295 - Robert Bye

Robert Bye is a Product Manager at Figma who works on Figma's mobile and desktop apps (download them if you haven't already!).

He was previously and Industrial Designer and co-founded the hardware design studio morrama.

His workspace is shared with his wife in a home they built last year and is a minimalist yet cozy environment for them to both work in.

Inside Robert's Workspace

Hardware:

• Artifox desks
• Herman Miller Aeron Chair (picked up for $200 in an office clearance sale!)
• MacBook Pro M1 (docked under desk with this 3D printed mount)
• LG 32" Ultrafine Ergo display
• 12.9" iPad Pro & stand
• Logitech keyboard + Apple Magic Trackpad
• Time Timer (for Pomodoro)
• Fiio K3 DAC + Amp
• Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro

What is your favorite item in your workspace?

My favorite item in our workspace has to be our desks. My grandfather used to be a surveyor and draftsman, and when he passed away he left some money to put towards our home office and we purchased these. The Artifox desks are not only incredibly well made, with excellent cable management, and craftsmanship – but they're also timeless, meaning we can keep them for years to come.

How do you spark creativity?

Working in different places for different types of work has been a game changer for me. I try to work from a coffee shop at least 2 mornings a week, and save creative and strategy work for these times. I find working from a smaller screen (iPad/MacBook) forces me to mono task, and not having slack open helps immensely. I also take calls from elsewhere in the house, not only so I don't distract my wife, but also so our office is reserved for focussed and deep work. This mental model helps me quickly get in the right headspace.

FigJam has also totally freed up creativing thinking for me as a PM. It's given me the space to think wider than normal document formats allow for, and I use it for pretty much everything these days!

How do you manage work-life balance?

We're very fortunate to be able to have a separate office in our home (one of the benefits of living away from major cities), and this allows us to close the door to work on evenings and weekends. That separation from work and rest is critical. After work I also try to go for a walk. This gives some mental separation and wind down time, especially after a busy day.

What do you think is the main benefit of remote work?

Being able to work opposite my wife everyday! Even though my colleagues are amazing, and I wish it was easier for us to meet up (we're a very distributed team), being able to chat to my wife and eat lunch together is such a privilege. In addition to this, I find working from home far less distracting, and the flexibility to work at your desk, sofa, or coffee shop is fantastic.