Tanim Khan
Tanim Khan is a product designer who specializes in crafting user-friendly and visually stunning interfaces for websites and mobile apps. His passion lies in creating designs that not only look great, but also feel intuitive and modern, and he takes care to ensure that his designs are aesthetically pleasing and attention-grabbing.
Hi Tanim! Tell us about yourself - how did you get to where you are today? When did you first become interested in design?
My journey as a designer started back in 2017 when my father gifted me a PC, knowing my love for technology. I spent hours exploring and playing games, but I also stumbled upon videos about Photoshop and photo manipulation. Intrigued, I decided to give it a try.
However, after a few months, I hit a roadblock when I couldn't install the latest version of Photoshop, and I couldn't afford the subscription. I took a break, but was determined to find a new passion. That's when I met my girlfriend, who is now my wife, and realized that I needed to do something in my life to gain the trust of her family.
I tried exploring programming, but I wasn't able to import an image to my code, and I gave up. Then I started learning graphic design and worked for roughly one year, but I didn't feel fulfilled. Finally, I discovered my love for UI/UX design and began learning through online courses. My instructor was impressed by my capabilities and offered me an internship at his company in mid-2020, which kicked off my UI/UX journey.
Product Designer Tanim Khan
After completing my internship, I realized that I still had a lot to learn before I could secure a full-time position. I dedicated myself to learning and practicing, creating a portfolio on Dribbble. One of my shots went viral, receiving over 500k views, and soon enough, I started receiving offers from prestigious companies worldwide. I completed various freelance projects and even joined Designstripe as a UI/UX Designer in January 2022.
After a year of working with Designstripe, I decided it was time for a new challenge, and am now seeking out new opportunities to grow and develop my skills even further. It's been a long journey, but I'm proud of how far I've come, and I'm excited about what the future holds.
How would you describe your design style and how has it changed over time?
When it comes to my design style, I love to mix things up. My portfolio showcases a range of minimal, clean, modern, typographic, and retro/vintage design styles. But when it comes to actual work, my focus is on meeting the needs of the people and businesses I'm designing for. I don't always get to indulge my personal preferences, but that's just part of the job.
When I first started out, I was particularly drawn to minimal, clean, and modern interfaces. But as I honed my skills with color and typography, my style evolved. Nowadays, I find myself gravitating more toward typography and retro/vintage design styles. It's been a journey, and I'm excited to see where it takes me next.
As a product designer, what is your creative process like? How do you approach creative collaboration?
Every project is unique and requires a tailored approach based on its requirements, resources, budget, and timeframe.
As a designer, I enjoy working with the design thinking process, which involves understanding the project requirements and conducting research to gain insights into the target audience and their needs. Although I prefer interaction, ideation, and design phases, research is a crucial part of the process, so I left it to my team to complete (although I’m learning the research side a bit more).
To bring my ideas to life, I start sketching and ideating, generating multiple ideas before moving on to wireframing and prototyping. I believe it's important to test the design concepts with users and incorporate their feedback to ensure the design meets their needs and the project goals.
But I don't work alone! Collaboration is crucial to creating successful designs. I involve stakeholders and other members of the UX team in the design process, and I'm always open to feedback and ideas from my colleagues. Communication is key to ensuring that we're all on the same page and working towards the same goals.
Are there particular design tools and resources you find most helpful?
There are several design tools and resources that I find extremely helpful in my work as a product designer. Here are a few of my favorites:
Figma: Figma is my go-to design tool for creating wireframes, prototypes, and high-fidelity designs. It's a versatile tool that allows me to collaborate with other team members and stakeholders in real-time.
Design blogs and communities: There are many design blogs and communities that I follow to stay up-to-date on the latest trends and best practices in design. Some of my favorites include Smashing Magazine, the Dribbble Blog, Awwwards, minimal.gallery, Mobbin, and godly.website, and microblogs from various UX professionals on Linkedin.
Youtube: A few years ago, it was challenging to find quality UX content on Youtube, but things have certainly changed for the better. Nowadays, there are tons of fantastic YouTube channels out there, and I'm excited to share some of my favorites with you: The Futur, NN Group, AJ&Smart, Figma, Design Pilot, UX Talks with Atiq, Flux Academy, Jesse Showalter, CharlieMarieTV, Wired to Design.
For typography inspiration and references, I often turn to: Typescale, FontsInUse, Fontshare and Freefaces.
What’s one of the biggest lessons you’ve learned so far in your career?
