A massive scandal is unfolding in Indonesia’s design community: a design studio founder has been accused of sexually harassing his employee and worse, he’s also done the same to several of his students and interns, i heard some still underage.
On principles,
I talked with a few designers that worked for some agencies you see often here on X
And holy shit, the way some of them treat their teammates is insane.
Designers carrying entire projects…
agencies charging massive rates…
and the people doing the real work get zero bonuses, zero credit, zero growth.
Just treated like disposable cartridges.
Instead of growing with their team and building a core that’s unbreakable, they squeeze margins so they can flex online.
That’s not how you build a generational business.
Treasure your team.
Give guidance when they need it.
Call them out when you know they can do better, that’s part of it. But reward them when they do good.
Say it publicly so people see it.
Not just a quiet “good job” message in DMs.
If you want a team that takes initiative, works harder, and takes ownership, you need to show the same level of commitment toward them.
Don’t be a fucking vulture, man.
It really is this simple:
Client: I need an app designed really fast.
Me: That’ll be $6,500.
Client: Transfer sent.
*3 days later*
Me: Here’s the app with 40 screens, and a component library.
Client:
Manager lo bukan expert di tugas yang lo lakukan
Miskonsepsi pertama yang sering gue temuin di dunia manajemen adalah:
"Manager itu harus lebih jago dari bawahan."
Dan gue juga pernah terjebak sama pemikiran ini.
ok, that took a bit of a dark turn =)
i just wanted to share the other side of the coin.
the side most designers don’t talk about enough,
the rough patches, the failures, the scars.
but there’s also the bright side.
the side where things go right:
– projects that launch smoothly
– clients who trust you completely
– teams that click together effortlessly
– products that delight users
– moments when you see your design actually work in the real world
these moments give you confidence.
they remind you why you chose this path.
they teach you lessons in clarity, communication, and impact.
they teach you what works.
both sides matter.
the bright side fills your tank with energy.
the dark side gives you depth and maturity.
without the wins,
you give up.
you dont know what works.
you dont see the light at the end of tunnel.
without the scars,
you stay shallow.
you stay naive.
you stay weak.
true seniority comes from carrying both.
true seniority is something that happens to you as you survive...
You cannot ask a designer to design and have many meetings during the week.
We need time to deep think, process and explore. Especially with product design.
A simple 30 minute meeting is actually an extra 1-2 hours of wasted potential design time.
Why? Because we’re so lost in our heads thinking through a million solutions, we have to stop designing 30 minutes before, during the meeting, then it takes at least 30 minutes to try to get back into the mental spot and resolve the million solutions to get back to where we left off.
Design is deep thinking and every meeting interrupts that.
It’s one of the biggest challenges designers have when leading a product.
Remember, your 30 minute meeting is actually almost 2 hours of lost design time. Make it worth it.