Hà Phan
@hpdailyrant.bsky.social
Musings about Design & Product. Currently at Zillow, Design Tech & AI.
I gave a designer this advice today: Don’t ask questions you don’t want to hear the answer to. For ex, don’t ask someone to approve. Ask if there are non-negotiables do they see in order to meet the articulated goals. This question forces clarity on the decision and pushes things forward.
January 21, 2026 at 9:31 PM
I gave a designer this advice today: Don’t ask questions you don’t want to hear the answer to. For ex, don’t ask someone to approve. Ask if there are non-negotiables do they see in order to meet the articulated goals. This question forces clarity on the decision and pushes things forward.
Been working with another designer to overhaul and unify the IA across experiences - a lot of meat and potatoes design work is this kind of framework platform work. It requires integration of many strategies. Yet we rarely hear about this on LinkedIn.
January 18, 2026 at 6:47 PM
Been working with another designer to overhaul and unify the IA across experiences - a lot of meat and potatoes design work is this kind of framework platform work. It requires integration of many strategies. Yet we rarely hear about this on LinkedIn.
Good guiding principles should help you make decisions when you encounter trade offs whether it’s UX, mental model, scope, scale, value, etc. So sometimes when leaders give me feedback, I’ll reverse engineer it and say, “Are you saying our guiding principle is x?
January 18, 2026 at 5:10 PM
Good guiding principles should help you make decisions when you encounter trade offs whether it’s UX, mental model, scope, scale, value, etc. So sometimes when leaders give me feedback, I’ll reverse engineer it and say, “Are you saying our guiding principle is x?
When I led Product, I came to a leader with a hard decision I had to make and he didn’t solve it for me, he’d say, “When I had this similar problem, this was my guiding principle.” But ever since then I always try to define a guiding principle. It steels me for the trade off I have to make.
January 18, 2026 at 5:03 PM
When I led Product, I came to a leader with a hard decision I had to make and he didn’t solve it for me, he’d say, “When I had this similar problem, this was my guiding principle.” But ever since then I always try to define a guiding principle. It steels me for the trade off I have to make.
It’s really important to write things down. I’ve been working with another designer and I started documenting our decisions, their rationale, and emerging principles within the design file itself — especially areas where there is contention. This helps to ground discussion in rationale.
January 16, 2026 at 4:43 PM
It’s really important to write things down. I’ve been working with another designer and I started documenting our decisions, their rationale, and emerging principles within the design file itself — especially areas where there is contention. This helps to ground discussion in rationale.
There’s a part of me that wants to go live the life of a Buddhist monk after seeing the Walk for Peace, and then there’s a part of me who wants to go see the BTS World Tour with my cousin.
January 14, 2026 at 10:19 PM
There’s a part of me that wants to go live the life of a Buddhist monk after seeing the Walk for Peace, and then there’s a part of me who wants to go see the BTS World Tour with my cousin.
Someone shared w/me that an organization of a feature doesn’t feel right. I asked, “What’s the alternative?” He didn’t know, so I said, “If I had to state a job for this surface and that surface, they would be…” Based on those jobs, that feature should live here. There’s a clear testable hypothesis.
January 14, 2026 at 8:20 PM
Someone shared w/me that an organization of a feature doesn’t feel right. I asked, “What’s the alternative?” He didn’t know, so I said, “If I had to state a job for this surface and that surface, they would be…” Based on those jobs, that feature should live here. There’s a clear testable hypothesis.
Someone told me yesterday that my presentations are always so crisp and the delivery is so spot on. It wasn’t always like that. It boils down to me having clarity & conviction: conviction in the direction, conviction behind the clarity of the question, and/or the belief in my process.
January 14, 2026 at 4:26 PM
Someone told me yesterday that my presentations are always so crisp and the delivery is so spot on. It wasn’t always like that. It boils down to me having clarity & conviction: conviction in the direction, conviction behind the clarity of the question, and/or the belief in my process.
I’ve been following what’s happening in Minneapolis. My heart breaks for our fellow citizens and our country. Everything else feels inconsequential.
January 14, 2026 at 4:17 PM
I’ve been following what’s happening in Minneapolis. My heart breaks for our fellow citizens and our country. Everything else feels inconsequential.
Yrs ago, I studied under Thich Nhat Hanh. He spoke about how Buddhism doesn’t demand giving up your existing faith — that practicing Buddhism can help you understand Christianity more deeply. Someone said, “Then you’ll have a mixed up salad.” He replied, “What’s wrong with a fruit salad?”
January 13, 2026 at 2:41 AM
Yrs ago, I studied under Thich Nhat Hanh. He spoke about how Buddhism doesn’t demand giving up your existing faith — that practicing Buddhism can help you understand Christianity more deeply. Someone said, “Then you’ll have a mixed up salad.” He replied, “What’s wrong with a fruit salad?”
I’ve been following the Walk for Peace. Funny how people can’t understand the simple message of “Being Peace.” It’s a simple message but a powerful one because it’s a pause button. Buddhism is not about faith or idol worship. It’s about mindful living.
January 13, 2026 at 2:27 AM
I’ve been following the Walk for Peace. Funny how people can’t understand the simple message of “Being Peace.” It’s a simple message but a powerful one because it’s a pause button. Buddhism is not about faith or idol worship. It’s about mindful living.
