Figma Persona 2022: What’s your creative collaboration style?

The end of the year is a good time to take stock and set intentions for the year ahead. For many of us, work plays a big role in that equation. But whether it’s charting out next year’s product roadmap, H1 planning, or simply setting a few personal or professional goals, you can’t know where you’re headed if you don’t know where you are right now. We wanted to make that process of self-realization a little simpler with the Figma Persona Quiz 2022, a set of 21 thought-provoking questions that will tell you about your unique working style.

So, gather ’round the warm glow of yet another Figma file with your closest creative pals for a very Figma, collective vibe check.

Meet the Figma Personas

We all have our own ways of working in Figma. There’s the type of person who meticulously names their layers; there are those who insert copious emoji for a bit of 🌈✨... Then, of course, there’s always someone who throws caution to the wind—eschewing any form of structure or organization—detaching every. single. instance. Which one are you?

The Figma Persona Quiz uses a highly sophisticated widget to analyze your unique creative characteristics across three axes: how you generate ideas and solve problems, how you set up your workspace and utilize various tools, and how you work with others. The result is a total of eight possible Figma Personas. Jump to your persona via the table of contents above, or keep scrolling to read them all.

The organized individualists

Organized individualists prefer a tidy process and thrive when they are responsible for their own outcomes. They prefer async updates, bug bashes, and anything where they can go off on their own for a bit before coming back together with the rest of the group. They love a clear set of deliverables or milestones and a solid process.

Collaborator pro-tips: Be sure to give organized individualists space to generate new ideas or come up with solutions. We recommend sharing async pre-work with clear expectations and articulating your needs with clarity and precision. 

Type 1: Lone Ascender

You are an organized, analytical individualist.

Look up there! It’s a bird, it’s a plane...it’s the Lone Ascender! If there’s a complex problem to be solved, you’ll rise to the occasion. Tactical, practical, systems-driven solutions are your superpower. You have a process for everything—maybe even things that don’t need one! (Do you do your taxes in Figma? It’s okay. You can tell us.) You know your shortcuts by heart and likely a few key HTML color codes, too. You prefer pragmatism to idealism and take a systematic approach to scaling the thorniest problems. You appreciate an occasional close collaborator... as long as they don’t mess up your file formatting.

Tools to use (or at least try):

• Shortcut keys and quick actions to memorize (if you haven’t already)
• Hundreds of FigJam templates to further extend your organized empire
• Best practices for setting up files, layer naming, and project structure
• Simple Annotate for leaving async notes for your team
• Branching in Figma to solo explore before merging back to the main file

2023 Growth opportunity:

Crack open an empty FigJam file, queue up lo-fi beats

, and invite your extended cross-functional team to a group free-draw session.

Type 2: Canvas Captain

You are an organized, expressive individualist.

Ahoy, matey! Whether setting sail on the open seas or a blank canvas, you thrive when the destination is unknown, and you’re charting the path forward. You navigate complexity with your big ideas and undeniable energy, and people draft off your creative tailwinds.

Your mind is open, and your desk is neatly kept! (You run a tight ship, after all.) You think systems are a means of self-expression (we wouldn’t be surprised to find an emoji-prefixed layer naming structure or some color coordination.)

We’re guessing that you have at least two or more Figma accounts—for work, play, or whatever other adventures you may be on.

Tools to use (or at least try):

• Washi tape
  

  Good ideas stick

  A brief history of washi tape, and why we think it’s the perfect experience to digitize.

  and sticker packs for a bit of ⚡️🎨
• Bitmoji widget to create a digital caricature in Figma and FigJam
• Label your layers with emojis for some creative chaos
• Pen tool to let loose with some aimless (or competitive) doodling
• FigJam diagramming template to plan a path through the unknown

2023 Growth opportunity:

Share those WIPs a little more freely. You’ve got templates, and the world should use them. Open up your solo files to a wider audience.

The free-styling individualists

Free-styling individualists follow their gut instincts. They are often tool-agnostic, leaning toward whatever works best for the challenge at hand. Individualists do their best work when they have time to think and process alone, like making edits to a branch before merging back into the greater tree.

Collaborator pro-tips: Be sure to give free-styling individualists space for heads-down work, ideally in the form of pre-work or async brainstorms. Try giving them open-ended prompts (with clear deadlines!) to yield some fresh ideas. 

Type 3: Direct Mobilizer

You are a free-styling, analytical individualist.

