--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When we think of design, we usually…" description: "\"When we think of design, we usually imagine things that are chosen because they are designed. Vases or comic books or architecture... It turns out, tho..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9d/seth-godin-152_architecture_when-we-think-of-design-we-usually-imagi_1702956.jpg" --- # When we think of design, we usually imagine things that… ![“When we think of design, we usually imagine things that are chosen because they are designed. Vases or comic books or architecture... It turns out, though, that most of what we make or design is actually aimed at a public that is there for something else. The design is important, but the design is…” quote by Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9d/seth-godin-152_architecture_when-we-think-of-design-we-usually-imagi_1702956.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9d/seth-godin-152_architecture_when-we-think-of-design-we-usually-imagi_1702956.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c9d/seth-godin-152_architecture_when-we-think-of-design-we-usually-imagi_1702956.jpg) > “When we think of design, we usually imagine things that are chosen because they are designed. Vases or comic books or architecture... It turns out, though, that most of what we make or design is actually aimed at a public that is there for something else. The design is important, but the design is not the point. Call it "public design"... Public design is for individuals who have to fill out our tax form, interact with our website or check into our hotel room despite the way it's designed, not because of it.” [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Design often serves functional needs, but many designs exist primarily to facilitate interactions with systems that users must engage with regardless of design quality. **In simple terms:** Design supports, but does not replace, underlying processes. Key Takeaway Focus on user‑centric system design. Themes design public services user experience systems thinking policy Mood critical pragmatic Type analytical observational When to use this quote - government forms - website navigation - hotel check‑in - public transport Key Concepts human‑centered design bureaucracy service design Questions to Reflect On - How can design improve mandatory interactions? - When does design become a barrier? A Different Perspective Design cannot fix poorly designed policies or regulations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Architecture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/architecture/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Checks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/checks/) [Chosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chosen/) [Comic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic/) [Comic book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic-book/) [Comic books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comic-books/) [Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) [Design Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design-important-398794/) [Design Individuals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design-individuals-1168231/) [Design Public](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design-public-1168229/) [Design Usually](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design-usually-1168230/) [Despite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despite/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Hotel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hotel/) [Hotel room](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hotel-room/) [Hotel rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hotel-rooms/) [Imagine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagine/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Public Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-design-1168228/) [Rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rooms/) [Taxes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taxes/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Turns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turns/) [Vases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vases/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Website](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/website/) ## Related quotes > [“Fashion is a double-edged sword; the more fashionable it is, the less timeliness it has. However, the life expectancy of hotel design is usually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/editorial-board-of-approaching-hotel-designers/fashion-is-a-double-edged-sword-the-more-fashionable-it-is-the-less/) [Editorial Board of Approaching Hotel Designers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/editorial-board-of-approaching-hotel-designers/) > [It might be a selfish choice, but I find it quite difficult to design for individuals and prefer the distance of larger schemes. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rocha/it-might-be-a-selfish-choice-but-i-find-it-quite-difficult-to-design/) [John Rocha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rocha/) > [I want industrial design to be a public subject. I want people to love objects the way they love clothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karim-rashid/i-want-industrial-design-to-be-a-public-subject-i-want-people-to-love/) [Karim Rashid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karim-rashid/) > [I'm experimenting in public. At the design grad schools, these are people sitting around in groups, putting their work on a wall, analyzing it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-carson/i-m-experimenting-in-public-at-the-design-grad-schools-these-are/) [David Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-carson/) > [I believe that to further strategic growth and development via design, we need to have a set of public design policies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jens-martin-skibsted/i-believe-that-to-further-strategic-growth-and-development-via-design/) [Jens Martin Skibsted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jens-martin-skibsted/) > [Mediocre design provably wastes the world's resources, corrupts the environment, affects international competitiveness. Design is important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-brooks/mediocre-design-provably-wastes-the-world-s-resources-corrupts-the/) [Fred Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-brooks/) > [Design is important. I spend much of my working life as a designer. But how can you design for materials if you don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-linley/design-is-important-i-spend-much-of-my-working-life-as-a-designer-but/) [David Linley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-linley/) > [Design is more important than technology in most consumer applications.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-mcclure/design-is-more-important-than-technology-in-most-consumer-applications/) [Dave McClure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-mcclure/) > [One of the best things I ever did was to train in a practical skill. I love computers and they've become such a part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-newson/one-of-the-best-things-i-ever-did-was-to-train-in-a-practical-skill-i/) [Marc Newson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-newson/) > [When I'm teaching, I tell the story of this painting for two reasons. First of all, if you want a good solid color structure,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milford-zornes/when-i-m-teaching-i-tell-the-story-of-this-painting-for-two-reasons/) [Milford Zornes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milford-zornes/) > [Fashion design is an important part of the creative industry that means the most to women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-lam/fashion-design-is-an-important-part-of-the-creative-industry-that/) [Carrie Lam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-lam/) > [Design is important because chaos is so hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-feiffer/design-is-important-because-chaos-is-so-hard/) [Jules Feiffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-feiffer/) > [“The natural evolution from design doing to design thinking reflects the growing recognition on the part of today’s business leaders that design has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-brown/the-natural-evolution-from-design-doing-to-design-thinking-reflects/) [Tim Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-brown/) > [Design