What Founders Can Do To Improve Their Design Game

Schaad describes a strong product as desirable, feasible, and viable, connecting those qualities to design, technology, and business. He says software lets designers work closer to the means of production, making it easier to build what they envision.

Schaad recommends learning by making things, surrounding yourself with well-designed objects, and studying design books. He names Grid Systems, The Elements of Typographic Style, and The Design of Everyday Things, which shaped his thinking on layout, typography, and usability.

Schaad says design can give early-stage companies an edge, especially as AI changes how products are built. He sees design as how a product looks, works, and is built, including details such as loading states and latency. Founders can strengthen their teams by hiring talented designers early.

Schaad starts with user problems or an intuition, then sketches ideas on paper to capture them quickly. He moves toward a high-fidelity prototype, sometimes in Figma and sometimes directly in code, to judge how the product feels in use. He says prototypes and users help determine whether a design works.

Schaad advises respecting platform expectations while exploring new interactions. He gives examples such as when a field focuses or blurs and how dropdowns work with the keyboard. Paper sketches help people explore freely before software tools or code impose constraints.