Lesson learned: talk to users before polishing UI

I redesigned the dashboard twice before talking to ten active users. Both redesigns solved problems nobody had. Pretty gradients, new nav, rearranged metrics—all ignored in calls. Users wanted faster CSV import and clearer error messages when uploads failed. Boring fixes, high impact. I could have learned that in five calls instead of forty hours in Figma. Now UI polish comes after workflow fixes are validated. "Does it look better?" is the wrong question early. "Can they finish the job?" is the right one.