In the digital realm, design can feel fleeting. It's constantly evolving, iterated upon, and ultimately replaced by the next big thing. But its impact is anything but. Design is starstuff, a piece of a much larger, ever-growing constellation.
We spend countless hours crafting pixels and pushing code, only to see it disappear into the ether of shipped features and product updates. This can lead to a sense of impermanence, a feeling that our work doesn't truly matter.
But what if we looked at it differently?
Instead of focusing on the individual pieces, let's consider the whole. Our designs, even the ones that never see the light of day, contribute to the larger ecosystem of our products, teams, and companies.
Think of it like a star:
Its lifetime may be short, but its death fuels the creation of new stars and planets.
Similarly, our design work, even if it doesn't directly result in a shipped feature, contributes to the growth and evolution of the product.
The features you envisioned might not come to fruition today, but they might inspire someone else down the line. That next designer might build upon your ideas, launching something even better two years from now.
Your work, in essence, becomes a stepping stone, a piece of the puzzle that leads to something greater.
This interconnectedness, this sense of ongoing evolution, is the true beauty of digital design. It's a continuous feedback loop, where ideas build upon each other, creating something that transcends individual contributions.
So, the next time you feel discouraged by the ephemeral nature of your work, remember:
Your design is starstuff. It may not last forever, but its impact is immeasurable, fueling the growth and evolution of the digital world one iteration at a time.
And who knows, maybe your work, even if unseen, will play a vital role in crafting the future of design itself.