Let’s skip the small talk. You believe that ideas are cheap unless they’re executed on—results are your reward. Your favorite process is the one you haven’t invented yet, and you think every new problem is an opportunity to disrupt and innovate. You tend to follow your gut instinct rather than be hemmed in by arbitrary rules or structures.

You didn't come here to make friends (okay, a choice few is just fine)—you’re here to break hearts and detach instances. Whatever is required to solve the problem or dream up a new creative paradigm. You are here to make it happen, move the needle, and change hearts and minds.

Tools to use (or at least try):

• Mellow out with some acoustic ambient tunes

  The right jams for your jam

  Can playing music at work build a sense of shared experience? Are certain types of music better for different types of work? We thought about all of this and more when we set out to create music in FigJam; tune in for a deep cut on our inspiration and process.

  in FigJam
• Party-planning FigJam template to host an end-of-the-year bash
• Template for facilitating a workshop from start to finish
• Share quick audio notes with your team using the voice memo widget
• Strategic planning templates to plot your next big move

2023 Growth opportunity:

Remember that a good leader can also be a follower, so spotlight someone else for a change, sit back, and enjoy the ride.

Type 4: Artful Detacher

You are a free-styling, expressive individualist.

When they zig, you...roll on the floor. Or how does the saying go? It doesn't matter because you don't follow banalities or truisms, you rebel, you! Your favorite type of project is the one you haven't done yet, because if you're not growing, what are you doing?

You prefer feelings over grids, and experiments over templates. If you knew what an instance was, you'd probably detach it. We're actually impressed you made it to the end of this quiz.

You may fly primarily solo, but your creative impact is wide-reaching. Chances are, you have a faithful community of fellow renegades who buck rules and carve their own path.

Tools to use (or at least try):

• Start with a template instead of a blank canvas
• Try this vision board template to dream up the future
• Bitmoji widget to express your most authentic self
• Learn the merits of a good design system for adding structure
• Pump the jams with a funky, upbeat tune in FigJam

  The right jams for your jam

  Can playing music at work build a sense of shared experience? Are certain types of music better for different types of work? We thought about all of this and more when we set out to create music in FigJam; tune in for a deep cut on our inspiration and process.

2023 Growth opportunity:

Process could be the new spice in your life, so get out there and explore a priority matrix. Try digging into integrations that aren't just mind-body.

The organized collectivists

Organized collectivists are consummate collaborators. They’re organized and team-oriented, so they are the perfect host for a facilitated brainstorming or planning session. They love to bounce ideas around with others…as long as someone takes diligent notes!

Collaborator pro-tips: Get them into a FigJam template with a team and watch them thrive! When asking for their support, share clear expectations and articulate needs with clarity and precision.

Type 5: Bounding Boxer

You are an organized, analytical collectivist.

You see the world as a series of problems to be solved—and you have just the solution. *Rifles through extensive archive of templates and resources*

You diligently name every layer and ensure your Figma file is attached to the meeting invite. You have been known to throw around the word “tokenization” in casual conversation and have considered becoming a design systems manager (if not, maybe you should?). Death before detach!

Your happy place is a well-oiled process where everyone has their role to play. Your knack for critical thinking and problem-solving makes you an MVP for navigating complexity at scale.

Tools to use (or at least try):

• Voting and alignment scale widget in FigJam
• Brush up on some design systems talks (or start your own)
• Advice for diving into documentation
• Strategic planning templates to corral at scale
• Template for feature planning your next great build
• Embrace the chaos of our perpetually WIP world
  

  Welcome to the WIP

  How do you make progress when work is always in flux? Chief Product Officer Yuhki Yamashita discusses how to embrace (and enjoy) endless iteration and shares Figma’s approach to developing collaboration features designed with an always-in-progress state of mind.

2023 Growth opportunity:

This year, we dare you to detach an instance. Just one. Try it. It feels good. 😈

Type 6: Branch Merger

You are an organized, expressive collectivist.

You may have uttered the phrase “let's go back to first principles” more than a few times in the past week. “A messy canvas is a messy mind,” you chant to yourself as you rearrange your team's stickies by topic and color. Somewhere in your workspace is a fresh notebook and set of highlighters just waiting to be cracked open.

You keep your team moving forward with a mix of expressiveness and guided structure—after all, H2 planning should be fun (right? right!). Whether facilitating a design crit or organizing the digital icebreaker session for a remote holiday party, your mode is to circle back, huddle up, and align.

