Evolve core practices for a new year

Hey folks,

Here are the top 10 things I found worth sharing and your UX tip of the week.

UX tip of the week

Rethink the way the team works by evolving core practices. 

• Read the virtual first toolkit.

• Audit and trim down meetings.

• Assess team health.

• Host a retro to brainstorm key improvements.

• Identify most beneficial new or evolved practices.

Top 10 things worth sharing this week

1. Darren Yeo shared 4 ways to become a 4.0 designer: look for innovators on the fringes, call into question 3.0 standards, be good with what you know and better with what you don’t know, and be a scientist.
   
   

2. Lawton Pybus detailed how UX roles may have been disproportionately impacted by layoffs and what to expect next. Related: the changing role of design.
   
   

3. Creative Fabrica is free and also offers a free tool to vectorize images that leveages AI to convert images directly into vectors.
   
   

4. Watch the story of the design duo behind some of the 20th century’s most iconic album covers on Netflix: Squaring the Circle (the story of hipgnosis).
   
   

5. Explore a collection of free coded buttons.
   
   

6. UX Mag shared 5 cognitive psychology theories that should be top of mind for UX: retention theory, serial-position effect, hick’s law, hick’s law, schema theory, and chameleon effect.
   
   

7. If your design lives or dies by your presentation of it, lead with the why. Related: Deepen your ability to mindmeld with clients and your team.
   
   

8. On UXR: choosing the right qualitative research methods, framework for prioritizing user research, user research only covers users, and Surveys That Work.
   
   

9. Looking to practice your skills? Explore 18 challenges from UX tools.
   
   

10. Explore this academic articles list every designer should read. "Reviewing relevant academic research can provide new insights and perspectives to inspire and enable Designers to be more effective."

Thanks for reading!

This newsletter is a free hand-crafted resource for the UX community and beyond. If you like it, subscribe here and consider forwarding it to a friend.

Sincerely,
Gerren