Dive Club 🤿 – Summary

Episode: Nad Chishtie – How to Get Hired as a Designer at Lovable
Host: Ridd
Guest: Nad Chishtie, Head of Design at Lovable
Date: December 19, 2025

Overview:

This episode centers on practical, insider guidance from Nad Chishtie about what it takes to get hired as a designer at Lovable, one of the world's fastest growing design-driven companies. The discussion goes deep on the qualities, portfolio approaches, and interview strategies that set candidates apart—emphasizing the real traits that matter at high-performing product teams. Ridd and Nad break down the philosophy behind hiring, dissect actual portfolios, and discuss the blend of skills needed to thrive in a modern, scaling product org.

Key Themes & Discussion Points

1. What Lovable Looks for in Designers

• Generalists Are In:
  • Lovable’s most successful designers are multidisciplinary, able to operate across roles and deliver end-to-end (01:23).
  • The concept of the “generalist” was previously seen as negative, but rapid product cycles now favor multidimensional skill sets.
  • “High slope individuals” who get things done and don’t let titles limit them are especially valued (00:21).
• Intuition and Judgment:
  • Successful candidates use great intuition, judgment, and know how/when to involve specialists.
  • AI fluency is valuable: candidates who can use AI to fill gaps, move fast, and know when to seek expert depth.

Notable Quote

“Smart people can just do multiple things and that’s it… Generalists can just do really, really well, which is super different to how we thought about the best person for a given job even two years ago.” – Nad Chishtie (03:46)

2. How the Hiring Funnel Works

• Sourcing Talent:
  • Lovable posts roles widely but finds that the best candidates often come through curated referrals (Dive Talent Network) and proactive, targeted cold outreach (11:03–12:21).
  • Team members frequently reach out personally when they admire someone's work, particularly on Twitter, but also LinkedIn and Instagram.
• Volume Isn’t Everything:
  • High-profile companies receive a flood of applications, so standing out on first impression and craft matters more than volume or pedigree.

3. The Portfolio: Make the Work Shine

• First-Second Impressions Matter (12:57–13:43):
  • Design basics must be on point—typography, rhythm, color, spacing. Badly formatted resumes or portfolios are immediate disqualifiers.
  • Think of your portfolio like a landing page or product: it’s a product of one (yourself) for the hiring manager. Treat visual storytelling as seriously as you would in your design work.
• Intention & Craft Over Process:
  • Clarity, intentionality, detail, and pride in presentation come through immediately and make candidates memorable.
  • Avoid excessive process explanations—focus instead on letting the work be the hero (19:54–21:14).

Notable Quotes

“Every single thing we know about optimizing landing pages…all of it applies. I’m looking for a gut reaction in the first few seconds, the same way that I would do with a product or with a brand.” – Nad Chishtie (13:51)

“Don’t make people work to have to guess what level you put on yourself or what good looks like to you.” – Nad Chishtie (24:39)

• Specific Portfolio Example (Matt):
  • Matt’s portfolio stood out because of clean aesthetics, super high-signal content, memorable microcopy (“20 years of experience spent at 12,800% zoom”), and meticulous attention to visual detail. (18:30–23:39)
  • His work evoked care and intentionality—making it compelling even with minimal process description.

Notable Conversation

Ridd: “You just kind of have to understand what part of the process you’re in… You’re not doing the hard sell, you’re just trying to get someone to say, ‘Sure, I’ll bump them to the next round…’” (21:01)
Nad: “Exactly…over-explaining your process…is also quite risky. It’s just best to champion the work.” (21:14)

4. What if You Don’t Have Visual Craft?

• Own Your Blind Spots:
  • If visuals aren’t your strength, be honest—explain in your application and double down on strengths through writing, product thinking, systems thinking, or even simply showcasing strong, minimal resume design (27:53–30:40).
  • Well-articulated personal growth areas and honest self-evaluation are green flags.
• Writing Counts:
  • Thoughtful, opinionated blog posts or short essays signal drive, perspective, and engagement—sometimes more than visual polish (30:40–31:03).

5. Intrinsic Motivation & Going Beyond the Day Job

• Learning Slope and World-Class Ambition:
  • Nad prefers candidates with high learning velocity who want to become world class at something—driven by intrinsic motivation, not just external incentives (31:58–32:37).
• Side Projects Matter:
  • Side projects can almost entirely compensate for less impressive professional experience—if they’re well-framed and show clear intent (33:48–36:07).
  • But, they need context and narrative; ambiguous “failed startup” side projects can confuse if not properly introduced.