is important, it's an important dimension in the car. It's not the only one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ghosn/design-is-important-it-s-an-important-dimension-in-the-car-it-s-not/) [Carlos Ghosn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ghosn/) > [Design is too important to be left to designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-loewy/design-is-too-important-to-be-left-to-designers/) [Raymond Loewy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-loewy/) ## More by Seth Godin > [“You weren't born to be a cog in the giant industrial machine. You were trained to become a cog. There's an alternative available to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/you-weren-t-born-to-be-a-cog-in-the-giant-industrial-machine-you-were/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [Forgive yourself for not being the richest, the thinnest, the tallest, the one with the best hair. Forgive yourself for not being the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/forgive-yourself-for-not-being-the-richest-the-thinnest-the-tallest/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [The easier it is to quantify, the less it's worth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-easier-it-is-to-quantify-the-less-it-s-worth/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [Developing expertise or assets that are not easily copied is essential; otherwise you're just a middleman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/developing-expertise-or-assets-that-are-not-easily-copied-is/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [Leadership is a choice. It's the choice not to do nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/leadership-is-a-choice-it-s-the-choice-not-to-do-nothing/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [The next thing you do today will be the most important thing on your agenda, because, after all, you're doing it next. Well, perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-next-thing-you-do-today-will-be-the-most-important-thing-on-your/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [I look at Starbucks, Howard Schultz has made many brilliant decisions, and one of the things that they did was they invented the third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/i-look-at-starbucks-howard-schultz-has-made-many-brilliant-decisions/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [Be relentlessly generous, without focusing on when it will come back to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/be-relentlessly-generous-without-focusing-on-when-it-will-come-back/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [The public square is more public than ever, but minds are rarely changed in 140 character bursts and by selfies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-public-square-is-more-public-than-ever-but-minds-are-rarely/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [Making an average pitch to average people, or having an average gala for average people isn't going to scale anymore. You've got to find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/making-an-average-pitch-to-average-people-or-having-an-average-gala/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [Our job is to make change. Our job is to connect to people, to interact with them in a way that leaves them better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/our-job-is-to-make-change-our-job-is-to-connect-to-people-to-interact/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [“Life is actually far better than it is in the movies. And it takes longer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/life-is-actually-far-better-than-it-is-in-the-movies-and-it-takes/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [I don't think there's a shortage of remarkable ideas. I think your business has plenty of great opportunities to do great things. Nope, what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-shortage-of-remarkable-ideas-i-think-your/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [The mirror we hold up to the person next to us is one of the most important pictures she will ever see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-mirror-we-hold-up-to-the-person-next-to-us-is-one-of-the-most/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [If you're a marketer who doesn't know how to invent, design, influence, adapt, and ultimately discard products, then you're no longer a marketer. You're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/if-you-re-a-marketer-who-doesn-t-know-how-to-invent-design-influence/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) [Explore all 1,110 Seth Godin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) ## More Architecture quotes > [The bones of my architecture are very much related to the structure, to the physical fact of how a building can stand up; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-bones-of-my-architecture-are-very-much-related-to-the-structure/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [A man walks down the street. It's a street in a strange world. Maybe it's the third world. Maybe it's his first time around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/a-man-walks-down-the-street-it-s-a-street-in-a-strange-world-maybe-it/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [The Parthenon is really only a farmyard over which someone put a roof; colonades and sculptures were added because there were people in Athens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/the-parthenon-is-really-only-a-farmyard-over-which-someone-put-a-roof/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Society understands the architecture of academia and knows there are relevant qualifications in different fields, and the media accepts the idea of specialisations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-griffiths/society-understands-the-architecture-of-academia-and-knows-there-are/) [Jay Griffiths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-griffiths/) > [I just think structure can make a book feel so much bigger. It's the architecture. You could use flimsy materials if you wanted to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jami-attenberg/i-just-think-structure-can-make-a-book-feel-so-much-bigger-it-s-the/) [Jami Attenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jami-attenberg/) > [When I am asked what I believe in, I say that I believe in architecture. Architecture is the mother of the arts. I like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-meier/when-i-am-asked-what-i-believe-in-i-say-that-i-believe-in/) [Richard Meier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-meier/) > [Some architects have a preconceived notion of what a building should be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-w-fentress/some-architects-have-a-preconceived-notion-of-what-a-building-should/) [Curtis W. Fentress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-w-fentress/) > [The essential functions of the mind consist in understanding and in inventing, in other words, in building up structures by structuring reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/the-essential-functions-of-the-mind-consist-in-understanding-and-in/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [London, from the architecture to the culture to the fashion to the accents, feels like it's a special place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-eazy/london-from-the-architecture-to-the-culture-to-the-fashion-to-the/) [G-Eazy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-eazy/) > [A wiki works best where you're trying to answer a question that you can't easily pose, where there's not a natural structure that's known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ward-cunningham/a-wiki-works-best-where-you-re-trying-to-answer-a-question-that-you/) [Ward Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ward-cunningham/) > [Architecture is not a profession for the faint-hearted, the weak-willed, or the short-lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-filler/architecture-is-not-a-profession-for-the-faint-hearted-the-weak/) [Martin Filler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-filler/) > [As a result of reading science fiction when I was eight, I grew up with an interest in music, architecture, city planning, transportation, politics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/as-a-result-of-reading-science-fiction-when-i-was-eight-i-grew-up/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Winning a competition in architecture is a ticket to oblivion. 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