Five to Inspire with Alex Gilev
Product Designer/UX @ Consultant
Who are you?
My name is Alex Gilev. I’m an independent UI/UX consultant from Russia who helps startups and software companies build user-centered, profitable products people love to use. I’ve been fortunate enough to work with leading brands (Paypal, Johnson & Johnson, Compeed) and top design agencies like Fantasy Interactive to create delightful experiences that enrich people’s lives. Over the last 6 years, I helped dozens of startups create meaningful products and get funded by the largest private equity firms in the US.
I received my masters in linguistics from the Udmurt State University in Russia, so I’m a self-taught designer. I’ve always been curious about design, typography, human psychology and behavior. This led me to become a product designer who likes to make complex things simple, improves usability and achieves business goals through simplicity and clarity in web interface design.
I wake up around 7 am and try figure out where am I and what happened yesterday :)…just kidding…after waking up I make myself a good breakfast (cereal and toasts with coffee). Then I spend the next hour checking emails, reading news and latest articles about product design on Medium. I like mornings because it’s so quiet and I can easily dive into learning something new without any distractions. I get used to learn every day and it helps me design better products (I watch UX talks, make a lot of notes, read books, improve my workflow). It’s a good habit to have, especially when you work from home, you constantly need to sharpen your skills in order to produce a good work.
Occasionally, I go to gym in order to be in shape and get my mind off the work or even get a solid injection of energy to spend it later on my work. I get to work around 9–10 am. I make a plan for a day what I need to accomplish. Then I heads down for work till 5–6 pm. Most of my work happens in sketches, on whiteboard, through conversations.
Around 6 pm, I wrap up my work, and spend my time with the family. I have a beautiful wife Arina and a little princess Martha (3 years old), who likes to remind me if I work after 6 pm “Daddy, stop the work, enough for today! :)”. I spend the rest of the evening with my family.
A good design for me is first and foremost simple. Secondly, it should feel obvious and intuitive. Lastly, it gets the job done quickly and easily. Some of you might ask about addressing business goals here. It’s also an important thing to take into account but let me tell you about something called the UX value loop:
First, user has to perceive value. Next, they have to get proof of that value from their first click, tap or swipe. If they get value, they’ll act again. They’ll read something else, check out a product, download a demo. If value continues, trust is formed. When that trust occurs, they sign up/support/share or purchase.
When that happens, value comes back to the organization. Money made or saved, membership or market share increased.
One of the common mistakes designers make while approaching product design is confusing designs that look great with the designs that actually work. If your product doesn’t work well, no one will even care how it looks.
I really feel I want to give back to the design community by sharing my expertise with people. I’m going to publish a series of articles on product strategy, prototyping and design. In addition, I will be sharing my own UX assets that will help designers design better products.
I am not :) People are poor predictors.
Ryan Singer and Jason Fried from 37Signals (now Basecamp).
