(originally posted at https://adrianhoward.com/posts/four-categories-of-asshole/) Earlier this year I got involved in a “discussion” with somebody about their sexist language, and how they reacted when they got feedback on that language from one of the people affected. Details unimportant. I’m not this person’s boss — this was at a conference —…

(originally posted at https://adrianhoward.com/posts/maslows-hierarchy-of-nicolas-cage/) Inspired by David Bland’s Nicolas Cage based explanation of Cynefin I wasted 30m last night coming up with the equivalent for Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Yes. I’m aware there are lots of issues with Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. This is a joke :-) Further reading: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs on Wikipedia especially the “Criticism” section.

How communities of practice lie to themselves & everybody else — There are a couple of biases I see around how folk inside and outside communities of practice perceive each other. Something I’ve seen often enough that there is probably a name for it. But I don’t know what that name is. Some smart social psychologist, anthropologist or sociologist probably wrote…

24 March 2018, The Skiff, Brighton — I always enjoy the annual UX Camp Brighton unconference, and this year’s was no exception.

I’ve been having a lot more conversations in recent months with people who are new to leadership roles in UX. They worry about transitioning to the role. They worry about what their first steps should be. They worry about how to handle taking over from somebody else (or, in some…

The answer to “How do I get better at usability testing?” is always going to be “Do more usability tests”. However, I often get asked after a workshop which books I recommend to help people get started. …

Shipwrecks, Black-Ops Scientologists, Pirate Space Stations, Cloche Hats & Emotional Illustrations — The Thirteen-Gun Salute, Patrick O’Brian The Thirteen-Gun Salute (Aubrey/Maturin Series, Book 13) (Aubrey & Maturin series) Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin tales are widely acknowledged to be the greatest series of historical novels ever…amzn.to Continuing my Patrick O’Brian re-re-re-read. Traitors. South America. Assassinations. Dissections. Great apes. Banking failures. Shipwrecks. All the good stuff. A somewhat cliffhanger ending too. I can imagine being somewhat annoyed if I had to wait for “The Nutmeg of Consolation”, but fortunately I don’t have to wait!

Questions to keep you focused on user story value — Consider a user story…

After my workshops on Customer Interviewing I’m often asked which books I would recommend for further reading. I always advocate practice as the best way to improve — but these should help you get up and running if you’ve not tried interviewing before. Getting started There are two short (free!) mini-books on…