Apr 18, 2024
What it looks like to design with soul
What does it mean to add "soul" to your designs?
Dennis from Amie told me this is what he looks for in design candidates and I've been thinking about it ever since 💭
It's a tough quality to pin point...
But I think I've narrowed it down to 4 signals 👇
1 — Unreasonable quality
Designing with soul means at least one thing you ship will be unreasonably good.
The example that comes to mind is the Figjam unfurling interaction 👇
Talk about going beyond the brief…
There is no chance this was a requirement in a PRD. Quality like this only comes from an intrinsic place of motivation.
I can feel the care put into this interaction every time I drag a new sticky onto the canvas. That's what makes it memorable.
"Memorable interactions are not showy—they’re more a surprising and novel way to signal something"
— Marc Hemeon
2 — Artistic expression
"Soulful design is when design overlaps with art. Design is strictly about solving problems and cares little about your personal expression. Art, on the other hand, is all about personal expression."
— Ali Tariq
I think that’s why I love the story behind the Amie website so much.
Dennis’s inspiration didn’t come from Mobbin or Twitter. It came while he was on a run under a sunset gradient.
The resulting UI is a form of personal expression—not the trend du jour. This is the only way to create something truly unique.
In order to design with soul you need to look inward.
3 — Eclectic inspiration
If you asked me to name people who I think design with soul, these three would definitely be on my list:
So when all three of them tell me they draw inspiration from video games I start to pay attention 👀
"Video games are taking over the world and it’s time for Design to take them seriously"
— Andy Allen
Finding eclectic inspiration requires you to look outside of traditional UI/UX design (fashion, architecture, music, etc.).
That’s the only path to create something like the world’s most satisfying checkbox 👇
4 — Singular vision
Design by committee erodes soul.
I think that’s why Derek Briggs talked about limiting feedback checkpoints in the design process. It's also why you see craft-oriented teams give max autonomy to designers/engineers.
Feedback is obviously valuable. But too much can dilute your work.
Soul often requires singular vision.
And when that singular vision is designed by the founder, you get something really special 👇
Meet the designer and founder of Amie
I chatted with Dennis Müller to explore this idea further. In the interview he shares all the ups and downs along his journey of building Amie—a new productivity tool I use every day to manage my calendar and to-dos.
The software is incredible 👏
Even if you haven’t used the product, you’ve probably been on their website (it went viral at the beginning of the year and for good reason).
So in this interview we talk about:
His obsessive iteration process
The traits Dennis looks for in design candidates
How Dennis balances his intuition with product feedback
Why Dennis didn’t ask for feedback on the launch website
Listen on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts 👇
What does it mean to add "soul" to your designs?
Dennis from Amie told me this is what he looks for in design candidates and I've been thinking about it ever since 💭
It's a tough quality to pin point...
But I think I've narrowed it down to 4 signals 👇
1 — Unreasonable quality
Designing with soul means at least one thing you ship will be unreasonably good.
The example that comes to mind is the Figjam unfurling interaction 👇
Talk about going beyond the brief…
There is no chance this was a requirement in a PRD. Quality like this only comes from an intrinsic place of motivation.
I can feel the care put into this interaction every time I drag a new sticky onto the canvas. That's what makes it memorable.
"Memorable interactions are not showy—they’re more a surprising and novel way to signal something"
— Marc Hemeon
2 — Artistic expression
"Soulful design is when design overlaps with art. Design is strictly about solving problems and cares little about your personal expression. Art, on the other hand, is all about personal expression."
— Ali Tariq
I think that’s why I love the story behind the Amie website so much.
Dennis’s inspiration didn’t come from Mobbin or Twitter. It came while he was on a run under a sunset gradient.
The resulting UI is a form of personal expression—not the trend du jour. This is the only way to create something truly unique.
In order to design with soul you need to look inward.
