Design is becoming more popular and accepted in companies and businesses around the world, as the importance of the digital world is continuing to grow. But are we being more successful with the products and services we are creating? Each choice that we make is shaping the future of our world. Are we making the choices that matter or are we just checking a box in a process or succumbing to the cargo cult of user experience. Like the latest fashion diet, don’t blindly follow the latest design craze or “silver bullet” process. The success of good design isn’t new and relies on a core set of first principles that if followed will lead to better outcomes, but it is up to all of us to make it happen. Join Erik as he discusses these first principles of good design as we collectively shape our future.

1. Designing Our Futures
Erik Dahl
March 8, 2016
#uxaxioms
eadahl@gmail.com
@eadahl

2. Erik Dahl
Independent Designer
IxDA, President
MidwestUX Conference, co-founder
eadahl@gmail.com @eadahl

4. Part I
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5. “We are called to be architects
of the future, not its victims.”
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-R. Buckminster Fuller

6. Comprehensive designer =
artist + inventor + mechanic
+ objective economist +
evolutionary strategist
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7. Take a Breath
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8. “If you think good design is
expensive, you should look at
the cost of bad design.”
Dr. Ralf Speth, CEO Jaguar
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9. #uxaxioms@eadahlhttps://www.artefactgroup.com/content/design-maturity-survey/

10. #uxaxioms@eadahl
Cargo Cult UX/Design

11. WTF is UX?
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12. www.slideshare.net/Hienadz.Drahun/50-visual-definitions-of-user-experience
Visual Design: graphic treatment of interface
elements (the "look" in "look-and-feel")
Informatio
of the info
intuitive a
Interaction Design: development of
application flows to facilitate user tasks,
defining how the user interacts with
site functionality
Navigatio
elements
through th
Informatio
designing
to facilita
Functional Specifications: "feature set":
detailed descriptions of functionality the site
must include in order to meet user needs
User Needs: externally derived goals
for the site; identified through user research,
ethno/techno/psychographics, etc.
Site Objectives: business, creative, or other
internally derived goals for the site
Content R
content e
in order to
Interface Design: as in traditional HCI:
design of interface elements to facilitate
user interaction with functionality
Information Design: in the Tuftean sense:
designing the presentation of information
to facilitate understanding
Web as software interface
Visual De
graphic p
componen
Concrete
Abstract
time
Conception
Completion
Functional
Specifications
Content
Requirements
Interaction
Design
Information
Architecture
Visual Design
Information Design
Interface Design Navigation Design
Site Objectives
User Needs
User Need
for the sit
ethno/tec
Site Objec
internally
This picture is incomplete: The model outlined here does not account for secondary considerations (such as those arising during techn
that may influence decisions during user experience development. Also, this model does not describe a development process, nor doe
user experience development team. Rather, it seeks to define the key considerations that go into the development of user experience o
task-oriented
© 2000 Jesse James Garrett
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13. Concrete
Abstract
time
Conception
Completion
Functional
Specifications
Content
Requirements
Interaction
Design
Information
Architecture
Visual Design
Information Design
Interface Design Navigation Design
Site Objectives
User Needs
UX ≠ UI
#uxaxioms@eadahl

14. Concrete
Abstract
time
Conception
Completion
Functional
Specifications
Content
Requirements
Interaction
Design
Information
Architecture
Visual Design
Information Design
Interface Design Navigation Design
Site Objectives
User Needs
User Experience (UX) Design is a holistic
orientation looking at how ‘what we make’
impacts people, business, and the world;
as well as the strategy to implement it.
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15. Part II
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16. Close Your Eyes
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17. #uxaxioms@eadahl
It’s about PEOPLE;
It’s NOT about the OBJECT

18. Joe Ballay
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20. ...it is in its transparency that
it fulfills its function
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21. #uxaxioms@eadahl

24. #uxaxioms@eadahl
Focus on Experience,
NOT on the Function.

25. Get out something to
write on/with.
ACTIVITY

26. You have 20 seconds.
Design a vase.
ACTIVITY

27. You have 20 seconds.
Design a vase.
Design a better way
for people to enjoy
flowers in their home.
ACTIVITY

28. You have 20 seconds.
Design a vase.
Design a better way
for people to enjoy
flowers in their home.
Design a better way
for people to connect
with nature.
ACTIVITY

29. #uxaxioms@eadahl
Stories are how we
understand and shape
the world

30. Clifford Geertz
Culture is simply the ensemble of stories we tell
ourselves about ourselves.
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31. Pace Layers
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32. Harry Crews
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34. Truth of the matter was, stories was everything and
everything was stories. Everybody told stories. It was a
way of saying who they were in the world. It was
their understanding of themselves. It was letting
themselves know how they believed the world worked;
the right way and the way that was not so right.
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35. #uxaxioms@eadahl
Problem Finding Before
Problem Solving

36. “If I had an hour to solve a problem and my life
depended on the solution, I would spend the first fifty-
five minutes determining the proper question to ask, for
once I know the proper question, I could solve the
problem in less than five minutes.”
Albert Einstein

37. “If I had eight hours to
chop down a tree, I’d
spend six sharpening my
axe.”
Abraham Lincoln

40. PROBLEM
SOLVERS
HOW DO I DO
GOOD WORK?
PROBLEM
FINDERS
WHAT IS
GOOD WORK?

41. Reframe the Problem
to Open Up New Solutions

42. Global vs. Local Maxima

43. #uxaxioms@eadahl
Create Abstractions & Models,
Not Just Narratives;
Use Frameworks

