Shift Nudge – UI Checklist

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Do I have a very solid understanding of the human problem I'm solving with this interface?
Is this a low, medium, or high complexity project and have I let that drive my decision for designing a low-fidelity version or not?
If I'm using reference material, would I feel comfortable putting my design next to the reference and talking through the areas I used for inspiration, without giving the impression that I copied or created a very close derivative?
Have I had the necessary conversations with stakeholders and/or developers about the goal of this project and its ability to be implemented. In other words, am I aware of business and/or technological constraints?

Have I chosen font sizes very deliberately (ideally 2-4 per screen or section) and pushed myself to use as few as possible?
Am I sure there's not a single straggling font size lying around somewhere that could be matched up with another size?
Are there any areas where font weight would be a better change instead of font size?
Are there any areas where font case—whether UPPERCASE, Title Case, or Sentence case—would be more affective that a font size change?

Have I used the box model concept while laying out out every element of my designs, or are there a few stragglers here and there that I haven't been intentional about?
Have I used a clear grid structure with properly aligned elements that visually balance each other out? (12 column, etc.)
Have I used an intentional implicit grid for all of the negative space surrounding the elements in my layout, especially to define intentional relationships with my content?
Does my design have enough negative space?

Have a made a concious choice between using HEX codes, RGB values, or HSB/HSL section methods?
Have I double checked to make sure that all of my interface elements have appropriate color contrast and meet at least WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards?
Have I made a very concious decision about my structural colors versus my interactive colors?
Have I clearly defined a primary, secondary, and possibly tertiary CTA (call to action) color and used it accordingly?

Have I conciously decided on a specific design direction?
Can I intentionally describe my designs with specific adjectives?
Have I considered the constraints of the medium I'm designing for and how that should and will affect my designs?
Have I very consciously chosen specific corner radius styles? Should they be hard edge, slightly rounded, very rounded, pill-shaped?

Knowing that great imagery will make my designs 10X better than subpar imagery, have I intentionally chosen, selected, sourced, or created the absolute best possible imagery for my designs (if applicable)?
Does the imagery I'm using make my designs better or is it distracting?
Am I intentionally using a static image in my designs that will never be changed, or is there an opportunity to create something more dynamic based on events or user action?
Are there places in my design where I can leverage emoji to create a more unique design?

Does my project have a clear navigation structure and ideally prioritize the top 5 or fewer links or sections?
Have I strongly considered how my input fields function (default, hover, focused, disabled, error, etc.) and created a very clear state design for all possibilities?
Do my input fields match the overall style and direction of the project?
Are the forms I've designed absolutey necessary and require the most critical information?

Have I explored LOTS of alternative versions of what I'm trying to design and by process of elimination decided on what works best?
If my project is slightly more complex than the average project, whether because of features or team size, have I spent enough time getting everyone on board with how the app should function by using low-fidelity designs?
If my project is a web-based project, have I fully considered the mobile version and used that as a way to force prioritization of features and layout?
If my project is an application, have a used a mobile-first approach to create simplicity up front?