Week 5 Blog

A Different Product, A Different Mindset

This week was my first full week working on Globaly.io, and honestly, it felt like stepping into a completely different environment compared to Orderlay. Orderlay mainly focused on restaurant staff and operational workflows, but Globaly.io involves students, education agents, and university administrators all using the same platform in different ways. Because of that, the product feels much more layered and complex.

Most of this week was spent trying to understand the product properly before jumping into active design work. I went through existing Figma files, reviewed documentation, and studied the user flows already mapped out by the Product Manager. The more I explored, the more I realized how interconnected everything is. A small decision for one user type can easily affect the experience for another.

Another thing I had to adjust to was working within a design system that had already been built by the senior designer. Instead of immediately thinking about what I would change, I focused more on understanding why certain decisions were made in the first place. I think that mindset shift was important because joining an existing product requires learning before contributing.

I also noticed that working on a pre-launch product brings a different kind of pressure. Since the platform hasn’t launched yet, every design decision feels more significant. It creates this constant awareness that real users will eventually interact with these flows, and that makes the work feel more serious in a good way.

Key Learnings & Insights

  • Designing for multiple user groups is much more complex than designing for a single type of user.
  • Understanding an existing design system is just as important as creating new designs.
  • Pre-launch products come with a stronger sense of responsibility and ownership.
  • Good onboarding starts with observation and understanding, not rushing into changes.
  • Different stakeholders can experience the same platform in completely different ways.

    • Application in Practice

    This week, I stayed mostly in learning mode. Instead of immediately designing new screens, I focused on understanding the product structure, existing workflows, and the reasoning behind earlier design decisions. I also started mapping the different user types mentally so I could better understand how their goals connect within the platform.

    Reflection

    If I’m being honest, I struggled a bit with imposter syndrome this week. The senior designer has been involved in the product for much longer, and there were moments where I worried about slowing things down or not understanding everything quickly enough.

    At the same time, I think this discomfort is probably part of growth. Being new means there’s still a lot to learn, and maybe that’s not a bad thing. I’m trying to remind myself that I wasn’t moved to this project by accident.

    Next Week Goals

    • Ask the senior designer for a full walkthrough of the existing designs.
    • Build a clearer understanding of each user type and their goals.
    • Become more comfortable navigating the product independently.
    • Continue learning the design logic already established within the system.

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