Thinking In Code: Designer thinking like a developer
“An architect would understand the properties of concrete, so why wouldn’t a designer understands the properties of code?”
- Aarron Walter

A large section of the design community is locked in debate over whether designers should code. Some favor seeking out the unicorns who can do both, while others claim they don’t exist or only get in the way.
Most designers feel there is a need for cooperation between designers and developers, but each discipline must stick to what they know. Others see no problem wearing multiple hats for professionals. Some developers see designers coding a threat, while others see them as welcome partners learning their language.
Here is a secret I learned: You can design technologies and use coding as your superpower. As design and engineering communicate better, your team moves faster, you iterate more, and land creative as well as feasible solutions. So, I started as a software engineer ‘with an eye for design’. Then I took on hybrid roles that combined front-end development and design. Currently, I am a designer who can think like a programmer.
Understanding Code and How to Code Is Understanding Pixels

Learning how to code the front-end UI and previewing it, gives designers the opportunity to immediately see how things are displayed when viewed on various devices. If designers play with HTML and CSS, they’ll notice that everything is measured in pixels (there are other measurement units such as “ems” and percentages that will ultimately be converted to pixels).
Understanding measurements and code structure, i.e., how pages are displayed, will provide a deeper understanding of the front-end development process. That, in turn, will cause designers to think more deeply about their designs and how to make them more efficient for that process. They will know what can be easily achieved and what would be more challenging.
Learning to Code Will Improve Collaboration with Developers

Would romantic relationships be easier if men and women could read each other’s minds? Some people think so. The same thing applies to designers and developers.
Knowing how developers think, and what they need to be able to do their job, will make a designer a great asset to any multi-disciplinary team. This approach is useful for internal communications as well as idea pitches because they will have more of an idea about what to expect from the other members of the team. If designers can do this, they will be in a much better position to propose more robust solutions to clients.
Mastery of Coding for Designers Will Boost Careers

UI designers who have a desire to grow and boost their skillset have a few options at their disposal. They can brush up on a variety of design skills and move into other roles such as visual design, UX, or even UX research. They can also incrementally climb the ladder into more senior, principal, lead, manager, and director-level roles.
However, to really boost their careers, designers may want to delve more into development. Acquiring deep knowledge of various technologies that drive digital products today will equip them with a highly desirable set of skills. That, in turn, will open more doors to job opportunities at companies big and small.
Should designers code? Maybe, maybe not. But designers who code, or at least demonstrate deep knowledge of various technologies, will become a great asset to any multidisciplinary team, and it will definitely pay off in the long run.
I used to believe that thinking in code while designing restricts creativity. I wanted my designs to be unprecedented. I knew that conciseness and reusability in programming were important. But I did not see the link between unique designs and the systematic way of code and logic.
As a designer with an understanding of code, the more I bring what I know from programming into my design practice, I am able to move faster and iterate more throughout the process. Through the engineer-designer feedback loop, considering the engineering constraints and designing for edge cases, I grow as a designer.

