Design is the soul of a product or service.

The Catholic Catechism teaches that the spiritual soul animates the body, transforming it into a living, breathing human being. It describes the body and soul as “two natures” united to form a single essence, inseparably one. (232.) This idea reflects the Latin root of the word soul—anima—which refers to the animating principle of a thing, the very force that makes it alive. Life, of course, is not exclusive to humans. Sunflowers, bees, coral reefs, oak trees, and bacteria all possess an anima, a life force that sets them apart from inanimate objects like mountains, coffee mugs, rivers, or the keys on a computer keyboard.

Products and services, while not living creatures, can feel alive through the interplay of user input and system feedback. This dynamic interaction animates them, making them responsive, engaging, and seemingly “alive.” In their book Org Design for Design Orgs, Peter Merholz and Kristin Skinner provide a thought-provoking definition of design:

“Design is the fundamental soul of man-made creation that ends up expressing itself in successive outer layers of the product or service.”

At first glance, the word soul might seem like a purely religious reference. But through the lens of the Catechism and the Latin root anima, we can understand soul as the animating force that breathes life into products and services. In this way, design becomes more than aesthetics or functionality—it is the very principle that makes human-made creations come alive.