Oct 2021 - Nov 2021
findyour balance
findyour balance is my UX/UI solution to UX Laurier x Vidyard’s Blueprint Design Challenge.
“How might we improve overall student wellness?”
This was the challenge prompt we were given
SummaryConcluding Laurier’s Blueprint Workshop series, I was presented with the design challenge of creating a solution that addressed student wellness in the current climate. This is my first design project and it was really exciting applying the design process and presenting a solution to 3 judges in the industry.
This project was conducted outside of university or work projects and I learned a lot from the 6 weeks of workshop content ranging from learning about the design process to wireframing and prototyping. I applied each of these steps to this solution and I’m proud of the progress I’ve made in 2 months!
ResearchBecause time was a constraint, I relied on convenience sampling as part of my primary research and studies found on Google to support my findings as secondary research.
I conducted a short survey on Instagram for my followers asking them what wellness meant to them. My target audience were students which was the main bulk of my followers. Keeping the question open, it helped me get a better sense of underlying pain points and create a solution that addressed them. In my presentation, I noted that a common understanding of wellness centered around “balance” and the nature of taking care of both physical and mental health.
Responses to the question “what does wellness mean to you?”
My user persona helped me design my solution around the demographic and market I wanted to reach. From research done in my surrounding community, I’ve decided that I wanted to focus specifically on university and college students; those that are most likely to be dealing with a lot of changes in life and balancing tasks and responsibilities.
DesignThese are my initial wireframe designs for the app. It reflects the design of an iPhone’s calendar or reminders app and I’ve taken nods to their simple design. I wanted to emphasize the simplicity of using this app while also maintaining the ability for the user to have a clear overview of their schedule.
This being my first UX project, I was tempted to add a lot of details* and information in these wireframes but it’s amazing to see how even simple designs and placeholders already showcase the vision and the potential final design!
*looking back 3 years later, this is still way too much detail for a wireframe stage*
For the branding of the app, I decided to use a green pastel palette with green being a color that is often associated with wellness. The font was chosen because I wanted something that was sophisticated and professional while still being friendly.
Final DesignAnd this is the final solution and app design of “findyour balance”! I’ve kept it pretty simple and similar to the original wireframe design. The pastel colour theme choice reflects the calm mindset the user should have when using the app and the round buttons and bubble-like theme makes it more fun to engage with.
The biggest change is how the app greets the user and I’ve decided against fancy graphics or text as originally planned in the wireframe. When showing the original design to friends, I realized they paid little attention to the information on the welcome screen and cared more about getting to the reminders for the day and other information.
ResultsWhile this design was only presented to the judges of the challenge and not produced into an app, I gained a lot of insight into each step of the design process. This solution didn’t win but I’ve been inspired to continue improving and seeking more opportunities to apply skills as I learn them. Given more time, there are a lot of things I would improve and I know I will continue to grow as a designer in the future :)
Check out the full prototype of the app!