Hopefully, this will be my first step into acquiring an ability to make things [...] that people see and say “wow!” Overall, great article, but keep in mind th

Hopefully, this will be my first step into acquiring an ability to make things [...] that people see and say “wow!” Overall, great article, but keep in mind that the goal of good design isn't to make people go "wow," it's to be invisible. The best interfaces are the one people don't even notice. Remember that you're designing for your users, not for other designers. It's surprisingly easy to forgot that. Also, I recommend checking out "Design of Everyday Things" by Donald Norman. It's an excellent introduction into usability design.