Throughout my career, I've learned three important lessons that have helped me succeed:
Communication is key: As a UX professional, I work with talented individuals from all over the world. To collaborate effectively, I need to have strong communication skills and be able to connect with people from diverse backgrounds. By doing so, I am able to build trust and foster productive working relationships.
Being adaptable is essential: The world of technology is constantly evolving, and it's essential to stay up-to-date with the latest trends and tools. If I become complacent and stop learning, I risk being left behind. That's why I'm committed to staying ahead of the curve and continuously expanding my knowledge.
Personal branding is critical: In today's competitive job market, it's not enough to simply be good at what you do. To stand out, I need to have a strong personal brand that showcases my unique skills and talents. By focusing on personal growth and improvement every day, I can continue to build my brand and achieve greater success in my career.
What’s been one of your favorite projects to work on and what would be your dream project?
One project that I'm particularly proud of is the redesign of drawkit.com. It was a challenging project because the target user group was so diverse, spanning various creative professions. As a designer, it was important for me to ensure that the design aligned with their needs and preferences. Designing for other designers can be tricky, as they tend to have a keen eye for mistakes and inconsistencies. But with hard work and dedication, I was able to earn their trust and positive feedback.
I didn't work alone on this project, however. I had the pleasure of collaborating with the entire Designstripe team, and I learned a great deal from them. Working as part of a team has always been important to me. I believe that by bringing together diverse perspectives and skill sets, we can create truly innovative and impactful designs.
Don Norman's quote, "Design for a better world," really resonates with me. As a designer, I am passionate about creating experiences that improve people's lives and make the world a better place. That's why I'm currently working on a medicine reminder app, which allows people to easily manage their medications and stay on top of their health. It's incredibly rewarding to know that my work is making a positive impact on people's lives.
In the future, my dream project would be anything that has a positive impact on our planet. Whether it's designing for nature, education, healthcare, or delivery service, I want to use my skills to make people's lives easier and better.
Where do you find creative inspiration?
Finding inspiration is a crucial part of being a successful designer. I've learned to look beyond just the design industry and find creative ideas in a variety of places. Here are a few sources that inspire me:
Nature: Spending time in nature helps me to clear my mind and sparks my creativity. The colors, textures, and patterns found in the natural world provide a great source of inspiration for my designs. When I feel distracted, I go to my rooftop and play with my plants and the open sky.
Social Media: Platforms like Dribbble, Behance, Instagram, or any other are fantastic places to discover new design trends and connect with other designers. I follow not only UX designers but also creatives from different design fields, such as poster designers, illustrators, and branding experts. This broadens my design sense and helps me create more unique work.
Collaboration: Collaborating with other team members, including senior designers and those from other industries, provides a wealth of inspiration and learning opportunities. Working with people from different backgrounds and perspectives helps me see things from different points of view and find new creative opportunities.
Browsing: I believe that browsing existing products is essential to get inspired and coming up with new design ideas. It's hard to create something that doesn't exist yet, but if we see what's already out there, it can make the process a lot easier. That's why I make a point to browse existing products, as it helps me stay connected to the real world and gain inspiration from what's already working.
What advice would you give to new designers just starting out?
As a designer, I've learned a lot over the years, and I'm happy to share some advice with new designers just starting out. Here are a few tips that I think are especially important:
Focus on the basics: It's easy to get caught up in the latest design trends and technology, but it's important to have a solid foundation in the basics of Product Design. This includes UX Process, Color, Typography, Spacing, Research, Information architecture, Wireframe, prototyping, etc.
Practice, practice, practice: Design is a skill that takes time and practice to develop. Make sure to practice your skills regularly.
Seek feedback: Getting feedback from other designers and clients can be a great way to improve your work and learn new skills. Don't be afraid to ask for feedback, and be open to constructive criticism.
Stay curious: The design industry is constantly evolving, and it's important to stay up-to-date with the latest trends, technologies, and techniques. Stay curious and keep learning!
Build your network: Building relationships with other designers and creatives can be a great way to find new opportunities and learn new skills. Attend industry events, join online communities, and seek out mentorship opportunities.
Be patient and persistent: Building a successful career in design takes time and persistence. Don't get discouraged by setbacks, and keep pushing yourself to improve and grow.
Thank you for sharing with us Tanim! To view more of Tanim’s work, visit Dribbble page or connect on Linkedin.
Tanim was nominated by Dribbble. All art courtesy of Tanim Khan.