Bob Baxley

Designer, Advisor, Executive UX • Leadership • Inspiration @ ThoughtSpot, ex-Apple, Pinterest & Yahoo! • Find me on Threads @baxley

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

Anyone even tangentially connected to UX design knows that the demand for designers has never been higher. This should come as no surprise to anyone in the tech industry. However, the question remains, how did we get here and how do we get out? It comes down to a few dynamics…

[Lenny Rachitsky @lennysan]

The moral obligation of great design: A call to arms by @ThisIsBobBaxley

Bob has designed products used by billions of people over his 35-year career at @Apple, @Pinterest, @Yahoo, and @ThoughtSpot. During his eight years at Apple, he led design for the online store and the App Store, and witnessed the iPhone’s transformative launch while working under Steve Jobs. Bob champions the obligation designers have to reduce frustration in people’s daily lives.

"I don't think many people working in the industry understand the scale of what they're doing.

Software, both for the audience and for the creators, is an anonymous medium. The products we're building are just these crazy, faceless things created by a bunch of people, you know, who knows where. We never see anybody on the other side of the glass.

It's very hard to really understand that we're creating something in Figma on their computer that's going to be interacted with by billions of people, thousands and thousands of times.

People don't want to try to figure out how to navigate our login screens or go through our onboarding process. They just wanna get home and spend time with their families and pet their dogs and have a nice dinner."

Bob also has some other spicy takes:
🔸 Why design should report to engineering, not product
🔸 The “Beatles principle”—why the best products come from teams of 4 to 6, not 40 to 60
🔸 Why you need design tenets, not principles (with real examples)
🔸 Why you should delay sketching and prototyping as long as possible
🔸 Why software is fundamentally a medium, like film or music
🔸 Much more

Listen now 👇
• YouTube: https://t.co/ilMYuLd6di
• Spotify: https://t.co/lu48YyATm7
• Apple: https://t.co/co0bR3qLCQ

🏆 This entire episode is brought to you by @Stripe—helping companies of all sizes grow revenue:

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

@vixsheikh All credit to Brian Eno for creating the term.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

Thanks so much for the opportunity to share some ideas and stories with all of you. Really looking forward to the event and hope everyone who listens in takes away a few things of value…not the least of which will be more than a few laughs. 😆

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

You will never get caught up. The to-do list will never be completed. The inbox never empty. It's all like a river and you are blessed that it is flowing rather than dry.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

To have an infinite game mindset when those around you have a finite mindset is an enormous advantage – though one that will leave you feeling isolated, alone, and misunderstood.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

It’s okay to be intense as long as it’s balance with playfulness and humor. If you’re too intense, the people around you will tighten up, get anxious or afraid, and that will constrict their imaginations and creativity.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

Our happiness is directly correlated to the time we spend moving through the nature. A hike in the woods, a walk on the beach, a ride along the backroads — they will invariably lift your spirits and sooth your soul.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

Over time you will develop an intuition that something you have to say is valuable to others. Even so, you will never be able to predict in advance exactly how valuable it may be.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

It’s a big world out there. Make the time to take more breaks, clear your mind, disconnect from the demands of work, and meet people from other places and walks of life. You’ll be the better for it.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

Don't think that just because you've heard of a famous work of literature that you really know what it's about. The classics are multi-dimensional, conveying an essential truth of the human condition. As such, they require us to engage directly, repeatedly, and purposely.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

If you really want to understand the current moment, ask someone in the early 20s. They're the ones who came of age in the world as it is now and therefore are the ones best adapted to understand, interpret, anticipate, and make sense of it.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

Show up early. Pay attention. Take notes. None of these things are hard beyond the simple fact that they require you to care. If you're not doing them then perhaps you need to take it as evidence that in the end, you actually don’t care.

#inspiration #motivation #wellbeing

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

A truly deep and meaningful conversation requires focus, concentration, and commitment. Don't think or pretend that you can do it spontaneously or with distractions around you.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

You will never have any idea what it's truly like to inhabit and live in someone else's brain. Nor they in yours. Therefore, assume the best and expect misunderstandings.

#inspiration #motivation #wellbeing

[Michael Beschloss @BeschlossDC]

Final words, prepared for a speech JFK did not survive to deliver, planned for an Austin Democratic dinner sixty years ago tonight (cancelled because of the assassination):
"Neither the fanatics nor the faint-hearted are needed....Our duty is not merely the preservation of political power but the preservation of peace and freedom."

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

@jaffoneh The truth is, no one of us can be free until everybody is free.

— Maya Angelou

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

Put your ideas and thoughts out into the world so they can have the opportunity to touch and perhaps inspire others. Don't hold onto or covet them, for an unshared idea is but a passing thought.

#inspiration #motivation #wellbeing

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

We are all social creatures and even the most introverted among us need community, connection, and confirmation. Seek out those who inspire and fuel you, spending regular time in congregation with them.

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

Even in the busiest and most chaotic moments of your life it's critical to give yourself a chance to relax, to be quiet, and to let go of your concerns. Without those moments you will break and eventually fail those around you.

#inspiration #motivation #wellbeing

[Bob Baxley @_bbaxley]

Different people derive energy and motivation from different types of recognition and reward. For some it may be winning, for others merely acknowledgment, and for some perhaps simple gratitude. As a leader it’s your job to match the moment to each individual’s unique need.