Rahul Gaikar, aspiring
Product designer
Why you want to be
a Product design
It was a pretty complicated journey to come to the conclusion that I wanted to be a Product designer. I went through a lot of iterations. I will share it in short here.
I wanted to be a CS engineer after high school but couldn't because of personal issues, so I enrolled in a VFX animation course. See more
Dropped out entirely in lockdown, and started learning stuff on my own. To find what I wanted to do. My efforts were not random. I chose to play around to see what I wanted to do.
So basically I started exploring things and got basic knowledge of UX/UI design, Programming, Game development, Graphic design, colour theory, Video editing, Design thinking, and Computer science. I also read books and focused on health fitness and mental health.
In 2022 I found out that I was passionate about product design and elevating or diagnosing the human experience while engaging with technology (in all things)
I love the term user experience. Designing for users through Psychology and empathy, making our interaction with technology easier and beneficial through problem-solving and research.
Why you want to be
a Product design
It was a pretty complicated journey to come to the conclusion that I wanted to be a Product designer. I went through a lot of iterations. I will share it in short here.
I wanted to be a CS engineer after high school but couldn't because of personal issues, so I enrolled in a VFX animation course. See more
Dropped out entirely in lockdown, and started learning stuff on my own. To find what I wanted to do. My efforts were not random. I chose to play around to see what I wanted to do.
So basically I started exploring things and got basic knowledge of UX/UI design, Programming, Game development, Graphic design, colour theory, Video editing, Design thinking, and Computer science. I also read books and focused on health fitness and mental health.
In 2022 I found out that I was passionate about product design and elevating or diagnosing the human experience while engaging with technology (in all things)
I love the term user experience. Designing for users through Psychology and empathy, making our interaction with technology easier and beneficial through problem-solving and research.
Tell us about a time you
beat an intimidating
design challenge.
Tell us about a time you
beat an intimidating
design challenge.
It was a time when I just started with UX design and had to complete a design assignment for the interview.
They gave me 3 days to complete the project.
As I had no experience and suffered from perfectionism at that time, it was very hectic. I worked sleepless nights for that and had to learn while doing the project.
My approach was good for projects like planning the 3 days accordingly setting deadlines and working with them but obviously, I lacked skills.
But it was a good experience to push my working efficiency and hard working capabilities. And I have improved a lot.
I didn't beat that challenge as expected for me, but at this stage, I know I will do a lot better at a challenge or sprint like this.
It was a time when I just started with UX design and had to complete a design assignment for the interview.
They gave me 3 days to complete the project.
As I had no experience and suffered from perfectionism at that time, it was very hectic. I worked sleepless nights for that and had to learn while doing the project.
My approach was good for projects like planning the 3 days accordingly setting deadlines and working with them but obviously, I lacked skills.
But it was a good experience to push my working efficiency and hard working capabilities. And I have improved a lot.
I didn't beat that challenge as expected for me, but at this stage, I know I will do a lot better at a challenge or sprint like this.
Also, I always have a Water bottle on the Left side of my chair
Also, I always have a Water bottle on the Left side of my chair
Sticky notes — You all know the use case
Sticky notes — You all know the use case
Batteries — For my wireless mouse
Batteries — For my wireless mouse
Notepad and pen
Notepad and pen
Notebooks and pages — all these books are my learning notes over the years
Notebooks and pages — all these books are my learning notes over the years
Diary — one for work journal and the second for random art and thinking
Diary — one for work journal and the second for random art and thinking
Box of pencils
Box of pencils
On my right, it's a little box of stationery filled with all the essentials.
The left image is the box cover I use as my desk on my chair to write, draw, wireframe and sometimes use a keyboard and mouse.
My Acer Predator laptop
Logitech G304 Mouse: I have assigned some actions to the button on the right side which helped me while designing.
Headphones: Gonna get a better pair soon (after getting a job maybe) for meetings.
Mobile: I use an app called Zenflip Clock on my mobile near my desk. it keeps me away from using my mobile while focused on work, and the app also provides the Pomodoro method one swipe away which I use sometimes.
Pen holder: House for all the pens, pencils, markers and highlights.
3x3 Rubic cube: I solve this cube in 1 minute. I used it to get a little break from the screen in between.
sticky note: With tasks written in front of my eyes, it's hard to get distracted.
My Acer Predator laptop
Logitech G304 Mouse: I have assigned some actions to the button on the right side which helped me while designing.
Headphones: Gonna get a better pair soon (after getting a job maybe) for meetings.
Mobile: I use an app called Zenflip Clock on my mobile near my desk. it keeps me away from using my mobile while focused on work, and the app also provides the Pomodoro method one swipe away which I use sometimes.
Pen holder: House for all the pens, pencils, markers and highlights.
3x3 Rubic cube: I solve this cube in 1 minute. I used it to get a little break from the screen in between.
sticky note: With tasks written in front of my eyes, it's hard to get distracted.
The left image is the box cover I use as my desk on my chair to write, draw, wireframe and sometimes use a keyboard and mouse.
On my right, it's a little box of stationery filled with all the essentials.
Right now my desk as you can see broke haha but I have made it functional for my creative work,
with obviously none other than with my creativity.
Right now my desk as you can see broke haha but I have made it functional for my creative work,
with obviously none other than with my creativity.
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Show us a picture of
your desk, and explain
why it looks how it
does.
Name three non-
designers you feel
inspired by when
designing.
Name three non-
designers you feel
inspired by when
designing.
Naval Ravikant
Escape competition through authenticity.
On my journey to get a job at Spotify, I looked at this quote from Respected Naval to keep on this track from all the distractions.
I also got different things from Naval which I use in designing.
Naval Ravikant
Escape competition through authenticity.
On my journey to get a job at Spotify, I looked at this quote from Respected Naval to keep on this track from all the distractions.
I also got different things from Naval which I use in designing.
Bruno mars
He is a famous singer, dancer and also a great songwriter. it's quite unclear to me what to mention exactly here according to design. but yeah he is a great inspiration for me.
Bruno mars
He is a famous singer, dancer and also a great songwriter. it's quite unclear to me what to mention exactly here according to design. but yeah he is a great inspiration for me.
Nature
lastly I would like to just mention nature my biggest inspiration while designing. taking in mind every aspect like human nature. also various stunning views mature show us. you will usually find me just gazing.
Nature
lastly I would like to just mention nature my biggest inspiration while designing. taking in mind every aspect like human nature. also various stunning views mature show us. you will usually find me just gazing.
Any final shout-outs or
things you'd like to
share?
Any final shout-outs or
things you'd like to
share?
I would like to mention something from my recent read from Reema bhagat on Dribbble. She quotes about:
I would like to mention something from my recent read from Reema bhagat on Dribbble. She quotes about:
Music and design: What do they have in common?
Music and design: What do they have in common?
“You don’t necessarily need professional training
or specific education to make it in either industry.”
Credits
Rahul Gaikar
Aspiring Product Designer
Rahul is a Generalist Product designer and is currently on a mission to achieve his dream of getting a job in Spotify design team
Rahul is a Generalist Product designer and is currently on a mission to achieve his dream of getting a job in Spotify design team
My answers to manifesto
It’s Spotify's culture. Is Spotify's values. and yes Spotify's culture aligns with my perspective towards the work environment And is important for quality work.
Here I have answered the questions asked in the manifesto.
It’s Spotify's culture. Is Spotify's values. and yes Spotify's culture aligns with my perspective towards the work environment And is important for quality work.
Here I have answered the questions asked in the manifesto.
One band, no solo artists
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Who we are