There are days when my brain is full before I even open Figma.
Design reviews, Slack messages, product updates, fixes I promised to circle back to, that one thing I kept pushing off — and suddenly I’m staring at a growing list of todos, unsure where to even start.
Some things feel urgent. Some things feel important. Some things just feel loud.
When I catch myself in this mode, I return to something simple that’s kept me steady for a while now:
It’s not a framework.
It’s not a productivity hack.
It’s just how I try to see through the noise.
These are the things that, if left undone, will block progress — not just for me, but for others.
They’re rarely exciting. They’re often quiet. But they’re what hold the team together.
Sometimes it’s a quick spec that a dev is waiting on.
Sometimes it’s a decision no one else is willing to make.
Sometimes it’s just writing a clear message so we’re all moving in the same direction.
They don’t always feel urgent. But they are essential.
These are the things I care about — a lot.
They make the product better, cleaner, more thoughtful.
But if they don’t happen today, nothing breaks.
I have to remind myself of that constantly.
It’s hard to let go of small UX improvements, polish-level fixes, or layout refactors that I know would help. But sometimes choosing not to do them (yet) is what lets me finish what matters more.
I don’t forget them. I just don’t let them compete with the Musts.
This is where the designer brain likes to live — exploration, curiosity, fixing things that aren’t really broken but could be better.
These are the “hmm maybe I’ll…” thoughts.
Useful. Valid. But not right now.
Sometimes I come back to them later.
Other times, I realize they were just noise disguised as value.
Because I forget it too.
Because I sometimes treat every task like it has the same weight.
Because it’s easy to look productive without actually moving forward.
This post isn’t advice. It’s just a note to myself — and maybe to you — that not everything needs to be done now.
Some things can wait.
Some things should.
Some things must not.