Notable Quote

“The two things we care about are the work itself and does this person care? And that’s it.” – Nad Chishtie (36:32)

6. Interview Process & Signals of Success

Process Stages:

• 1. Intro Round: (40:49)

  • Two-way conversation; half the call is for candidate’s questions.
  • Signal comes from what the candidate asks—well-researched, opinionated, high-signal questions impress.

  “I get so much signal based on what people are asking me… opinionated in a prepared way... that’s incredible signal for me.” – Nad (41:54)

• 2. Past Work Round: (42:52)

  • Not a standard “portfolio review”—Lovable asks for the two projects you’re most proud of; craft and ambition matter most.
  • Preparation is key. Candidates who just “show what they have” without following guidance perform poorly.

• 3. (Sometimes) Technical Screen:

  • For design engineers, some technical (coding) assessment.

• 4. Paid Work Trial: (44:44–49:39)

  • A single real workday, paid, to simulate day-one contribution (not a theoretical exercise).
  • Team looks for ability to create immediate inertia, structure, productive autonomy, and effective communication.
  • Quality of output and proactivity (“what would you do tomorrow?”) are strong signals.

7. What NOT to Do

• Don’t Over-Index on Process or Old Work:
  • Avoid presenting old or unambitious projects as your best work; lack of relevant/recent craft is a red flag.
• Don’t Obfuscate Contributions:
  • Overuse of “we” in describing work obscures your role; be explicit about what you personally did (38:13).
• Metrics Are Not a Major Focus:
  • Lovable does not over-emphasize quantifiable impact or OKRs, as metrics are often not reliable in the hiring context (46:10).

8. AI and Tools: Mindset Matters More Than Stack

• Constant Curiosity & Tooling:
  • Tool proficiency signals curiosity, but the “stack” matters less than techno-optimism and willingness to challenge yourself (50:53).
  • AI usage is now an assumed part of workflows; not using it is a red flag.
• Effective AI Use:
  • Using AI tools is a sign of engagement with the future of design, not necessarily “AI-designed” visuals.
  • “If you’re not using AI in any capacity, it’s a little bit like...not adopting digital early in the web.” – Nad (52:28)
• Curiosity as a Differentiator:
  • Indications of willingness to play, experiment, and prototype in new tools are critical soft factors (54:32).

9. Onboarding and What Success Looks Like

• Immediate Impact:
  • New hires are expected to ship something in their first days; within a month, multiple concrete contributions should be evident (55:26).
• Thoughtfulness and Integrity:
  • Designers are trusted with significant product influence; small changes have large impacts, so being highly thoughtful and upholding product/brand integrity is crucial (56:00–57:20).

Notable Quote

“We want people to be thoughtful. Designers…hold the yardstick for what does good look like…maintain integrity and trust from everything from brand to product.” – Nad Chishtie (56:39)

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Portfolios:
  “It’s product work and brand work. You’re trying to scale yourself to someone else who’s never met you before.” – Nad (00:07, 13:51)

• On Side Projects:
  “There’s no ceiling to the hard skills you can put on display [with side projects]…I put the exact same amount of weight…as company work.” – Nad (34:17)

• On Owning Weaknesses:
  “Figure out how to just really own that…your strengths and your limits…we pay a lot of attention to that.” – Nad (27:53, 29:34)

• On Tools & AI:
  “Now I’d say we’re expecting people to be using AI in their core workflows…something’s probably wrong if you’re not.” – Nad (50:53)

Key Takeaways

• It’s entirely possible to stand out through craft and intent, regardless of pedigree or company history.
• Portfolios should embody intentionality, clarity, and pride; less can be more if each detail is considered.
• Personal voice, opinion, and a visible learning drive are highly valued—even critical—at both entry and senior levels.
• Interviewers care most about (1) the quality of your work and (2) your clear dedication and care.
• Interview processes are evolving: real-world, paid exercises trump abstract questions or whiteboard sessions.
• The best candidates know themselves—their strengths, their growth areas, and how to communicate both without pretense.
• Continuous learning and curiosity are the most reliable predictors of success in fast-moving, modern design orgs.

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Generalists over Specialists: 01:23–04:33
• Sourcing & Outreach Strategies: 11:03–12:37
• Making Portfolios Stand Out: 12:57–17:47
• Case Study: Matt’s Portfolio Dissection: 17:47–23:39
• Compensating for Weak Visuals: 27:53–31:03
• Side Projects’ Role: 33:48–36:07
• Anti-patterns in Portfolios (“we” language): 38:13
• Interview Process Breakdown: 40:49–44:44
• Paid Work Trial & Success Signals: 44:44–50:27
• AI and Tooling Mindset: 50:53–54:48
• Traits of Successful New Hires: 55:26–57:20

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