Design Your Life

I want to share with you a bit about my life, and what I’ve learned about good design as a successful designer and developer. Actually, this is more of a cautionary tale from a design veteran on how to apply some basic design principles to your own life.

I’ve worked in many different types of jobs within tech. It’s been a wild ride. I’d say the most exciting have been in start-ups. It’s chaos, and I love it. It took a toll on me, however. The instability made it difficult to raise a family. I felt the need to get a more stable job working for Corporate America. I was just a cog in the wheel and the projects were a bit boring, but I was comfortable, paid well, and felt relatively secure.

Like many of us, I bought into the American Dream. I had always wanted a nice house, for example. We bought a beautiful home in a nice neighborhood a few years ago. It was a little more money than I had hoped it would be, but things were going well for me in my career. I also bought a nice new pickup truck, motorcycle, and found a new obsession for fine whiskey and craft beer.

Out of nowhere. “We regret to inform you, but your employment is no longer needed at our company.”

I‘ve been laid off from quite a few other jobs in the past; typically startups. Being laid off in tech is something you should just prepare yourself for. It’s part of the gig. This time, however, it was different. What makes it different is where I find myself now in my life.

I have a family now. I’m getting older, turning 38 tomorrow (holy crap!). My bills were certainly different than they were in the past. I had a mortgage to pay, medical expenses, children’s hobbies to support, car payments, taxes and all kinds of other fun stuff to worry about.

I was certainly reliant on that plush Silicon Valley paycheck I had been receiving.

Getting a new job wasn’t as easy as it used to be. The industry had changed. New fads have emerged that I hadn’t become accustomed to. Younger people have started cementing themselves in our industry, and many companies aren’t remote-friendly. It’s been almost 2 months looking for a new job. Nothing yet.

My savings started disappearing quickly. Looking around my life, I start to see all the things I can no longer pay for and for the sake of brevity I won’t go into everything sucking my life savings away. I will say that sometimes when it rains, it pours.

The biggest storm was my mother having a stroke 2 weeks ago. She lives in Oklahoma, quite a ways from Montana where I live. With my lack of income, and other life events, it’s making this situation very difficult to deal with.

I found myself in a weird place. My kingdom was falling apart.

So why am I writing all this? I don’t want your pity. I really just want to speak to the folks who make their living in tech, especially the younger generation. I want to encourage you to live like your well-designed applications: simply.

Almost everything I’ve learned about good design principles apply directly to life. At the heart of good design, you’ll find simplicity.

Simplicity is king. Actions are clearly defined. There’s no clutter, no unnecessary behaviors, and the most important actions are presented up-front. Simplicity takes a lot of work. It isn’t easy cramming all that functionality into 1 screen sometimes. It requires well thought-out organization, discipline, and a strong attention to detail.

Live your life simply. Try to live clutter-free. Clutter includes anything with a price tag associated with it. Don’t buy things you don’t need. Don’t let your possessions rule your life. Like technical debt, monetary debt can cripple you.

A good life does not include unnecessary behaviors. Try to focus on what matters most, and prioritize them. Priorities include family and friends, typically. It does not include bad habits. It does not include time / money sucking hobbies. I’m not saying you should live in a shack and not have any fun. Just be smart about it.

I think you understand where I’m going with all this. I could come up with all sorts of design-to-life metaphors, but it just comes across preachy.

Bottom line is, we do not know what the tech industry holds for us in the future. We’ve all heard talk about the bubble bursting. It’s happened before. For me, it’s not a question of whether or not it will happen again. The question is will you be prepared when it does?

For me, my little bubble burst. I wasn’t prepared for it.

The irony is not lost on me that my career fighting for simplicity and usability did not transfer over into my life’s goals. My life was not designed well. It needed a refactor, which I’m currently undergoing.

Like any refactor, the goals are much more defined this time around. It’s exciting, but it’s a hell of a lot of work. My overall goal is to start living more simply; to design a better life experience. I hope that you will consider doing the same.

Wish me luck!