{"id":36943,"date":"2022-10-06T11:32:06","date_gmt":"2022-10-06T18:32:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/?p=36943"},"modified":"2022-10-07T04:01:43","modified_gmt":"2022-10-07T11:01:43","slug":"productivity-hacks-for-designers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Productivity Hacks for UX Designers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"512\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers-1024x512.png\" alt=\"productivity hacks for ux designers\" class=\"wp-image-36944\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers-1024x512.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers-600x300.png 600w, https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers-768x384.png 768w, https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Maximizing productivity is vital for UXers and product managers who are often under tight project deadlines. Startups and small teams also seek UX productivity tips to maximize limited resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether you suffer from procrastination or just want to increase your value as a UX designer, this article offers actionable advice to optimize your UX team&#8217;s productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Streamline UX workflows with the world&#8217;s most advanced design tool. Try component-driven prototyping and 10x your productivity today. Discover Merge and see what it can do for you and your team. <a href=\"https:\/\/uxpin.com\/merge\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Find out more<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"discover-merge\">\n    <div class=\"discover-merge__container\">\n        <div class=\"discover-merge__left\">\n            <p class=\"discover-merge__heading\">Reach a new level of prototyping<\/p>\n            <p class=\"discover-merge__text\">Design with interactive components coming from your team&#8217;s design system.<\/p>\n            <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/merge\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\n                <button class=\"discover-merge__button\">Discover UXPin Merge<\/button>\n            <\/a>\n        <\/div>\n        <div>\n            <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/themes\/uxpin-juggernaut\/img\/cta-banner-merge.png\" class=\"discover-merge__image\" alt=\"\">\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n<style>\n.discover-merge {\n    margin: 40px 8px;\n}\n\n.discover-merge__container {\n    display: flex;\n    max-width: 690px;\n    height: 200px;\n    padding: 20px;\n    padding-left: 24px;\n    border-radius: 4px;\n    background-color: black;\n    box-shadow: 10px 10px #9999ff;\n    align-items: center;\n    justify-content: space-between;\n}\n\n.discover-merge__left {\n    width: 50%;\n}\n\n.discover-merge__left p {\n    margin: 10px 0px !important;\n    color: white !important;\n    font-size: 18px !important;\n}\n\n.discover-merge__heading {\n    font-weight: bold !important;\n    color: white !important;\n    font-size: 18px !important;\n}\n\n.discover-merge__text {\n    margin: 0 !important;\n    line-height: 22px !important;\n}\n\n.discover-merge__button {\n    width: 174px;\n    height: 44px;\n    margin: 10px 0px;\n    border: none;\n    border-radius: 2px;\n    background: white;\n    color: black;\n    font-size: 16px;\n    text-align: center;\n}\n\n.discover-merge__button:hover {\n    cursor: pointer;\n}\n\n.discover-merge__image {\n    max-width: 320px !important;\n    height: 200px;\n    margin-right: -19px;\n}\n\n@media (max-width: 760px) {\n    .discover-merge__container {\n        height: auto;\n        margin: 10px;\n        align-items: left;\n    }\n}\n\n@media (max-width: 500px) {\n    .discover-merge__container {\n        flex-direction: column;\n    }\n\n    .discover-merge__left {\n        width: 100%;\n        align-items: normal;\n    }\n}\n\n<\/style>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-does-it-mean-to-be-productive-as-a-ux-designer\">What Does it Mean to be Productive as a UX Designer?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Being productive as a UX designer means <strong>maximizing your output efficiently<\/strong>. While this statement applies to any profession, it&#8217;s essential for UX designers and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/transitioning-into-designops-role\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">DesignOps practitioners<\/a> because they often have to demonstrate Design&#8217;s value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some examples of what UX productivity means include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Meeting deadlines<\/li><li>Delivering a positive <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/design-roi-calculations\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ROI for design investments<\/a><\/li><li>Finding solutions to <em>minimize designing from scratch<\/em> and maximize time spent solving user problems<\/li><li>Leveraging tools to optimize UX workflows and design processes<\/li><li>Representing the customer within the organization and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/what-is-design-advocacy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">advocating for user experience<\/a><\/li><li>Implementing systems to spend less time onboarding<\/li><li>Effective use of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/design-sprints\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">design sprints<\/a> and brainstorming sessions to solve big problems fast<\/li><li>Creating channels for cross-functional collaboration to maximize output and minimize errors, drift, and rework<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-busy-vs-productivity\">Busy vs. Productivity<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Sadly, there are many distractions plaguing our lives. These distractions are disguised as work, like email, pointless Zoom calls, Slack, etc. You can attend to these distractions and get nothing done all day\u2013<strong><em>busy, not productive<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Productivity is about delivering outcomes that bring you closer to achieving goals. Productive UX designers help the organization meet its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/improve-product-roadmap\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UX