A day in the life of a designer
As a student and a product designer working remotely, every day presents a unique set of challenges and opportunities. My days are often a delicate balance between coursework, work meetings, design projects, and personal life. Here’s a typical day in my life as a student designer.
4:00 AM – 5:00 AM (Depending on the season of the year) – Wake up at dawn to say my salaah as is required of me as Muslim
6:00 AM – I like to start my day by checking my emails, Slack messages, and project management tools to see if there are any urgent tasks that require my attention.
8:00 AM – Attend my first class of the day. As a student, I have to juggle coursework alongside my design work. I try to schedule my classes early in the day, so I have more time to focus on my design tasks in the afternoon.
10:00 AM – Attend my second class of the day. Taking notes of important parts of the lecture so I can easily follow through when I decide to read the coursework later.
12:00 PM Break between classes. During this time, I try to catch up on any design task that I need to do. This could involve sketching out ideas, refining designs, creating wireframes or scouring through the internet; researching to solve my design tasks.
1:00 PM – Brunch time. I take a break to eat brunch (I often forget to eat breakfast, so I take some food that serves as both Breakfast and Lunch) as it is needed to recharge before diving back into my work.
2:00 PM – Time to pray and take a power nap. This keeps me energized to work afterwards.
3:30 PM – Back to coursework. I try to finish my outstanding assignments before my deadlines while passively listening to a lecture. Thanks to Zoom and other video conferencing tools, my coursework is mostly done remotely.
5:30 PM – Attend a work meeting. As a remote designer, I rely heavily on video conferencing tools like Google meet to communicate with clients or other stakeholders. During this meeting, I discuss project requirements, review designs, and gather feedback.
6:30 PM – I like to take this time to cook, relax, take calls and pray before starting my design work again.
8:00 PM – Begin my design work for the day. This could involve creating high-fidelity designs, creating animations, or prototyping.
11:00 PM – Finish up my design work for the day. I make sure to wrap up any loose ends and plan out my tasks for the following day.
12:00 AM – Bedtime. I try to get at least 4 hours of sleep, so I’m not fatigued and ready to tackle the next day’s challenges.
While every day is different, this routine helps me stay focused and productive as a remote product designer and student. Although my days can be hectic and stressful, I’m grateful for the opportunity to pursue my passions and develop my skills as a designer. Balancing schoolwork and design projects is far from an easy task, but the experience has taught me valuable time management and organizational skills that will serve me well throughout my career.
4:00 AM – 5:00 AM (Depending on the season of the year) – Wake up at dawn to say my salaah as is required of me as Muslim
6:00 AM – I like to start my day by checking my emails, Slack messages, and project management tools to see if there are any urgent tasks that require my attention.
8:00 AM – Attend my first class of the day. As a student, I have to juggle coursework alongside my design work. I try to schedule my classes early in the day, so I have more time to focus on my design tasks in the afternoon.
10:00 AM – Attend my second class of the day. Taking notes of important parts of the lecture so I can easily follow through when I decide to read the coursework later.
12:00 PM Break between classes. During this time, I try to catch up on any design task that I need to do. This could involve sketching out ideas, refining designs, creating wireframes or scouring through the internet; researching to solve my design tasks.
1:00 PM – Brunch time. I take a break to eat brunch (I often forget to eat breakfast, so I take some food that serves as both Breakfast and Lunch) as it is needed to recharge before diving back into my work.
2:00 PM – Time to pray and take a power nap. This keeps me energized to work afterwards.
3:30 PM – Back to coursework. I try to finish my outstanding assignments before my deadlines while passively listening to a lecture. Thanks to Zoom and other video conferencing tools, my coursework is mostly done remotely.
5:30 PM – Attend a work meeting. As a remote designer, I rely heavily on video conferencing tools like Google meet to communicate with clients or other stakeholders. During this meeting, I discuss project requirements, review designs, and gather feedback.
6:30 PM – I like to take this time to cook, relax, take calls and pray before starting my design work again.
8:00 PM – Begin my design work for the day. This could involve creating high-fidelity designs, creating animations, or prototyping.
11:00 PM – Finish up my design work for the day. I make sure to wrap up any loose ends and plan out my tasks for the following day.
12:00 AM – Bedtime. I try to get at least 4 hours of sleep, so I’m not fatigued and ready to tackle the next day’s challenges.
While every day is different, this routine helps me stay focused and productive as a remote product designer and student. Although my days can be hectic and stressful, I’m grateful for the opportunity to pursue my passions and develop my skills as a designer. Balancing schoolwork and design projects is far from an easy task, but the experience has taught me valuable time management and organizational skills that will serve me well throughout my career.
