Designing Systems, Not Screens

When we treat design as a surface-level problem, we solve for the wrong thing. Most teams build screens. A handful build systems.

The Problem With Screen Thinking

Screen thinking is reactive. It responds to immediate needs:

Each decision is isolated. Each component exists in its own context. Nothing compounds. Nothing scales.

Systems Thinking

Systems thinking asks different questions:

A design system isn't a component library. It's a set of rules that eliminate decisions.

Engineering Intent

Intent means designing for second-order effects:

Most design systems fail because they codify screens, not principles.

The Real Work

The hardest part isn't building components. It's deciding what *not* to build. It's choosing constraints that feel restrictive but enable scale.

Systems thinking is slow upfront. But it's the only thing that lasts.