strategy<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/improve-product-roadmap\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">product roadmap vision<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-7-ui-ux-design-productivity-hacks\">7 UI\/UX Design Productivity Hacks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Some of these productivity hacks apply to UI\/UX designers, while others are more general and could apply to any profession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-1-avoid-starting-from-scratch\">1. Avoid starting from scratch<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>There is a misconception that it&#8217;s a UX designer&#8217;s job to make pretty UIs. UX design is less about visual design and more about user experience design\u2013<em>solving human problems<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When UX designers spend time creating components and user interfaces from scratch, they reduce their productivity, even though they&#8217;re doing design-related work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"750\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/design-system-library-components.png\" alt=\"design system library components\" class=\"wp-image-32904\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/design-system-library-components.png 750w, https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/design-system-library-components-700x280.png 700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Using a design system eliminates the need to design from scratch so designers can focus on user experience and user needs, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.apexon.com\/blog\/how-design-systems-can-increase-your-organizations-efficiency-and-productivity\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">increasing design efficiency and UX productivity<\/a>. There are many <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/top-react-component-libraries\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">open-source component libraries<\/a> organizations can customize or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/create-design-system-guide\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">build a design system<\/a> from scratch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>UXPin has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/docs\/design-systems\/design-system-libraries\/#built-in-design-libraries\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">built-in design libraries<\/a> so designers can build screens and layouts using user-tested components and design patterns. They can customize these components to meet product\/brand requirements and save them to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/docs\/design-systems\/design-system-libraries\/#adding-libraries\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">UXPin&#8217;s Design Systems<\/a>, where designers can share libraries, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/docs\/design-systems\/design-system-libraries\/#permissions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">set permissions<\/a>, and create documentation<em>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-2-component-driven-prototyping\">2. Component-driven prototyping<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/what-is-component-driven-prototyping\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Component-driven prototyping<\/a> is the next iteration of adopting a design system. Designers use ready-made interactive components from a repository to design UIs. These UI elements include styling (color, typography, spacing, etc.) and constraints set by the design system, so designers only have to drag and drop to build products and features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These interactive components allow design teams to build exact replicas of the final product, so usability participants and stakeholders can interact with dynamic, immersive prototypes. These advanced prototypes deliver meaningful feedback and actionable insights UX designers can use to maximize project outcomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"750\" height=\"501\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/uxpin-merge-component-responsive.png\" alt=\"uxpin merge component responsive\" class=\"wp-image-32266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/uxpin-merge-component-responsive.png 750w, https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/uxpin-merge-component-responsive-449x300.png 449w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Companies like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/paypal-scaled-design-process-uxpin-merge\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">PayPal<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/iress-design-tool-review\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Iress<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/teampassword-uxpin-merge-case-study\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">TeamPassword<\/a> use UXPin Merge to sync repository components to UXPin&#8217;s design editor, creating a single source of truth across the organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Merge, and component-driven prototyping significantly increased PayPal&#8217;s productivity, where product designers <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/paypal-scaled-design-process-uxpin-merge\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">build UIs 8X faster than before<\/a>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-3-control-of-your-workflow\">3. Control of your workflow<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Omkar Chandgadkar, a Senior UX Designer at Amazon Alexa Smart Home, created a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/designops-for-ux-designers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">design offerings framework<\/a> to maximize his team&#8217;s planning and productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Omkar&#8217;s team applies this framework to project intake and backlogs to quickly identify the next steps, assign resources, and begin work. The framework has three product offerings:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Horizons Class Project:<\/strong> creating and executing a product vision for the next X years (long-term projects)<\/li><li><strong>Mountains Class Project:<\/strong> an end-to-end design project for launch within 12 months (medium-term projects)<\/li><li><strong>Plains Class Project:<\/strong> optimizing user experience and fixing usability issues (short-term projects)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>With a clearly defined design offerings framework, UX teams can maximize productivity by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Reduce calls and meetings at project intake<\/li><li>Developing a roadmap for projects (shared product management tools like Trello, Asana, Airtable, Notion, etc.)