JoelMarsh.bsky.social

Author of UX For Beginners and UX For Business. Founder of Peekerton. Designer since 2003. Analyzer of humans and their businesses.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

*****
Just getting started in digital design?

Read “UX For Beginners” first:

https://t.co/RCV7maB4Sd

******

Ready to design something valuable?

Read “UX For Business”:

https://t.co/GYUdYXwtEK

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

I won’t accept “AGI” until it can untangle a metal slinky while it engages in self-talk to stay calm at the same time.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

UXers!!!

If you are panicking about what to do with your career in an AI-driven world don’t:

The skills you need are mostly UX/CX/User-oriented product skills (not UI!).

Double-down on UX. Not interfaces, humans.

My books are built on these core ideas and always have been.

[Madhu Guru @realmadhuguru]

Same pattern is emerging for AI PMs. AI product building is a far less mature discipline than AI research.

To build an AI native product, a PM needs mastery of the following
- vision, opinionated UX design
- model intuition to extract max value
- ability to go from pixels -> evals -> hill climb
- understanding of agentic flows - tools, context, safety guardrails
- deep user understanding - lot more than previously because of the nature of agents

Unlike traditional software, LLMs offer infinite use cases with infinite failure modes. It takes skill to craft products that strike the balance between exposing LLM versatility while building a focused product with high quality.

I estimate < 75 PMs globally have this depth. The evidence is the number of truly AI-native products today. And my scar tissue from hiring.

It is a rare, but learnable skillset. Only way is to build, build, build.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

At a flea market: my 8 year old is haggling over a nerf gun for $3 because it jammed when he tested it. The seller (12 years old) is equally concerned and is refusing to sell it until he can confirm that it works properly.

I love everything about this scenario.

[BookAuthority @bookauthority]

Awesome work @JoelMarsh! Your book "UX for Beginners" made it to BookAuthority's list of best User Experience books for beginners! https://t.co/YXOn4dyWGj

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

There are a lot more people who will sell you advice than people qualified to give you advice.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

Whoa!

I am humbled to be guest #336 on the eminent "UX Podcast" which has had so many amazing guests over the past decade it's ridiculous.

Listen to it here: https://t.co/8vH6HlsOCM

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

Hey #designTwitter: know what we REALLY need?

Some Helvetica-but-slightly-more-geometric typefaces!

I don't think a billion of them is enough.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

@hobdaydesign I suspect they chose a simple rule with some downsides (i.e., no dragging into search results) rather than having different behaviors depending on subtle differences of search scope.

e.g. dragging into a global search shouldn't work. But it looks nearly identical.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

Simple. Wise. Selectively written.

Also, the typography choices are a masterclass for anyone who things "minimal" means living with some discomfort.

{@emilkowalski You are one clear link color away from perfection here, my friend.}

https://t.co/ERobf8HsTT

[Adrienne @AdrienneCoelho]

The book all designers at all levels should have on their shelf’s

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

I think this makes 9 years in a row.

[BookAuthority @bookauthority]

Great work @JoelMarsh! Your book "UX for Beginners" is featured in BookAuthority's list of best User Experience books for beginners! https://t.co/YXOn4dyWGj

[BookAuthority @bookauthority]

Great work @JoelMarsh! Your book "UX for Beginners" is featured in BookAuthority's list of best User Experience books for beginners! https://t.co/YXOn4dyWGj

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

Let’s get outta here:
@joelmarsh.bsky.social

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

Lots of people want to have written a book.

Very few of those people actually want to write that book.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

Sorry to everyone that doesn’t speak Swedish. This is a doctor explaining every step needed to refill a prescription for a patient, using their catastrophically bad new software called “Millennium”.

Just scroll through it. He is describing a design crime, IMO.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

People who always do what they are told, always agree, always love your ideas…are NOT here for you, the client.

They only care enough to get paid.

People who question you, find problems, and suggest other ideas are valuable, not “difficult”.

They care enough to push you.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

Some of them are just the flat version of the same design. All fancy logos exist as a flat, one-color version in the brand guidelines whether you see it or not.

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

Understand the difference between design and style.

Strategically, the Jaguar redesign probably involved cocaine, but it will technically “work”.

These are examples of style shifts that people don’t like for emotional reasons.

Fire the creative director, not the designer.

[sea @neverlie]

WORST REDESIGNS

A THREAD 🧵

[sea @neverlie]

WORST REDESIGNS

A THREAD 🧵

[JoelMarsh.bsky.social @JoelMarsh]

Know when to say no.

Know when to do less.

Know when to remove.

Know when to be more basic.

Know when to slow down and think.

Know when to learn more first.

Know when it’s enough (for now).

Know when to listen.

Know when you don’t know.

These are good things.