I don’t believe everyone can learn R&D. In my decades of experience, I’ve tried coaching experimentation, divergent thinking and manifesting questions to many people, but some get it and some don’t. But once you get it, it’s like a new way of seeing that unlocks everything else.
January 12, 2026 at 8:14 PM
I don’t believe everyone can learn R&D. In my decades of experience, I’ve tried coaching experimentation, divergent thinking and manifesting questions to many people, but some get it and some don’t. But once you get it, it’s like a new way of seeing that unlocks everything else.
Saw “No Other Choice” yesterday at a theater. Fully recommend. It’s a dark, satirical thriller about a man whose life unravels after he’s laid off from his job. It’s a commentary on the dehumanization of Capitalism.
January 12, 2026 at 5:14 PM
Saw “No Other Choice” yesterday at a theater. Fully recommend. It’s a dark, satirical thriller about a man whose life unravels after he’s laid off from his job. It’s a commentary on the dehumanization of Capitalism.
Perhaps my real strength is that I don’t care that much. I never drink the Koolaid fully. I can appreciate each experience as an academic exercise.
January 12, 2026 at 5:08 PM
Perhaps my real strength is that I don’t care that much. I never drink the Koolaid fully. I can appreciate each experience as an academic exercise.
For me, the most fun time to be part of an org is when it’s still trying to figure things out, still in discovery and trying to prove something. Once some success or some street creds is earned, then suddenly leaders want replicating success and scaling; and things aren’t as organic and fun.
January 12, 2026 at 5:05 PM
For me, the most fun time to be part of an org is when it’s still trying to figure things out, still in discovery and trying to prove something. Once some success or some street creds is earned, then suddenly leaders want replicating success and scaling; and things aren’t as organic and fun.
You kinda have to think of the quant test you’re going to run about the behavioral trigger —> goal. The qual studies help you refine your hypotheses, trade offs and holes.
January 9, 2026 at 10:36 PM
You kinda have to think of the quant test you’re going to run about the behavioral trigger —> goal. The qual studies help you refine your hypotheses, trade offs and holes.
Will definitely look into this.
New tool allows Californians to request data brokers to delete personal details
State seeks to give residents greater control over their personal data and have fewer messages forced upon them
www.theguardian.com
January 7, 2026 at 7:37 PM
Will definitely look into this.
If you find yourself wanting a say in what you work on or how you work, know that you do have the ability to define your job. It does take time to build confidence, bc confidence is informed by experience, self-awareness, system awareness,
discipline in experimenting & consistency. It is a journey.
discipline in experimenting & consistency. It is a journey.
January 7, 2026 at 4:29 PM
If you find yourself wanting a say in what you work on or how you work, know that you do have the ability to define your job. It does take time to build confidence, bc confidence is informed by experience, self-awareness, system awareness,
discipline in experimenting & consistency. It is a journey.
discipline in experimenting & consistency. It is a journey.
I work on R&D innovation type work. But also work on the final execution, the final polish of the experience. The past 2 weeks I find myself exploring how to utilize motion in UI and media. That part is also really fun.
January 7, 2026 at 4:14 PM
I work on R&D innovation type work. But also work on the final execution, the final polish of the experience. The past 2 weeks I find myself exploring how to utilize motion in UI and media. That part is also really fun.
Been interviewing designers and I can say that there are lots of good designers doing thoughtful strategic work. Part of it is because our recruiters are just really good. But I have enjoyed all the humans I’ve spoken to.
January 7, 2026 at 4:05 PM
Been interviewing designers and I can say that there are lots of good designers doing thoughtful strategic work. Part of it is because our recruiters are just really good. But I have enjoyed all the humans I’ve spoken to.
This is supposed to be an exciting time in tech, but I’ve been feeling quite bored.
January 6, 2026 at 12:58 AM
This is supposed to be an exciting time in tech, but I’ve been feeling quite bored.
All right, it’s the first day of the new year. That means I gotta try some new diet or habit for a few weeks then drop it. The latest fad is the bean diet. This one might have some real creds.
January 2, 2026 at 4:33 AM
All right, it’s the first day of the new year. That means I gotta try some new diet or habit for a few weeks then drop it. The latest fad is the bean diet. This one might have some real creds.
The first year I received a letter with the patent bonus, it was emotional to me. The second year, not so much. Because it was the same letter.
January 1, 2026 at 5:53 PM
The first year I received a letter with the patent bonus, it was emotional to me. The second year, not so much. Because it was the same letter.
Sometimes I feel like work is a vehicle to meet really smart people. That is the true value of works. It’s a sort of sustenance that is undervalued.
January 1, 2026 at 4:33 PM
Sometimes I feel like work is a vehicle to meet really smart people. That is the true value of works. It’s a sort of sustenance that is undervalued.
I did some work over the break. I started inventorying the screens across web and mobile just to kick my brain into gear. At that precise moment I received a Slack from my PM. We were online at exactly the same time and so we zoomed about the proofs that lead to strategy. I like serendipitous work.
January 1, 2026 at 4:32 PM
I did some work over the break. I started inventorying the screens across web and mobile just to kick my brain into gear. At that precise moment I received a Slack from my PM. We were online at exactly the same time and so we zoomed about the proofs that lead to strategy. I like serendipitous work.