Excited for this new book coming up from Cyd Harrell (who’s also a good follow on Twitter, btw), especially the part about “how to show up in spaces dedicated to stewardship rather than profit.” Always happy for design conversations that aren’t about algorithmically testing the conversion rate of different shades of cornflower blue.Continue readingA Civic Technologist’s Practice Guide
First, it’s important to know that UX is a big umbrella term that has eaten many other disciplines. Getting “into UX” could mean becoming a researcher, or writer, or designer, or animator, or even a software developer. Companies often have some sort of UX team or department, but not every job where you’d use UX…Continue readingHow do I get started in UX?
UX writing is less “writing, but apps” and more “design, but words”. What I mean by that is that UX writing is primarily a UX design specialization. UX writers typically focus on interface copy and language while working collaboratively as part of a design team on a specific product or feature, rather than working solo…Continue readingWhat is UX Writing?
As soon as something more formal than conversation starts taking place, many designers feel like they need to ask for a permission slip. You don’t. Never delegate understanding.Continue readingMaking Sense of Things is a Designer’s Job
A bit jarring to see one of the tools of my trade — customer journey maps — pop up in this article about the 737 Max and Boeing’s efforts to manage customer “anxiety” about their totally safe airplane that’s killed 346 men, women, and children. (So far.) I’ve been trying to imagine how it will…Continue readingWeaponized
One of the first times I presented on ecosystem mapping, an attendee shared an image of their own map they’d been inspired to create. It was interesting, colorful, and information-rich. But also? It wasn’t what I’d call an ecosystem map. At first I worried about the quality and clarity of my presentation. But others shared…Continue readingSometimes the box is more fun
The more you know, the less you carry. Mors Kochanski, wilderness survival expert. Writing and sketching. Card-sorting. Diagrams. Interviews. Spreadsheets. Workshops (structured ideation and synthesis). That’s my toolkit, more or less, for most design problems. The further I get into my career the more affinity I have for simple and sturdy intellectual tools that can…Continue readingA smaller toolkit
My first book, Writing for Designers, was released by A Book Apart one year ago today. Personally, much of the past year has been a blur. I experienced a profound loss in December in the death of my mother, a scant 68 days after the book was first released. Reflecting on a year since the…Continue readingA Year of Writing for Designers
My book is in print now. Available in print, anyway. Print on demand. I have a printed copy. (I don’t want to get “you wrote a text”-ed about my book and its relationship to paper. But I digress.) I did not know this was going to happen when I agreed to write for the Briefs…Continue readingUnambiguously mine
The recording is up from my How to Get the Writing Done webinar this week for Gather Content. I think it’s a good one. Leading a one-to-many webinar is a strange affair. Me, alone in my office, wearing a headset, talking out loud at what I hope is a normal volume to an audience of…Continue readingTalking to myself to others