Experience engineering
Interfaces, accessibility and human factors.
Make the next action understandable. Examine the difficult states, the small screen, and the way back when something goes wrong.
Untangle an experienceTHE SALESMANALWAYS READY FOR THE CHALLENGE
01 / 10 · First Class
Continue the storyCampaign archiveOpen full artwork
A fresh feature each hour. This scene stays with you while you read.
WELCOME ABOARD · DREAM STEP ENGINEERING
The world's worst seatbelt salesman.
I tend to explain the crash before I sell the seatbelt.
Understand what happens when the happy path ends. Then build for it.
Got something complicated, broken, or worth building? Good. I like a challenge.
THE SALESMAN MAKES THE INTRODUCTION.
DREAM STEP ENGINEERING DOES THE WORK.
01 / THE PROBLEM
Complicated.
Broken.
Worth building.
A promising idea can still have a rough landing.
The form nobody finishes. The handoff nobody owns. The beautiful interface that makes a simple thing difficult.
Start with what actually happens to the person trying to get something done. Follow the whole journey. Find the part that needs work.
See what we can work on02 / ENGINEERING CAPABILITIES
Engineering for the human experience.
We design systems that make complicated things easier to understand, safer to use, and more dependable in everyday life.
Connected systems
Reliable product journeys from beginning to end.
Connect the interface to the work behind it. Make the handoffs, records, and recovery paths part of the design.
Follow the whole journeyDesign leadership
Turn difficult problems into practical next steps.
Give the idea a clear purpose, a workable scope, and a next step that can be examined in the real world.
Find the next step03 / SELECTED WORK & SOURCE RECORDSLOOK UNDER THE BONNET.
The work should speak for itself.
Public projects, original artwork, and a closer look at the thinking behind them.
AN IDEA
NapkinSketch
Where an idea begins.
Explore NapkinSketchA SONG
SongSketch
A song, prepared.
Explore SongSketchTHE WORK
PosterityOS
The operating environment for the work.
Explore PosterityOSPublic projects from the SmallStep Ventures portfolio, with their original descriptions. Explore the Founder Notes and Michael’s original career artwork for the story behind the work.
04 / THE FLIGHT PLAN
A good departure starts on the ground.
One Dream. One Process. One Step. One Tomorrow.
A method conceived and designed by Living Instruments™. Applied through Dream Step Engineering.
Find the promise.
Who is this for? What should become easier, clearer, or possible?
Walk the journey.
Look at what exists, where it breaks, and what the next person has to do.
Agree the step.
Define the scope, deliverables, price, and responsibilities before work begins.
Build. Check. Return.
Test the agreed result, explain the handoff, and make the next step clear.
05 / THE FIELD GUIDE
Safety Essentials.
Stories about engineering, responsibility and the real world.
SAFETY ESSENTIALS 001
The Flight Plan
A shared language for how we build.
Read the introduction
A plan is useful when people can act on it. Name the promise, understand the journey, and choose a step small enough to inspect.
The question to take with you: What would tell us this actually worked?
Walk through the Flight PlanRead the original artwork as text
SAFETY ESSENTIALS 002
Please Be Seated.
The sign is on.
Read the introduction
Good instructions arrive before the difficult moment. A useful interface makes the current state, the available action, and its consequence understandable.
The question to take with you: Can someone tell what to do without already knowing how it works?
Bring a confusing experience
SAFETY ESSENTIALS 003
Women and Children First.
Human-centered safety begins with people.
Open playlist edition 003 on Today’s Notes
Read the introduction
Design decisions have consequences for the people who depend on them. Look for the person the default journey leaves behind, and examine the alternatives with them.
The question to take with you: Who cannot complete this journey as it stands?
Explore experience engineeringOriginal campaign artwork with introductions written for this website. Playlist edition 003 is available on Today’s Notes. Verified playlist destinations for 001 and 002 are not yet available here.
06 / MEET THE ENGINEER
Design leaders aren't born. They're made.
A few decades of building, learning, getting things wrong, and making the next thing better.
Michael Darius is the design founder behind Living Instruments and Dream Step Engineering. The salesman has the knowing smile. Michael brings the practice.