3 — Eclectic inspiration
If you asked me to name people who I think design with soul, these three would definitely be on my list:
So when all three of them tell me they draw inspiration from video games I start to pay attention 👀
"Video games are taking over the world and it’s time for Design to take them seriously"
— Andy Allen
Finding eclectic inspiration requires you to look outside of traditional UI/UX design (fashion, architecture, music, etc.).
That’s the only path to create something like the world’s most satisfying checkbox 👇
4 — Singular vision
Design by committee erodes soul.
I think that’s why Derek Briggs talked about limiting feedback checkpoints in the design process. It's also why you see craft-oriented teams give max autonomy to designers/engineers.
Feedback is obviously valuable. But too much can dilute your work.
Soul often requires singular vision.
And when that singular vision is designed by the founder, you get something really special 👇
Meet the designer and founder of Amie
I chatted with Dennis Müller to explore this idea further. In the interview he shares all the ups and downs along his journey of building Amie—a new productivity tool I use every day to manage my calendar and to-dos.
The software is incredible 👏
Even if you haven’t used the product, you’ve probably been on their website (it went viral at the beginning of the year and for good reason).
So in this interview we talk about:
His obsessive iteration process
The traits Dennis looks for in design candidates
How Dennis balances his intuition with product feedback
Why Dennis didn’t ask for feedback on the launch website
Listen on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts 👇
What does it mean to add "soul" to your designs?
Dennis from Amie told me this is what he looks for in design candidates and I've been thinking about it ever since 💭
It's a tough quality to pin point...
But I think I've narrowed it down to 4 signals 👇
1 — Unreasonable quality
Designing with soul means at least one thing you ship will be unreasonably good.
The example that comes to mind is the Figjam unfurling interaction 👇
Talk about going beyond the brief…
There is no chance this was a requirement in a PRD. Quality like this only comes from an intrinsic place of motivation.
I can feel the care put into this interaction every time I drag a new sticky onto the canvas. That's what makes it memorable.
"Memorable interactions are not showy—they’re more a surprising and novel way to signal something"
— Marc Hemeon
2 — Artistic expression
"Soulful design is when design overlaps with art. Design is strictly about solving problems and cares little about your personal expression. Art, on the other hand, is all about personal expression."
— Ali Tariq
I think that’s why I love the story behind the Amie website so much.
Dennis’s inspiration didn’t come from Mobbin or Twitter. It came while he was on a run under a sunset gradient.
The resulting UI is a form of personal expression—not the trend du jour. This is the only way to create something truly unique.
In order to design with soul you need to look inward.
3 — Eclectic inspiration
If you asked me to name people who I think design with soul, these three would definitely be on my list:
So when all three of them tell me they draw inspiration from video games I start to pay attention 👀
"Video games are taking over the world and it’s time for Design to take them seriously"
— Andy Allen
Finding eclectic inspiration requires you to look outside of traditional UI/UX design (fashion, architecture, music, etc.).
That’s the only path to create something like the world’s most satisfying checkbox 👇
4 — Singular vision
Design by committee erodes soul.
I think that’s why Derek Briggs talked about limiting feedback checkpoints in the design process. It's also why you see craft-oriented teams give max autonomy to designers/engineers.
Feedback is obviously valuable. But too much can dilute your work.
Soul often requires singular vision.
And when that singular vision is designed by the founder, you get something really special 👇
Meet the designer and founder of Amie
I chatted with Dennis Müller to explore this idea further. In the interview he shares all the ups and downs along his journey of building Amie—a new productivity tool I use every day to manage my calendar and to-dos.
The software is incredible 👏
Even if you haven’t used the product, you’ve probably been on their website (it went viral at the beginning of the year and for good reason).
So in this interview we talk about:
His obsessive iteration process
The traits Dennis looks for in design candidates
How Dennis balances his intuition with product feedback
Why Dennis didn’t ask for feedback on the launch website
Listen on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts 👇
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Get our weekly breakdowns
"There's no doubt that Dive has made me a better designer"
@ned_ray
Join 10,000+ designers
Get our weekly breakdowns
"There's no doubt that Dive has made me a better designer"
@ned_ray
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