Late summer is when I like to look at the design system with a little distance. The urgent launches have usually left behind small inconsistencies: one-off spacing, extra button styles, and components that almost match.

I do not try to fix everything at once. I start by naming what is real product need and what is just drift. Those are different problems, and they need different conversations.

The best triage sessions are practical. We choose a few components to retire, a few to document better, and a few to leave alone because they are doing useful work.

A cleaner system makes fall planning easier. It gives teams fewer patterns to debate and more confidence in the pieces they already share.