Tobias Ahlin

The full-stack designer explains why building things is an emotional roller coaster and how teaching others can make you better at it

Swedish designer and developer Tobias Ahlin is living proof that the saying ‘those who can’t do, teach’ is, well, bunk. He certainly does teach, both in his formal role at Hyper Island in his home city of Stockholm and as a popular speaker at conferences around the world. But his ‘do’ resume is just as impressive.

Ahlin was in his early 20s when he joined Spotify and was made responsible for the user interface design of its apps, on everything from iOS and Android to Windows and obscure stereos. He went on to work as a designer and developer at GitHub and then experience design director for Minecraft at Mojang. He’s been freelance since January 2017 and, alongside his client work and speaking engagements, he somehow finds time to write about design, CSS, and animation on his blog.

We caught up with him to discuss the joys of being a generalist, struggling with imposter syndrome, how to dodge tweetstorms and more.

Could you briefly introduce yourself to anyone who doesn’t know you?

I’m a curious and pragmatic learner from the west coast of Sweden who’s been making apps and websites since I was about 15. I still can’t seem to get enough of it. I try to laugh a lot and do my best to not take myself too seriously.

I’ve been extremely lucky and privileged to have spent my last ten years forming some of my favorite products out there; most importantly Spotify, GitHub, and Minecraft. Today I spend about half my time teaching and speaking and half my time as a freelancing designer and developer.

I’m also an avid reader of non-fiction books and in the evenings it’s not unlikely that you’ll find me in a café somewhere in Stockholm with my head buried in a paperback.