Re: Design Philosophy

My design philosophy is that design is communication. Quality design is based on the goals of the sender and the needs of the intended receiver. In essence, what Tiffany and others suggested - it's about solutions.

Another philosophy I also enjoy is that design is personality. This is not my philosophy - it is Aaron Walter's, the creator of Mail Chimp. He believes that interface design is all about creating a personality that your audience can identify with through tone of voice, cadence of conversation, shared jokes, ect. He calls it emotional design. If you've ever used Mail Chimp you see it action. It is an enjoyable service to use (as enjoyable as a WYSIWYG can be).

In his book, Designing for Emotion, Walter states:

"Emotional design’s primary goal is to facilitate human-to-human communication. If we’re doing our job well, the computer recedes into the background, and personalities rise to the surface. To achieve this goal, we must consider how we interact with one another in real life."

The book focuses a lot on personas and brand identity. An excerpt can be read here:

http://alistapart.com/article/personality-in-design