<\/li><li>Assigning resources in advance<\/li><li>Identify resource issues early and make preparations\u2013i.e., hiring new talent or contractors<\/li><li>Create specialized teams\u2013i.e., a &#8220;Plains Project Team&#8221; that specializes in fixing usability issues<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Move from Tactical to Strategic Design | Design Value Conference 2022\" width=\"660\" height=\"371\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/KSYHeNOTCgs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-4-the-designops-mindset\">4. The DesignOps mindset<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Implementing DesignOps creates operational efficiencies, which ultimately leads to increased UX productivity. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/how-designops-work\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The DesignOps mindset<\/a> helps designers together to <strong>get impactful things done<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Many people see DesignOps as an enterprise UX solution, but even startups and small businesses can apply the mindset and principles. DesignOps is about standardized tools, templates, workflows, and policies for design-related tasks. When everyone follows the same protocols, UX teams increase collaboration, consistency, productivity, and quality outcomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"750\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/designops-increasing-collaboration-group.png\" alt=\"designops increasing collaboration group\" class=\"wp-image-35087\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/designops-increasing-collaboration-group.png 750w, https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/designops-increasing-collaboration-group-700x280.png 700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In this article on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/designops-strategy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">DesignOps strategy<\/a>, the four stages of DesignOps maturity. Initially (stage 0), no one is responsible (usually startups and small teams), but the UX team has tools and processes to maximize productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By stage three, the DesignOps team has an established structure with a DesignOps leader and DPMs managing and optimizing operational processes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The ultimate goal of DesignOps is to remove operation work from UX teams to focus on user experience and solving problems, thus maximizing Design&#8217;s effectiveness and productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-5-engineering-collaboration\">5. Engineering collaboration<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Part of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/designops-role\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">DesignOps role<\/a> is to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/collaboration-in-enterprise-with-designops\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">facilitate design team and cross-functional collaboration<\/a>. Even if designers don&#8217;t have this operational mechanism in place, creating channels to communicate and collaborate is essential for UX productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"750\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/design-and-development-collaboration-process-product-1.png\" alt=\"design and development collaboration process product 1\" class=\"wp-image-32888\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/design-and-development-collaboration-process-product-1.png 750w, https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/design-and-development-collaboration-process-product-1-700x280.png 700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Designer\/engineer collaboration is crucial because these teams must work together to deliver projects with different tools and constraints. Poor cooperation between these departments leads to design drift, friction, UX debt\/technical debt, chaotic design handoffs, and project delays, to name a few.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Working to increase designer\/engineer collaboration will only produce positive outcomes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Spotify:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/spotify.design\/article\/measuring-defining-and-improving-productivity-the-design-productivity\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>&#8220;Closer collaboration between designers and engineers resulted in smoother and more enjoyable projects.&#8221;<\/em><\/a><\/li><li><strong>Airbnb:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/airbnb.design\/building-a-visual-language\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">created the Design Language System<\/a>\u2013<em>&#8220;Since the design language and code are often shared, we can now build and release features on all native platforms at roughly the same time&#8230;engineers and designers now share a common language.&#8221;<\/em><\/li><li><strong>Segment:<\/strong> implemented a two-stage product development process where <a href=\"https:\/\/modus.medium.com\/the-product-design-framework-you-never-knew-you-needed-567550960f8f\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">product managers, designers, and engineers play an active role in designing and delivering projects efficiently<\/a>.