Meal Muse

Building a Design System for a Meal Planning App

Design System • 4 Weeks

In this project, my role was to create a design system that brought cohesiveness to the app, ensuring clarity and alignment across all elements. As part of a collaborative team, I worked closely with other stakeholders to shape a seamless user experience. Throughout the process, I learned valuable lessons in collaboration, leadership, communication, and how to effectively incorporate feedback into the design.

😅 Okay, wait... First UX Group Project? How was I feeling?

Before diving into the project, I had a few questions: First UX group project? How would it go? I felt a mix of nervous excitement—wondering how well I’d collaborate with others. But I was ready to take on the challenge. Having worked in various teams before, collaborating with others wasn’t new to me. In the end, the team came together seamlessly, and we scored a solid 90% on the project.

CHALLENGE

How do I design a design system that aligns with the app’s goals of simplicity and usability, while navigating the dynamics of working in a group setting on a UX project for the first time?

SOLUTION

Clear Communication and Role Delegation

I knew clear communication was key to balancing creative input and feedback. To help with this, I took the initiative to establish open channels for discussing design ideas and addressing challenges early on. I also worked to identify each team member’s strengths, which helped us delegate tasks efficiently, reducing confusion and ensuring that everyone contributed meaningfully. By fostering an environment of collaboration, we could create a unified design system without overwhelming any one person.

SOLUTION

Leveraging the UX Research

To ensure the design system was grounded in user-centred principles, I collaborated closely with the UX researcher on the team. By reviewing user research and competitor analysis, we identified UI components that were proven effective in similar apps. I explored how these elements could be adapted to fit our app’s needs, drawing inspiration from best practices while ensuring the design felt unique to Meal Muse. This collaborative approach helped balance creativity with evidence-based design, ensuring that our system was both innovative and user-friendly.

RETROSPECTIVES

Taking on the responsibility of designing the system within a team setting was a great learning experience. I had to embrace the challenge of delegating tasks based on individual strengths and trust that the team would deliver. This taught me the importance of leadership in a collaborative environment and how delegation can be a powerful tool for ensuring we stay focused and efficient. In future projects, I’d like to work on refining my leadership skills by stepping up even more in guiding the team through design challenges.

Embracing Leadership and Delegation

Growing Confidence in Presenting Ideas

Presenting our ideas to the team and leaders, and defending our design decisions, was a major growth moment for me. I realised just how crucial it is to communicate design choices clearly and confidently, especially when explaining user needs and the rationale behind specific decisions. As the group presentation progressed, I became more comfortable articulating and justifying my choices. This experience really boosted my confidence in public speaking, and I’m excited to continue practicing this skill with new teams, which will further encourage my growth in this area.

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