44. #uxaxioms@eadahl

45. http://boxesandarrows.com/how-to-make-a-concept-model/ #uxaxioms@eadahl

46. The Deal Addict will split their time
between Browsing and Shopping.
Their Browsing is punctuated by an
effort to find the best deal regardless
of the product. Their Shopping is
defined by comparative pricing.
Inspire Me will spend a majority of
their time Browsing. Their
experience is marked by an indirect
path through the product offering to
find something that excites them.
Basic Value will not spend any time
in the Research or Browse phases
and will spend as little time as
possible in the Shop phase. They
want to get their shopping done and
get on with life.
The Flexible Learner will split their
time evenly across the phases as
they inform themselves. They may
not finalize the purchase within the
30 minute window.
Critical Explorer will spend all of their
time in the Research phase. They
are unlikely to complete their
Research and commit to a purchase
within the 30 minute window.
Research
Research is the gathering and/or
analysis of detailed information about
a specific product, groups of products
or services.
Deal Addict needs to feel powerful
and successful at saving money;
feed that need with information
about savings.
Inspire Me shops for pleasure,
wants to surf around. Help them
jump from one idea to the next to
see what is hot.
Basic Value will appreciate
consistency. Keep designs and
interactions for basic shopping
activities consistent and
predictable.
Flexible Learner needs to stay in a
comfort zone. Provide a
consistent experience with
information, language and
interactions across channels.
Critical Explorer wants in-depth
information about products. Help
them dig deep to find out more
and provide that information.
Browse
Browse is the perusal of products or
services without the direct intention of
purchasing.
Shop
Shopping is the act of searching for a
specific product, groups of products or
services with the direct intention of
purchasing.
Purchase
Purchasing is the act of the exchange
or transaction between the guest and
the store.
Goal Save Money
EMOTIONAL ANALYTICAL
See What’s New Supply Basic
Needs
Feel Confidence Find More
Information
The Critical Explorer will
move out of the Research
phase if/when the right
product is identified.
Flexible Learner will
move onto Shop only
when they are confident
in their decision.
Inspire Me will move
out of Browse when
something delights
them.
Basic Value will move
out of the Shop phase
when the needed
product is located.
Deal Addict will move
from Shop to Purchase if
they are confident they
are getting the best deal.
Target Personas | :30 Minutes to Shop This diagram shows how each persona would spend 30 minutes of their online experience.
Heuristics
Deal Addict Flexible LearnerBasic Value Critical ExplorerInspire Me
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48. #uxaxioms@eadahl

49. FITBIT ONE
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50. #uxaxioms@eadahl

51. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS
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52. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS
#uxaxioms@eadahl

53. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS
PUNCHING
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54. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS
#uxaxioms@eadahl

55. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS
FLOATING
#uxaxioms@eadahl

56. #uxaxioms@eadahl

57. #uxaxioms@eadahl

58. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS
PUNCHING
#uxaxioms@eadahl

60. LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS
FLICKING:
WRINGING:
DABBING:
PUNCHING:
FLOATING:
SLASHING:
GLIDING:
PRESSING:
Flexible, Sudden, Light
Flexible, Sustained, Strong
Direct, Sudden, Light
Direct, Sudden, Strong
Flexible, Sustained, Light
Sudden, Strong, Flexible
Sustained, Light, Direct
Direct, Sustained, Strong
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61. A Design Practice for the 21st Century
Metaphor
Abstraction
Reflexivity
Feedback
Pace
Agency
Opacity
#uxaxioms@eadahl
Matt Nish-Lapidus
http://interaction16.ixda.org/session/a-design-practice-for-the-21st-century/

62. #uxaxioms@eadahl
Reframe Constraints as
Forcing Functions

63. New Languages #uxaxioms@eadahl

64. #uxaxioms@eadahl
Tame Complexity,
Don’t Just Simplify

65. COMPLEXITY
DESIGN
OPPORTUNITY
TIME
i
$
#uxaxioms@eadahl

66. The law of conservation of complexity in
human-computer interaction states that every
application has an inherent amount of complexity.
This complexity cannot be wished away and has
to be dealt with, either in product development
or in user interaction.
Larry Tesler, Xerox PARC
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67. COMPLEX, BUT NOT COMPLICATED
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68. Part III
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69. #uxaxioms@eadahl
Have a Vision For Your Future

70. http://www.businessinnovationfactory.com/summit/story/necessary-discourse-unfinished-design
Michael Dila
A Necessary Discourse On The Unfinished Design
“We tend to sit back and allow
the heroic innovations of
others to justify our own
creative passivity.”

71. Visualize Your Future Identities
Effort before Identity Identity before Effort→
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72. MWUX
15 PGH
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73. #uxaxioms@eadahl

74. Project Capybara
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75. 15 people
+35
+20
+60
+45
+30 +75
TUESDAY
11:40AM -
11:50AM
#uxaxioms@eadahl

76. #uxaxioms@eadahl

77. #uxaxioms@eadahl

78. #uxaxioms@eadahl

79. #uxaxioms@eadahl

80. #uxaxioms@eadahl
Take steps to make your
future vision a reality.

81. You have to have a future vision.
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82. What is your future vision?
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83. www.uxaxioms.com
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84. All of us are responsible for creating the future.
#uxaxioms@eadahl
Have a vision of the future you want to create.
Every artifact we create, shapes the world.
Be mindful of what you are creating.
…so make stuff that matters.

85. Thank you!
#uxaxioms
eadahl@gmail.com
@eadahl
Erik Dahl