Not academic laws, but 14 field-tested guidelines that make design decisions easier to justify and easier to defend.
These 14 design rules are practical guidelines from real projects: trust your gut only where you have earned trust, link every choice to goals, know unspoken agendas, justify every pixel, keep everything connected, prioritize accessibility, avoid power struggles, choose clarity over beauty, benchmark competitors, stay consistent with the brand, explore all options, connect design to UX, use trends wisely, and respect technical feasibility.
The 14 rules
| Rule | What it means | Theme |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Trust your gut, but not always | Instinct works where you have earned trust; where trust is low, back choices with data and research. | Judgment |
| 2. Always link design to goals | Every choice should serve the project or brand goal, or you spiral into endless feedback. | Strategy |
| 3. Know the unspoken agendas | Spot hidden motives (like positioning as a leader) and design to serve them strategically. | Politics |
| 4. Be ready to justify every pixel | Explain every color and layout choice. This requires real theory, not just tutorials. | Rationale |
| 5. Everything is connected | Spacing, color and type should work as one coherent story, not random decisions. | Systems |
| 6. Accessibility is key | Base choices on objective accessibility standards, not personal taste. | A11y |
| 7. Avoid power struggles | Taste vs taste with a senior stakeholder is a losing fight; use data and UX principles instead. | Politics |
| 8. Clarity over beauty | Clarity is measurable and objective; beauty is not. Function first. | Usability |
| 9. Look to the competition | Benchmark regularly; familiarity comforts users and reveals gaps. | Research |
| 10. Stay consistent with brand | Align with the brand’s established framework to strengthen identity and trust. | Branding |
| 11. Explore all options | Brainstorm even bad ideas so you can explain later why they do not fit. | Process |
| 12. Connect design to UX | Show how each element improves user interaction, not just how it looks. | UX |
| 13. Use trends wisely | Adopt a trend only when it serves the message; avoid chasing fads. | Judgment |
| 14. Technical feasibility matters | Design what can actually be built; balance creativity with practicality. | Engineering |
The through-line: designers who can justify choices with goals, data, accessibility and technical reality win more arguments and ship more work. That is design theory in practice, not tutorials.
Guidelines, tested in real projects. They are meant to guide judgment, not to be rigid laws.
Because in low-trust settings, taste alone loses. Explaining choices with goals, data and accessibility earns buy-in and prevents endless feedback loops.
Only when a trend serves the message. Ask how it contributes before adopting it, or it will date quickly.
Clarity is measurable and objective, while beauty is subjective. Clear designs work as intended and are easier to defend.
Avoid taste-versus-taste. Back your choice with data, accessibility standards and how it meets business goals.
Want design decisions backed by reasoning, not taste? Talk to Dorve.
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