Those five words sum up a lot of what good design really is. Whether you’re shaping a brand, building a product, or installing a wall graphic—it’s the question that drives everything forward.
If you’re short on time, that’s your takeaway. But if you’re willing to stick around, here’s how that question has shaped my approach to design—and why it still matters.
Design Is More Than Design
My background is in graphic design. But my view of what “design” really meant changed when I joined a top agency early in my career. It wasn’t just about layouts or typography anymore—it was about creating solutions that actually worked. Physical spaces. User journeys. Product touchpoints. Branding in motion.
It was a place where designers, strategists, writers and technologists all sat around the same table. The first ideas were often rough. Sometimes good. Sometimes wide of the mark. But the value wasn’t in how many you created—it was in how well you questioned them.
That’s where the real design process begins: creation, destruction, refinement. You test, break, and build again—until you get to the one idea that works. Logically. Emotionally. Visually. And when you’re there, that’s when the real question kicks in:
How can I make this better?
From Rough Cuts to Polish
There’s a sculptor analogy I often use. The early ideas? They’re the rough block of stone. You start hacking away—testing, cutting, questioning. Eventually, a shape appears. You refine. You sharpen. Then, finally, when the form is right, you move to polish.
That’s the point where small changes make a big difference. Where the experience becomes memorable, not just functional. That’s where good branding lives—not just in the first idea, but in how far you’re willing to take it.
Applied Thinking, Everyday
This thinking applies everywhere. A placemat and coaster that don’t match in material? Fixable. Print processes that could be faster or more accurate? Solvable. Even internal workflows can be improved by applying this mindset: quicker, simpler, more scalable, less prone to error.
At Dogtooth, this mindset guides everything—from our production tools to how we plan an install or structure a brand discovery session. We’ve applied it to our physical branding work, our sticker business, and even how we talk about what we do. It’s not perfectionism. It’s just care. And care scales.
Ask It Out Loud
“How can I make this better?” isn’t just a question for yourself. It’s something worth asking your team. Your clients. Your customers. You might be surprised by what they tell you.
Because good ideas rarely arrive fully formed. They’re shaped by feedback, nudged by questions, and improved by people who see things you don’t.
The Takeaway
Whether you’re designing a brand experience, installing a wall graphic, or planning how someone moves through a space—this question always applies:
How can I make this better?
More relevant. More human. More considered.
That’s the kind of thinking that builds trust. And it’s the kind of work we believe in.
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