Apocalyptic Zombies and Washing Machines: Lessons Learned From UX Launchpad

“Make a list of everything you can do with a brick.”

I frantically start to scribble in my notebook. Rows of unusual ideas materialize as my hand flies across the page. A smear of black ink streaks as my finger brushes the wet ink of the previous line. I lightly chew the inside of my cheek. My hand starts to cramp, so I stop writing to shake it out. I catch a glimpse of my neighbor’s notebook — perfectly penned rows of text with evenly-spaced bullets — and continue to jot down thoughts in my sloppy, uneven handwriting.

“Okay everybody, let’s go around the room and introduce ourselves. Tell us your name, what you do and the first and last items on your lists.”

I twist around in my chair and listen as people introduce themselves, chuckling at ideas such as “throw it through a window” and “hit somebody in the head.” When it’s my turn, I clear my throat.

“My name is Landon Schropp and I’m a developer and entrepreneur. My first idea is to build a house. My last is cruise control.”

Yesterday, I attended UX Launchpad, a day long user experience workshop taught by Jon Bell and William Van Hecke. These talented fellows guided me and ten other people to becoming better designers. We did hands-on activities, received insightful instruction and ate delicious bacon during lunch.

By the end of the workshop, I was doing mental gymnastics from all the great information I had learned. Here are a few of my favorite lessons from Jon and William.

• “Everyone is a designer.” It’s not as if every person is an all-star designer who will create the next iPhone. Instead, design is a skill and we all practice it in our daily lives. Like other skills, it can be taught and improved.
• “Your first ideas are vital, but not good.” It’s important not to get stuck on the early ideas, but to allow them to flow freely so they lead to something better. It sounds obvious, but this is definitely something I haven’t been doing in my own work.
• “You can never interview users enough.” This struck a chord on my lean startup guitar. It reminded me of Steve Blank’s mantra: get out of the building. Jon suggests using casual meetings to better understand the problems people endure in their daily lives. Ask questions such as “What’s something the average person wouldn’t know about what you do?” or “If you could wave a magic wand, what would you change?”
• “It’s not about the color, it’s about how it interacts.” William noted how well-designed sites use strong contrasts in hue, saturation, and value as a way to draw attention to elements in a design. He blew my mind when he suggested doing the opposite to deemphasize what I don’t want to stand out.
• “The more you sketch, the better you think.” The tactile experience of writing and sketching helps people think better than they would by keeping ideas in their heads. Jon and William have convinced me to carry around a notebook and liberally sketch.
• “Novelty and surprise help you uncover better ideas.” Every person in the workshop was assigned a random product to design by the end of the day. Mine was a washing machine for doctors. After our first hour of design, Jon introduced a technique called lateral thinking, which is a way of getting around blocks by adding absurd constraints. Suddenly, my doctors were washing their clothes during a zombie apocalypse. While this might seem ridiculous, it forced me to consider several new factors, such as the doctor’s safety, morale and exposure to contaminants.

If you’re hungry for more, the UX Launchpad Notes are a treasure trove of valuable information. I’d also highly recommend reaching out to Jon and William and taking the workshop. There’s just no substitute for hands on instruction. I know I’ll be first in line if they decide to offer another course!