Tools to use (or at least try):

• Washi tape
  

  Good ideas stick

  A brief history of washi tape, and why we think it’s the perfect experience to digitize.

  and sticker packs for a bit of ⚡️🎨
• Name your layers with emojis for some creative chaos
• Try this birthday card tutorial from @pigeonerpigeoner
• Find your spark with a FigJam journaling template
• Host your best meeting yet with a few choice meeting templates

2023 Growth opportunity:

Try journaling. Pick up an impractical hobby. Consider making an affinity diagram for your own desires.

The free-styling collectivists

Free-styling collectivists are the life of the party or FigJam file. They aren’t constrained by rules, tools, or structure. They do their best work alongside others, bouncing around ideas and possibilities to find their way to the ultimate solution.

Collaborator pro-tips: Host a group kickoff with open-ended prompts to solicit their best work. From there, keep the check-ins flowing (and on track!) with clear agendas and deadlines.

Type 7: Vector Networker

You are an analytical, free-styling collectivist.

As a Vector Networker, your mantra is: Connect the disconnected dots. The world is full of answers, and you’ve got questions.

Your favorite solution is for the problem you haven’t yet identified, and trust us, you have the Slack threads to prove it! You have “bless this mess” somewhere in your workspace. You may be known to detach an instance or two. Maybe three.

You work best when bouncing ideas around with others and ideating in real-time. Catch you in cursor chat talking out a problem or leaning deep into the comment chaos. The struggle may be real, but the process of working through it is even realer.

Tools to use (or at least try):

• Connect the digital dots using a FigJam diagramming template
• Branching in Figma to embrace different collaboration styles
• Coda’s team rituals for better jams
• Bring the team together in a brainstorming or Mood Board template
• Or connect in-person pals with a dinner party (also planned in FigJam)

2023 Growth opportunity:

Lean into mystery. Consider plotting out a user journey for one, destination unknown.

Type 8: Bézier Curve Baller

You are an expressive, free-styling collectivist.

Well, well, well, if it isn’t the Bézier Curve Baller. The life of every party and every Figma file. You are known to freestyle both in and outside of the file.

A true team player, you believe in sharing early and often, leaning into the canvas chaos. You don’t name your layers, because layers were not made to be named. Layers were made to layer, and layer you will! Infinitely and with reckless abandon. Cover images who? You’re here to play.

Like a bézier curve, you bend as the situation requires—reacting to additional points and collaborators, all while maintaining a continuous sway with your team. Slam dunk!

Tools to use (or at least try):

• Chat it out in cursor chat
• Washi tape
  

  Good ideas stick

  A brief history of washi tape, and why we think it’s the perfect experience to digitize.

  and sticker packs for a bit of ⚡️🎨
• Generate your color palettes with this plugin
• Capture your next out-of-the-box idea in a FigJam diagramming template
• Make a vision and follow through with this vision board template

2023 Growth opportunity:

Consider tapping to the beat of someone else’s acoustic ambient track

. Wireframes just might be the container for some of your most creative ideas yet.

How to harness your persona potential?

So you’ve taken the Figma Persona Quiz and are now grappling with the reality of knowing who you are. Maybe you’re overjoyed, devastated, or some combination of the two? Here at Figma, we don’t judge how you organize your files or whether you jive tackling problems solo or in lockstep with a troupe. We see you, and we accept you! After all, there’s no such thing as a “bad persona”—only a great one waiting to be discovered.

Put your persona into action

For each persona, we’ve curated a list of tips and tools you can dive into next year. From trying new templates to letting go with some lo-fi beats, these recommendations are intended to help you break out of your comfort zone. Even better, they might help you find your footing with your collaborative team.

Our research has shown that improving collaborative behaviors like co-creation, building rapport, and taking time for reflection can improve product outcomes by 25%. While we’d like to think taking the persona quiz could be integral to reaching your product and productivity goals by 25%, we also know you can’t put a number on the value of connection (or having a laugh). So, try taking the quiz with your team or creative conspirators and see how your different personas stack up. Here at Figma, we plan to use this as an icebreaker for remote holiday parties or to kick off any future-planning sprints. If you have more fun ways to use the widget, let us know on Twitter!

We hope you use the Figma Persona Quiz as an opportunity to learn more about yourself and your collaborators and set intentions for the year ahead. Remember: How you show up today doesn’t define who you show up as tomorrow. Take a look at your Figma Persona and decide what you want to carry forward into 2023, what you want to celebrate, and what you might want to leave behind. See you in 2023!