I’m starting to think that being a ux design researcher is sometimes like being a tattle tale. You’re reporting up the chain that something is broken, or doesn’t work the way users would expect it to, or how they’d like it to and guess what? Mommy and Daddy don’t care. There’s a certain comfort level […]
You know the phrase, “you can’t bullshit a bullshitter?” I’ve always understood this, being a self-proclaimed bullshitter. The only person who can really tell if I am lying is my mother, and even though she thinks she knows, she doesn’t always. In the world of business, I contend that in leadership and bosshood, there is […]
Another friend of mine told me about her quitting her part time job in West Oakland, back in the day. This was when she was in her twenties, ahead-of-her-time progressive, and worked in a well-lit, educational, safe and friendly Sex Shoppe in the late 1990s/early 2000s. This shop sold sex toys, porn videos, how-to advice […]
It’s been a while since I’ve had that feeling, you know the one. When you finish a project that was much needed; where the impact – the results – the manifestation of your efforts is clear and indisputable. Maybe it’s as plain as taking the squeegee down the glass without a streak, maybe it’s more […]
The euphemism is thrown around a lot during someone’s first week/month/quarter at a new workplace. When a veteran at the startup asks a newbie, “How’s it going? You picking up what we putting down? Or as Anna Weiner’s crew in Uncanny Valley says, “You down for the cause?” A typical newbie response, if they’re savvy […]
The other day I interviewed a friend of mine who is a personal trainer, just for this blog. She agreed because I promised her anonymity, and because I always want to know the seedy, dirty, gross parts of any job. She happily complied, drawing on fifteen years of experience both working at name brand gyms […]
When I was seven, my favorite joke went like this: Two guys sitting on a fence, Pete + Repeat. Pete falls off. Who’s left?Repeat.Two guys sitting on a fence, Pete + Repeat. Pete falls off. Who’s left? Repeat For a seven year old, this was a joyous loop of giggling. For my friends and family, […]
Move the Needle Thread The Needle Disengaged Stakeholders At the End of the Day Bottom Line Ship It Cutting Edge/Bleeding Edge Technology Customer Centric Innovation Disruptive Permission/Forgiveness Rule In 2016 I bought Sarah Cooper’s book “100 Tricks to Appear Smart in Meetings” because it seemed so real and true to what I was hearing in […]
How does this thing work? Isn’t it intuitive? Can we break this down so I don’t have to think about it, read a manual, reference a tool tip or a watch a canned on-boarding slideshow? Can you explain it to me like I’m five – like they do on reddit-sometimes with a side of mansplaining? […]
I used to own a Bouvier, a dog that is about 120 pounds of powerful fluff. When I first inherited him, he was about 3 years old, and pretty well trained, but not yet neutered. Other dog owners scolded me and told me his enthusiasm for play and full body contact with other dogs of […]