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+---
+title: "Stop Pissing Off Your Designers"
+date: 2009-04-01T00:00:00+00:00
+draft: false
+needs_review: true
+canonical_url: https://www.viget.com/articles/stop-pissing-off-your-designers/
+---
+
+A few weeks ago, our local [Refresh](http://refreshthetriangle.org)
+group pitted me (representing web developers) against Viget designer
+[Mindy](https://www.viget.com/about/team/mwagner) in a battle for the
+ages. Our talk, "Ten Things Designers Do That Piss Developers Off (and
+Vice Versa)," offered a back-and-forth look at some of the issues that
+crop up between web professionals. Despite the overwhelming strength of
+my arguments, I won't deny that she got some good shots in. Here are
+some of the key lessons I took away.
+
+### Stay off the bandwagon
+
+One of Mindy's best points was the tendency of developers, when
+selecting technologies to use on a project, to go with what's new and
+hip rather than what's the best fit or what will yield the best final
+result. I think we can all relate to learning a new technology or
+technique and then wanting to immediately apply it to whatever we're
+working on.
+
+Technology bandwagon-jumping goes hand-in-hand with another common
+problem: over-engineering. In my experience, when a chosen technology is
+a bad fit for a project, it's typically because it's too powerful. An
+over-engineered solution is a nightmare for the next developer --- in a
+past life, I maintained a Spring-powered, Lucene-searchable monstrosity
+running on dedicated hardware that would have been better served with a
+WordPress install on Dreamhost.
+
+When selecting technologies, stick with the best fit, whether that's
+what you know best or what will lead to the best final product. If
+you're just dying to try out some new technology, do what I do: redo
+your personal site (in lieu of actually posting any new content to it).
+
+### Avoid the knee-jerk "No"
+
+Picture this: you're sitting at your desk one morning, happily reading
+Hacker News, when an IM window pops up on your screen. It's your PM, and
+she's got a new feature request from the client. It's not a major
+change, but it will involve a substantial overhaul of the messaging
+system you built. What's your response? Be honest --- you give her
+seventeen reasons why the requested change is a bad idea.
+
+When discussing feature requests, keep in mind that the ultimate goal is
+to create the best product possible. Requirements change, and though it
+sucks to complicate elegant solutions, sometimes change is necessary. As
+an added benefit, if you avoid staying "no" instinctively, when a
+*truly* bad idea lands on your plate, your objections will carry a lot
+more weight.
+
+### Remember: you are not the user
+
+Mindy noted a trait common to many developers: a lack of empathy for the
+user, or rather, the mistaken idea that we ourselves are the typical
+user. In other words, developers are prone to creating features that
+they would want to use, regardless of how well they might serve the
+actual audience of the site.
+
+When deciding on geeky features, it's important to keep your audience in
+mind. If you're designing a site about web productivity, by all means,
+go nuts --- bookmarklets, keyboard shortcuts, customizable RSS feeds,
+the whole nine yards. But if your site's intended audience is, say,
+gardening enthusiasts, your time would probably be better spent
+elsewhere.
+
+### But in the end
+
+We all want to create the best web sites possible. Disagreements arise
+about definitions of "best"; while a designer wants a site that's
+attractive and intuitive, the developer wants one that is stable and
+maintainable. In the end, these qualities aren't mutually exclusive ---
+the highest-quality websites have them all.
+
+Mindy has posted [her
+thoughts](https://www.viget.com/inspire/stop-driving-your-developers-crazy)
+on the talk, and our slides are available on
+[SlideShare](http://www.slideshare.net/mindywagner/10-things-designers-do-that-piss-developers-off-and-vice-versa).
+And if you're in Durham (or lesser nearby cities), come on out to the
+next [Refresh](http://refreshthetriangle.org) meeting.
+