Seye Abolaji on building world-class designs.
It’s been 3 years since we started building at Wajusoft and we’re quite popular with our clients for our clean and friendly designs. From the images on social media to the seamless transition between screens, Wajusoft has established that they are here for the aesthetics. In this article, Seye Abolaji, an in-house designer, tells us what inspires the designs he creates.
Seye is our (28 ), we held this interview with Seye because of the commitment he shows to creating better designs for each new project he embarks on. I am always impressed by the new design and I’m driven to find what drives this.
Seye on getting started in product design.
Product Design is an integral part of software development that involves a visual interpretation of how the client’s interest can be communicated at a level that satisfies the customer. Product design requires skills and analytical correctness that make it possible for the programmer to take these designs and turn them into software products. A good product design is concise and can easily be interpreted by developers, consumers and clients.
What inspired Product design?
Seye: “ I had a career in graphics design before I started at wajusoft. I used to work for a design agency and it gave me little to no time to fully pursue my interest in product design. Resigning was not an option because it was my primary source of income”.
Do you think your career in graphics design affected your designs?
Seye: “ yeah it did, a lot actually, I started product design this year in Wajusoft, graphics is embedded in product design, it helps me understand colors, shapes, and flows, and it never felt like I did not start from scratch, like I had background already and that product design was not entirely new”
“You see, product design has two components: the User interface and User experience (UI/UX). UX involves studying people and the psychology behind their wants and the UI is the visual part, it is an interpretation of the UX and it is very connected to graphics design. The graphics you see is the interpretation of the product research you did”
Seye on improving his designs.
The hallmark of every professional is growth. When your work is compared at any two separate points in your career, there should be a clear difference between where you’re coming from and where you are at that point.
So what’s the sauce for getting really good designs?
Seye: “You have to keep getting better, follow trends and research trends and always be in touch with the trends, you have to continuously look for inspiration even when there’s no work. That way you are preparing yourself for the eventuality of when you have to input on a project or build your own. Constantly reviewing and studying other designs is a huge part of the process. These things stick in your head. You keep in touch with the trends in customer preference and with the trends for various industries. You also need to use the right tools. One of the tools I use is Figma for product design. It is a complete tool for a designer. It has a whiteboard fo brainstorming and it is very well designed for a product designer. I use Photoshop for my graphic design. I have been using it since and it’s an amazing tool”.
How has working in Wajusoft impacted your designs?
Seye: “ A Lot. What I do at Wajusoft is design but design from different points. Like there’s graphic design and product design for Wajusoft’s client which is PeopleJoy and working on other stuff. It has been a while since I wanted to switch but it wasn’t possible because I worked at design agencies and I didn’t have time to learn but the culture here is different. It is kinder to young professionals and more lenient and encouraging. It has been a smooth journey. I had worked with OT on a project before but even then I had impostor’s syndrome towards joining the team. I went from level 1 to level 80 in my skills in a year.
What was your most interesting project? And why?
Seye: “I am still working on it. It’s Jamajama. Working on the TSR (The Social Reimbursing System) for PeopleJoy is exciting and challenging, It is real life and you see how features are added and improved in real-time. I thoroughly enjoy it, but with Jamajama, I get to start from scratch, I picked it because of this. We started with the research and I found the research very fascinating. The research used to be my most intimidating aspect of design, it’s just difficult. Learning it theoretically was hard because it was you know from foreign systems but this one is Nigeria and all the research you just have to experience. Being part of a team that lets me be part of the process first-hand made jamajama very interesting for me”
Seye on his interests in music.
Seye Abolaji doubles as a musician, stage name (also, slack name is Rayne) in his non-working hours. He has had a lifelong passion for creating afrobeats and hopes the world gets to hear his sound someday.
How’s music going, What’s the plan?
Seye: Music for me right now is what comes next after design. It would have been my go-to skill, but as an independent artist, you need to fund the marketing and all other parts of the music by yourself to make a career out of it. I’m getting to that. Even though I’m giving most of my time to design, I’m still giving a lot to music every day as a hobby. I have a home studio and it’s something I do to relax. Putting your music out there is another ball game entirely, it’s a whole industry on its own that involves a lot of time and money.
A lot of people seem to think it’s one or the other, I was quite inspired when I heard you combine all, like Thanos but for creativity.
Seye: laughs hysterically, “I’m flattered”
Seye on communities.
An effective way to build your career is by joining a community. You get to see ways other people in your field are innovating and most importantly, you learn from errors while building a high-value network.
Are you part of any design communities?
Seye: “Yeah, there’s a course I’m taking right now, they have a community for that course as well as the Figma design community where the designers meet and mostly twitter design communities. It is important to communicate and grow with people at your level”
What of music communities?
Seye: Yeah, there are some communities I am a part of, but as I said, music requires a lot of time and you need to contribute to that community practically. So, I’m just viewing, not actively a part of the community. But with the music community, artists push each other’s work and support each other. It’s a great way to grow.
Seye on the Future.
“Never let the future disturb you. You will meet it, if you have to, with the same weapons of reason which today arm you against the present.” — Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
What’s the future for you in design?
Seye: “Actually a few major steps forward. This year I’m looking to complete the course I’m taking. Combining it with work. I want to take more certifications and take more steps where I’m much more confident in my designs and output. I’m still in the testing stage, I want to be able to proffer solutions immediately. Solutions I trust and people can trust”.
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