Yes... they really are.
I remember when I wrote my first poem; the first time I traveled out of my hometown alone; my first mp3 player I bought with 2 months worth savings; my first client ever as a designer... and so many more moments like these that I cherish.
This time around, I am remembering my first attempt at a Ux/Ui project - it was earlier this year just after I had finished the Ux course from Future Learn.
. At that point in time I was engaging the learner and futurist in me on smart homes - and it so happened that I also wanted to try out the skills and tools I had gained from Future Learn. So a smart home app was just the thing that brought everything together in a design salad.
So then I set out to begin the research/strategy phase of the app. I started with the user profile… I had to make up one. Her name is Puleng, she is 32 and is an accounts manager at a big investment bank in Sandton, South Africa. Generally, Puleng is an indoor type of person who enjoys the company of Marvel movies. Her taste in décor is minimal and organic. She has recently upgraded her home with smart technology… and she is looking for an app that would help her integrate all the devices so she can control them from one convenient place. Her other concern was that most of the smart home apps that she had seen weren’t very strong on security.
Once I had painted a picture of who Puleng is, I began mapping out the possible features and the user journeys. This quickly proved to be quite a task for me… because I have never seen or interacted with a smart home app. That was the rain on my parade... So I went and watched a few tutorials on how to set up a smart home app on YouTube; which to be honest didn't help much.
Now that I think about it... maybe there were other things I could've done to help me along my journey of discovery. In any case, this is where I made my first mistake - I decided to move on with the little knowledge and understanding I had.
I then moved on to the site map / information architecture. From there it was the lo-fi wireframes on paper; and then the mid-fi wireframes on Adobe XD. Even with the challenges that I was facing, I believed in the project and it's potential to teach me a lot about Ux/Ui.
In the end, I didn’t get to design the entire app… but I did address the concern about security in smart home apps. I designed a setup flow for first time users that is simple and very thorough on security... which I am realizing now that they would be even better if I went and did the user journey map beforehand.
The screens below are the best of what I could make of the project;
What I Am Grateful For...
So I didn't get to translate the picture that I had in my mind about the project into reality - but I did get to try out some tools and methods. The most important lesson that this project has taught me is that some of the best outcomes of Ux design aren't even visual. That and the following;
User journeys and interviews really, really do matter for success
Don't start a Ux project with only visuals in mind - aim to actually solve a problem
Every stage and phase of a project should be handled with the dedication it deserves
Sometimes the outcome isn't what you hoped it'd be - but you still got to believe in the process and your contribution
At the end of the day, I had so much fun chasing the possibility and potential that I saw in the project. I was a dedicated as I usually am with any design project, and I loved every minute, every step, and every challenge.
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