Notes

23
Apr

My Silent Cofounders

  • Life
22
Apr

To share is to live

  • Life
11
Apr

A Shifting Season

  • Life
  • Balancing work, marriage, and a side project while quietly preparing for a new season of leadership.
31
Mar

The Family Farm Fire

  • Life
24
Mar

1 year of making Harvous

  • It's been one year of making the Bible notes app, Harvous
21
Mar

Through the Glass Door

  • Life
14
Mar

Hearing Spring

  • Life
11
Mar

App First. AI Second.

  • Build apps with AI as a subtle enhancement, not the main attraction. Focus on core purpose first.
11
Mar

Building for Tenants, Not Tourists

  • Observe
  • Companies chase AI tourists with flashy features while neglecting loyal tenants who actually pay the bills.
06
Mar

The Seduction of Sparkle

  • Observe
  • Companies chasing AI's sparkle often neglect product fundamentals, creating impressive features atop crumbling foundations. Fix the basics before adding AI magic.
01
Mar

The AI Checkbox Fallacy

  • Companies chase AI features to check boxes rather than solve problems. The best AI implementations enhance experiences without drawing attention.
23
Feb

From Domain Collector to Problem Solver

  • Reflect
  • A founder's journey from collecting domain names for every startup idea to discovering the power of dogfooding - building products that solve your own problems first. Learn why focusing on real problems you personally face leads to better products than chasing theoretical opportunities.
21
Jan

A decade of unconditional love

  • Life
  • This one is for you Lilo girl, happy 10th birthday!
07
Jan

The Joy of Inefficiency

  • Theory
  • Sometimes the "inefficient" parts of life - like enjoying a drive - are exactly what make it worth living.
05
Jan

Dyslexic Thinking

  • Observe
  • Dyslexic thinking gives me superpowers in design and creative problem-solving, even though reading isn't my thing. Built Harvous to solve Bible study note-taking for brains like mine.
31
Dec

2024 Year in Review

  • 2024 was about moving from dreaming to building. Lost my grandpa, joined Kem Design & Apollos teams, left an agency, got drums, and prepped for Harvous v1.
03
Oct

My WordPress Era

  • Reflect
09
Sep

It takes two... designers

  • As a designer, I've discovered that working in a team is far more fulfilling than being a solo practitioner.
09
Aug

The Mirage of Growth

  • Observe
  • Agency's false growth led to chaos. I scaled back for sanity.
06
Aug

Death by SOP

  • Observe
  • Agency SOPs stifle creativity. Reducing hours to preserve passion.
10
Jun

Launch Day

  • Reflect
  • June 10th is my launch day.
12
May

Mother's Day

  • Life
  • Less about gift giving. More about the idea of motherhood.
15
Mar

AI Traffic Signals

  • Future
  • Traffic signals should use AI and cameras to optimize flow instead of relying on outdated sensors and timers.
15
Mar

Spectating game devlogs

  • As I design my own app, I've been inspired by game devlogs with their creative process and design decisions.
02
Mar

Thirty-five

  • It's been a year of prioritization, part 2 of focus being the prior year.
06
Feb

Redirecting Ideas

  • It took me 16 years to recognize the need to redirect my ideas.
28
Jan

How I got into design

  • Life
  • The first known memory of me liking the practice of design before I knew what design meant involved Micro Machines.
23
Jan

Limited Screen Time (LST)

  • Life
  • Time blocking your day to be more present and productive.
07
Jan

Two strikes and the 80 percent rule

  • Reflect
  • When I've felt it's time to move on from a job.
04
Jan

My goofy Grandpa

  • Life
  • Recently, my Grandpa went to Heaven. Him and I always were the clowns of our family. I miss him.
13
Sep

The missing soul of Steve Jobs

  • Observe
07
Apr

Seventy-three

  • Life
  • A poem-style reflection of my life ever since I wanted to be an architect.
06
Apr

2nd Time Watching E.T.

  • Life
  • When I was a kid I was angry Elliot. Now, a mature, clearer picture.
23
Mar

What a wild Hike

  • The journey of Hike has been tough one. But, today starts the beginning of newness.
02
Mar

Thirty-four

  • This year felt similar to when I turned 32 but was very different.
20
Jan

Goodbye Tags

10
Dec

Despising Saturdays

  • Life
24
Oct

How to make something simple with Jess Faccin from Canva

20
Oct

Partytrick: More than a website. It's a "no-code" web app.

  • Truly showing what's possible with "no-code" tools like Webflow and Airtable.
17
Oct

The elephant in the room

15
Oct

Linear's Impromptu AMA on Figma

  • Over 100 people gathered on Figma to see the new homepage design and ask the team questions.
19
Sep

Leaving Apple Retail, Again

  • Reflect
  • The time has come again to leave Apple where I first started in 2012.
18
Jun

Love with an asterisk

  • Life
08
Apr

Part-time designer

  • I got to thinking about my competitive advantage of affordability by being a part-time designer.
25
Mar

Expand your branding

02
Mar

Thirty-three

01
Feb

Building home

  • Life
08
Jan

Button styling and expected function

06
Jan

My church I once designed for

05
Jan

Creating a brand voice matters

31
Dec

Bring on 2022

08
Nov

I voted for Trump in 2020

  • Life
21
Oct

Prioritization

20
Oct

Bowen Design and Print

  • A new site to support growth, show off all services, and handle many shops.
06
Jul

I fear abandonment

  • Life
  • My biggest fear is abandonment, the fear of being forgotten or left out.
07
May

Sundays at Three

  • A different approach to the time of church means the time of day gets extra attention.
28
Jan

Making my dad proud

  • Life
26
Jan

Nothing special, yet

10
Sep

Logos aren’t meant to sell products

  • A logo needs to represent why you’re different.
26
Apr

Firework

02
Mar

Thirty-one

21
Feb

Groups

  • Life
20
May

Leveling up my team

  • Life
11
Oct

Saying Sorry

  • Life
08
Feb

I got to hug my hero

  • Life
31
Dec

Twenty-six

  • Reflect
07
Oct

A man who changed the world

  • Life

Still Work

  • Life

The Pandemic of Contridiction

  • Life

The Great AI Misdirection

  • Observe
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Testament Made, LLC
derekj@hey.com