Enable creativity.

Solve the job to be done

Know what the user needs, and the shortest honest path there. If it doesn't serve that, it's decoration.

Achieve the goal

Name every goal in play and rank them. The user's goal leads; nothing else competes with it for attention.

One hierarchy, one emphasis

Exactly one thing is the most important thing on a screen, and nothing else fights it for attention.

Clear start, clear end

Every experience has one unmistakable starting point and an unambiguous finish. Home is always reachable.

Be honest

Never lie to the user. Help them understand what's actually happening, with honesty.

Respect the gaze

Most people read left to right, top to bottom (some don't, so adjust for them). Place elements along that natural gaze, so the eye finds the next step fast.

Everything comprehensible

Plain words over clever ones. A label describes the outcome, not the mechanism. No jargon: picture the user trying this for the first time.

Nothing invisible

Every interactive thing has a visible affordance at rest, not just a hint that appears on hover.

Color carries meaning

Green succeeded, yellow needs attention, red failed. Colors carry intentional meaning, never just decoration.

Space is your friend

Spacing is a language: group with distance and clear spacing. Use the same spacing scale for the same relationship everywhere.