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-6-go-deep\">6. Go deep<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In his book <a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/25744928-deep-work\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"><em>Deep Work<\/em><\/a>, Cal Newport outlines the importance of distraction-free work sessions. Deep Work is the practice of shutting off the outside world to focus on completing tasks and projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cal provides several examples of the most successful people in history using Deep Work. In tech, the most famous example is Microsoft founder Bill Gates. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2019\/07\/26\/bill-gates-took-solo-think-weeks-in-a-cabin-in-the-woods.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Bill takes regular 7-day sabbaticals<\/a> (Bill&#8217;s &#8220;think weeks&#8221;), where he retreats to a cabin with books and research materials to think about ideas and solve problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Retreating to a cabin is not a luxury most can afford, but there are some things UX designers can do to go deep and achieve comparable results:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Disconnect:<\/strong> set periods (90-180 minutes) of work where you completely disconnect from team members, family, social media, and all digital communications.<\/li><li><strong>Plan:<\/strong> to avoid the internet and its many distractions, try to gather the research you&#8217;ll need before each session. This planning also limits time wasted trying to find materials, maximizing your focus on the task at hand.<\/li><li><strong>Prioritize:<\/strong> set goals for each session with a to-do list. Cal recommends setting challenging goals so that it forces you to push to get things done!<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Cal also highlights the importance of boredom\u2013even in your personal life. For example, when waiting in a queue or enjoying downtime, our first instinct is to reach for our phones to check social media and other news feeds. Fighting this urge will train your brain to focus better during Deep Work sessions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-7-optimize-your-work-environment\">7. Optimize your work environment<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Neuroscientist and Professor in the Department of Neurobiology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, Andrew Huberman, offers <a href=\"https:\/\/hubermanlab.com\/5-science-based-steps-to-improve-your-workspace\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">excellent science-based productivity hacks and workspace optimization<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is a summary of Andrew&#8217;s informative article, <a href=\"https:\/\/hubermanlab.com\/5-science-based-steps-to-improve-your-workspace\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">5 Science-Based Steps to Improve Your Workspace<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Sit or stand:<\/strong> switching to sitting and standing every 30 minutes <em>&#8220;can reduce neck and shoulder and back pain and even help augment some of the positive effects of exercise.&#8221;<\/em>&nbsp;<\/li><li><strong>Time It Right:<\/strong> Andrew outlines three phases your body goes through during the day. Planning the type of work you do during these times can significantly impact performance and productivity.&nbsp;<\/li><li><strong>Screen placement:<\/strong> ensuring your screen is straight ahead or slightly elevated will raise your alertness. If you&#8217;re constantly looking down, <em>&#8220;neurons related to calm and sleepiness are activated,&#8221;<\/em> making it difficult to focus.<\/li><li><strong>Background noise:<\/strong> white, pink, or brown noise can help with focus during 45-minute sessions. Binaural beats (with headphones) are also effective in <em>&#8220;increasing certain aspects of cognition, including creativity, and may reduce anxiety.&#8221;<\/em><\/li><li><strong>Work environment:<\/strong> different spaces are more optimal for specific types of work, <em>&#8220;consider using different locations: rooms, buildings, indoors or outdoors to help access specific brain states and the types of work they favor.&#8221;<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Andrew&#8217;s podcast, <a href=\"https:\/\/hubermanlab.com\/category\/podcast-episodes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Huberman Lab<\/a>, is full of fantastic insights about how the brain works and optimizing your performance, focus, and productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-uxpin-the-ultimate-productivity-hack-for-ux-designers\">UXPin\u2013<em>The Ultimate Productivity Hack<\/em> for UX Designers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>UXPin&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/sign-up\">advanced design and prototyping tool<\/a> enables design teams to build high-fidelity prototypes that look and feel like the final product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Better prototypes result in meaningful feedback from usability testing and stakeholders, leading to high-quality design project deliverables and a faster time to market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Revolutionize your product development workflows with advanced prototyping from UXPin. Introduce reusable components into prototyping and build interactive hi-fi designs faster than ever. That&#8217;s the best productivity hack you can implement as a designer. Read more about UXPin Merge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-fill\"><center><a class=\"btn btn-flat btn-large btn-content-width\" href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/merge\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Discover Merge<\/a><\/center><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Maximizing productivity is vital for UXers and product managers who are often under tight project deadlines. Startups and small teams also seek UX productivity tips to maximize limited resources. Whether you suffer from procrastination or just want to increase your value as a UX designer, this article offers actionable advice to optimize your UX team&#8217;s<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":36944,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36943","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-process"],"yoast_title":"Top Productivity Hacks for UX Designers","yoast_metadesc":"Get our digestable list of tools, approaches, and tactics that will make you a super productive designer. Accomplish more during the day!","acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.4 (Yoast SEO v27.