Why is it that is my favorite kind of fun? 

I’m not an adrenaline junkie by any stretch of the imagination, but the thrill of taking a right hand turn just as fast as you can without losing the backend of the car, or gliding down the mountain on skis just edging you toward loss of control, that is what I call fun. Mountain biking is a great example. A sport I’ve taken up in my middle-aged years, I swear it would’ve changed the whole trajectory of my life had it been around when I was a teen. I find it highly valuable because the uphill hard work is paid off almost immediately by the downhill sensation of a joy ride; Instant Gratification, another of my favorites. 

In Corporate America and user experience design research, I talk a good game about the work I do…but my actual work…if rushed or hurried or pressured, can be scrappy. Downright sloppy. If we were riding the same hill, competing in a mountain bike race, I’d be throwing elbows, talking trash the whole way. Since we’re not, I’m internalizing all of the stated goals as well as the unspoken ones, the subtle conflicts and team dynamics of the project, working my tail off to ensure I meet my promised deliverables even when they are dependent upon other people’s work. I’ve been doing this for 20 years now, and it’s true that some parts of the project get easier, other parts have gotten harder. This is what I call dangerous fun. I remind myself design research is not a competitive sport, one team, one dream. But I want my work to be heard and I want to influence the teams’ decision making.

Challenging assumptions, testing limits. The best design researchers are able to do this with grace, tact and a loyal following of executives that love the ROI of the project — even when it’s hard to quantify, yet easy to assess. In adrenaline sports, and even in the everyday fitness hero that I am when walking my dog, I suppose I will always be looking for that divide – between the known and the unknown, the uphill hard work for the payoff of the downhill coast – the competitive fun run and the drive to win, all coming from the same unnamable place.