Best Practices Kill Innovation

“Best practices” usually mean “what worked last time.” That’s fine if you want safe. It’s useless if you want groundbreaking.

In design, best practices create copycat work. Brands all start looking the same because everyone is following the same playbook. Safe layouts, safe colors, safe strategies. You end up with work that feels familiar — and gets ignored.

At our studio, we strip everything down to first principles. What problem are we solving? What does the audience need to feel? What’s the most direct way to make that happen? Then we build from there, not from someone else’s checklist.

Example: every tech company wants a “clean, minimal” identity. Best practice says: copy Apple. First principles says: Apple’s simplicity works because it reflects their product philosophy. If your product is chaotic, minimalism is a lie. The right answer may be loud, messy, and unapologetic.

Breakthrough design comes from ignoring best practices, not worshiping them. If the work feels too safe, it’s already dead.

The only best practice worth keeping? Question all of them.

Note: Written with AI assistance, edited with human judgment, published with zero apologies.