This week, Luke Wroblewski wrote a brief but insightful blog post on the design process. Here is a quick excerpt:

Your first design, while it may seem like a solution, is usually just an early definition of the problem you are trying to solve. This iteration surfaces unanswered questions, puts assumptions to the test, and generally works to establish what you need to learn next.

It’s okay (even encouraged) to start creating mockups before you have all the information you need. Creating early concepts should be part of the process of clarifying the solution. Just be mindful of where you’re at in the process. When you’re still clarifying the problem, it’s probably not the time to obsess about spacing.

Cameron Moll echoes the same sentiment in a post I refer back to regularly:

One of the most effective methods I've found for solving a problem is to dip my toes lightly into the solution once I have a basic, rudimentary understanding of what I *think* the problem is.

It’s normal for the process to feel messy, especially in the early stages. Expecting that re-rework part of the process can relieve a lot of frustration.

After all, the design process isn’t linear. It’s a squiggle.

Source: The Design Squiggle