Meet the practice behind the salesman.
“If it sounds clever but doesn’t work, I didn’t sell it.”Explore the engineering practice
The adjacent artwork is Michael’s original account of his design career.
Read the original artwork as text
Transcription of Michael’s original artwork, with its date groupings and career descriptions preserved.
MICHAEL DARIUS
DESIGN FOUNDER
SYSTEMS BUILDER
PEOPLE FIRST
Design leaders aren’t born. They’re made.
A few decades of building, learning, getting things wrong, and making the next thing better.
Here’s my flight plan.
- 1995 – 1996
- Sony Electronics — Lead Interface Designer
Early work in consumer electronics. Focused on simple, intuitive experiences for connected devices.
- 1996 – 1997
- Globalstar — Senior Interface Designer
Designed interfaces for mobile satellite communication. Learned how people, networks, and tools fit together in the real world.
- 1997 – 1998
- 3Com — Lead Interface Designer
Worked on networking products and developer tools. Focused on usability and real-world reliability.
- 1999 – 2005
- Apple — Senior Designer
Helped launch the iTunes Music Store. Designed and built Apple’s early cloud services (.Mac, MobileMe, iCloud). Turned bold ideas into simple, delightful experiences for millions of people.
- 2005 – 2025
- Design Leadership and Independent Practice
Various roles across design, product, and systems. Helped organizations bring ideas to life, simplify complex problems, and create experiences that people can trust. (Details available on LinkedIn.)
- 2026 – PRESENT
- Living Instruments · FOUNDER
Build tools, systems, and learning experiences that help people create, preserve, and stay in control of their work and their story.
Small Step Ventures · FOUNDERA personal portfolio of ventures, each with a promise of its own. Modest housing trade. Practical support. Real opportunities.
Dream Step Education · FOUNDERBring design, engineering, and creative confidence into classrooms and communities. Learn the practice. Bring it into your classroom.
THE FLIGHT PLAN
SAFETY ESSENTIALS 001
A shared language for how we build.
07 / THE CHALLENGE DESK
Bring the idea.
We'll find the next step.
You bring the problem. I’ll bring the uncomfortable questions.
Seatbelt Sales makes the introduction. Dream Step Engineering does the work.
YOUR INQUIRY GOES TOMichael Darius · Dream Step Engineeringmichael@dreamstep.engineering
Your email draft.
To: michael@dreamstep.engineering
Opening your email app does not send the message. Review it there and choose Send. If your email app does not open, copy the draft and address into the app you use.
08 / WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
No mystery connection.
09 / OBJECTIONS ANSWERED
Fair questions.
An uncomfortable question is usually a useful one.
Are you actually selling seatbelts?
The salesman is the character. The work is engineering. Seatbelt Sales introduces Dream Step Engineering through stories, questions, and a little aviation.
Who would I be working with?
Michael Darius at Dream Step Engineering. That is the business and delivery identity for an engagement. The Dream Step method was conceived and designed by Living Instruments.
What if I don’t know what is broken?
Describe what you are trying to do and where it becomes difficult. You do not need to arrive with a diagnosis, a specification, or the solution.
Do I need a large project?
Bring the actual problem. The conversation can establish whether there is a useful, manageable next step. Scope and availability need to be agreed.
How much does it cost?
Pricing follows the agreed work. Your first inquiry does not create an engagement or payment obligation. Any proposal and payment arrangements come from Dream Step Engineering.
Can you work with what we already have?
That is where the conversation starts. Show the existing experience and its constraints; then decide what should be kept, repaired, or changed.
Where are the music and social links?
Safety Essentials has three original campaign identities. Open playlist edition 003 on Today’s Notes from the Safety Essentials section. Verified playlist destinations for 001 and 002 are not yet available here. TikTok, Instagram, and LinkedIn are the character’s social stages; this website is home base.
10 / CONTINUE YOUR JOURNEY
There's more on board.
11 / THE FINAL INVITATION
I don't need to sell you a seatbelt. I need to know what you're building.
One Dream. One Process. One Step. One Tomorrow.
Bring the ideaI leave the runway cleaner than I found it.