5 Hard Truths About the Design Process

Even though the design process often comes packaged in tidy diagrams and step-by-step frameworks, in practice, it’s rarely that straightforward. As someone who has navigated many design cycles—from community-led public health initiatives to user experience workshops and system redesigns—I’ve learned that the process is more art than science.

Here are five hard truths I’ve come to accept about design—and why embracing them can actually make you a better designer, collaborator, and change-maker.

1. It’s Messy

The design process is messy because human problems are messy. Even when we begin with a clear brief or hypothesis, once we dive into real-world engagement—listening to users, uncovering tensions, surfacing unmet needs—the path often begins to twist and turn. New information emerges that challenges our assumptions. What started as a simple idea might unravel into something far more complex—or evolve into something entirely unexpected.

And that’s okay.

In fact, that’s the point. Design that is human-centered and ethical isn’t about control; it’s about responsiveness. Messiness signals that we’re engaging deeply with reality, not just following a template. It requires comfort with change and a willingness to be surprised. Sometimes the biggest breakthroughs come not from tidy planning, but from what we learn in the chaos.

2. It’s Nonlinear

The typical design process—empathize, define, ideate, prototype, test—makes it seem like you move cleanly from one phase to the next. But in real life, design is rarely that linear. You might get halfway through prototyping and realize you misunderstood a user’s core motivation. Or you might be in testing when a stakeholder suddenly reframes the problem. These moments aren’t setbacks—they’re signals that mean you’re learning and that the process is working. Good design is iterative, not sequential. It loops, doubles back, skips ahead, and sometimes pauses altogether. The key is to stay flexible and treat each phase not as a checkpoint, but as a tool. Knowing when to slow down and revisit research or redefine the problem can save you time and heartache later.

3. It Requires a Ton of Research

Before you can design the right solution, you need to deeply understand the problem—and that requires a lot of research. Whether it’s conducting in-depth interviews, hosting community workshops, shadowing frontline workers, analyzing data, or simply sitting in silence and observing people in their environments—research is where clarity begins. It’s also where empathy lives. You can’t design for people unless you understand them. Unfortunately, this part is often rushed or underestimated. Teams sometimes skip ahead to ideation or solution-building, driven by the desire to “make progress.” But when we don't invest the time upfront to ask the right questions, we risk solving the wrong problems—or applying bandaids to deeper wounds.

4. It’s Ambiguous

One of the most uncomfortable truths about design is how often we operate in the unknown. There’s rarely a single “right” answer. We’re working with incomplete data, changing constraints, and unpredictable human behavior. Sometimes we have to make choices based on intuition, inference, or limited evidence—and be ready to adapt when reality tests our assumptions. Design requires tolerance for ambiguity and a mindset of curiosity. It means being okay with saying, “I don’t know yet, but I’m going to find out.” This isn’t easy, especially in environments that reward certainty and speed. But embracing ambiguity creates space for discovery. It invites experimentation. And, it’s often in these gray zones that the most meaningful insights arise.

5. It’s Never-Ending

The design process is never over; instead, it’s an ongoing commitment to learning and evolving. Even after a product is launched or a program is rolled out, the design process continues. Are users engaging the way we expected? What unintended consequences are emerging? What feedback are we hearing, and how can we use it to improve? The best solutions grow over time. They adapt with changing needs, feedback, and contexts. This is especially true in public health and human-centered design, where systems and human lives are complex and ever-changing. Treating design as a living process—not a final deliverable—keeps us accountable to the people we’re designing for.

Final Thoughts

The design process is rarely clean, but it’s always revealing. By accepting its messiness, nonlinearity, research demands, ambiguity, and never-ending nature, we become more thoughtful, patient, and impactful designers. Keeping these truths in mind won’t necessarily make things easier—but they will keep you grounded. They’ll remind you that complexity is part of the work, and that real progress doesn’t always look like a straight line. Most importantly, they’ll help you stay focused on what matters: people, learning, and the possibility of creating something truly meaningful.