I Did The 100 Day UX Sketching Challenge
They say that it takes about 2 months to form a new habit. I can confirm that after sketching 3 icons every day for 100 consecutive days, it has become a habit. A habit that has given me confidence in my sketching, decreased my creative block, and become a part of my morning routine. Sketching may seem like doodling to some but it allows us communicate complex ideas visually while exploring endless options and iterations. I would say that my strength in the design process lies in wireframing and coming up with a multitude of iterations. I think this challenge has further established this strength. This challenge may be helpful to others since it's always tempting to use the first idea that comes to mind or whatever is common practice.
I've taken Kriztina Szerovay's UX Sketching class on Udemy and after that, I was hungry for more. I signed up for her 100 day challenge of coming up with 3 icons per day and this is what I learned.
If you want to sign up for her free challenge, click here.
It supports idea generation.
Not only does it force you to allows us to have more room and time for details and refinement. Sketching without limitations let’s us consider solutions from different angles and perspectives.
I learned new UX terms.
What is "fake door testing?" How do represent IoT as a visual? What's the difference between a cognitive walkthrough and a usability test? This challenge forced me to do some research and learn about new methodologies so that I could create these icons.
It grows confidence.
This challenge pushed me to ignore the voice in my head that says, “That’s a dumb idea. That won’t make sense to people.” When you stop listening to that voice, you’ll be surprised at what your brain can come up with and put on paper.
It’s great for developing concepts and communicating ideas.
Having the skill to quickly sketch out complex ideas and explain them visually is incredibly valuable. People are very visual and having a problem laid out in front of them in an organized fashion with minimal text is a big advantage. Images are far more powerful in terms of memory, context, and overall processing by the brain.
By doing this challenge for 100 days, I have now accumulated 300 icons to build my visual library. I have my own style now and can quickly express and annotate ideas visually and with these icons collaborate more effectively.
If you want to take part in the challenge, here is a link to Krisztina's website where you can sign up for her challenge and her monthly sketch challenges as well.