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Top Productivity Hacks for UX Designers<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Get our digestable list of tools, approaches, and tactics that will make you a super productive designer. Accomplish more during the day!\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"7 Productivity Hacks for UX Designers\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Get our digestable list of tools, approaches, and tactics that will make you a super productive designer. Accomplish more during the day!\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Studio by UXPin\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-10-06T18:32:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-10-07T11:01:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"UXPin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@uxpin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"UXPin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"UXPin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/e0326509b38ce2a3ce62e40ddde9cf8e\"},\"headline\":\"7 Productivity Hacks for UX Designers\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-10-06T18:32:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-10-07T11:01:43+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1676,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/10\\\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"Blog\",\"Process\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/\",\"name\":\"Top Productivity Hacks for UX Designers\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/10\\\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-10-06T18:32:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-10-07T11:01:43+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/e0326509b38ce2a3ce62e40ddde9cf8e\"},\"description\":\"Get our digestable list of tools, approaches, and tactics that will make you a super productive designer. Accomplish more during the day!\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/10\\\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/10\\\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":600,\"caption\":\"productivity hacks for ux designers\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/blog\\\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"7 Productivity Hacks for UX Designers\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/\",\"name\":\"Studio by UXPin\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/e0326509b38ce2a3ce62e40ddde9cf8e\",\"name\":\"UXPin\",\"description\":\"UXPin is a web-based design collaboration tool. We\u2019re pleased to share our knowledge here.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/@uxpin\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.uxpin.com\\\/studio\\\/author\\\/hello\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Top Productivity Hacks for UX Designers","description":"Get our digestable list of tools, approaches, and tactics that will make you a super productive designer. Accomplish more during the day!","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"7 Productivity Hacks for UX Designers","og_description":"Get our digestable list of tools, approaches, and tactics that will make you a super productive designer. Accomplish more during the day!","og_url":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/","og_site_name":"Studio by UXPin","article_published_time":"2022-10-06T18:32:06+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-10-07T11:01:43+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":600,"url":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"UXPin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@uxpin","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"UXPin","Est. reading time":"9 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/"},"author":{"name":"UXPin","@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/#\/schema\/person\/e0326509b38ce2a3ce62e40ddde9cf8e"},"headline":"7 Productivity Hacks for UX Designers","datePublished":"2022-10-06T18:32:06+00:00","dateModified":"2022-10-07T11:01:43+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/"},"wordCount":1676,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png","articleSection":["Blog","Process"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/","url":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/","name":"Top Productivity Hacks for UX Designers","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png","datePublished":"2022-10-06T18:32:06+00:00","dateModified":"2022-10-07T11:01:43+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/#\/schema\/person\/e0326509b38ce2a3ce62e40ddde9cf8e"},"description":"Get our digestable list of tools, approaches, and tactics that will make you a super productive designer. Accomplish more during the day!","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/productivity-hacks-for-ux-designers.png","width":1200,"height":600,"caption":"productivity hacks for ux designers"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/blog\/productivity-hacks-for-designers\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"7 Productivity Hacks for UX Designers"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/","name":"Studio by UXPin","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/#\/schema\/person\/e0326509b38ce2a3ce62e40ddde9cf8e","name":"UXPin","description":"UXPin is a web-based design collaboration tool. We\u2019re pleased to share our knowledge here.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.uxpin.com","https:\/\/x.com\/@uxpin"],"url":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/author\/hello\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36943","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36943"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36943\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36961,"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36943\/revisions\/36961"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36944"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36943"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36943"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uxpin.com\/studio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36943"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}