5, 2016 Issue #12 β Over 40 subscribers! Thank you for supporting this mailshot - it gives me hope that what I'm sharing
#11 Jan 29, 2016 Issue #11 β Thank you for following and welcome new subscribers!This week I've started to get my mojo back, after
#10 Jan 22, 2016 Issue #10 β Changing stuff just for changes sake is old news. Designing with data is hot. Making design decisions
#9 Jan 15, 2016 Issue #9 β It's been a week of talking, sharing and asking "Why?" When I pick up a task and go through the docum
#8 Jan 8, 2016 Issue #8 β With the first working week of 2016 behind us, I'm focusing all my energy into being the best designe
#7 Jan 2, 2016 Issue #7 β Late, but great. I've been taking time out this Christmas period to spend time with the family, think
#6 Dec 18, 2015 Issue #6 β A slimmer version this week (as it's been a bit busy with work!) and a slightly tweaked format, but h
#5 Dec 11, 2015 Issue #5 β Another action-packed week has passed. I've started to think about how people understand UX design. I
#4 Dec 4, 2015 Issue #4 β Hello again! How quickly a week goes by!This week, I've been coding prototypes, firmly believing that
#3 Nov 27, 2015 Issue #3 β It might be Black Friday, but colour me inspired! Lots of learning this week, researching our users,
#2 Nov 20, 2015 Issue #2 β The difficult second issue! This week I've focused on teams - it's best to do stuff with each other!
#1 Nov 13, 2015 Issue #1 β Welcome to the first weekly mailshot from me, Ross Chapman, a user experience designer in the UK. I h