Episode 265 | Indi Young - Empathy In the Problem Space

Guest: Indi Young @indiyoung Indi Young talks with Dave Rael about complexity, design, empathy, interaction, and the human condition Indi Young has written two books, which are loved by thousands of practitioners and referenced by many curriculums. She has presented at 40+ conferences globally. In 2001, she was a founder of the UX agency Adaptive Path. She got her start as a software engineer, with a Computer Science B.S. from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in 1987. In her early projects, she realized that there was a gap between what her team knew, as engineers and creators, and what people were trying to ultimately accomplish. Her career has been dedicated to closing this gap. Chapters: 1:33 - Dave introduces the show and Indi Young3:49 - Dark patterns5:14 - Complexity in systems, humanity, reciprocation, and meritocracy11:12 - Non-neutrality of software, realities of humanity and limitations of algorithms17:16 - Problem-space research21:54 - Problem-space research in agile environments24:55 - Defining empathy, the types of empathy, and criticisms of empathy applicable only to the emotional contagion type26:21 - Distinguishing affective empathy and emotional contagion29:35 - "Emotions are like the weather - you can't make them go away. You can't blow at the cloud and make it go away, but you can bring an umbrella and protect yourself." -Indi's neighbor31:24 - Empathy and compassion and getting in touch with "what makes someone tick" - building trust40:04 - Ways Indi teaches41:49 - Advice for developers isolated and lacking access to the problem space45:28 - Indi's book recommendation47:39 - Quick wins for moving in the direction of problem-space focus49:40 - Worthiness of empathy, the person and the conviction, and good energy54:07 - Indi's top 3 tips for delivering more value54:59 - keeping up with Indi Resources: Indi's Website Indi's Resources Page With Links to Mental Model Generators Mental Models: Aligning Design Strategy with Human Behavior - Indi Young Practical Empathy: For Collaboration and Creativity in Your Work - Indi Young Autopoiesis Marc Rettig Cyclomatic Complexity Design for Real Life - Sara Wachter-Boettcher Inadvertent Algorithmic Cruelty - Eric Meyer Introduction to Problem Space Research - A Course Taught by Indi Philip Morgan on Developer On Fire Against Empathy: The Case for Rational Compassion - Paul Bloom Inside Out (2015 film) Inside Out Sadness comforts Bing Bong Andrea Goulet on Developer On Fire The Developer On Fire Community on Facebook White Men Can't Jump White Men Can't Jump - Glass of Water Extreme Programming Explained: Embrace Change, 2nd Edition (The XP Series) - Kent Beck Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ - Daniel Goleman 5 Questions with Dave Gray: Liminal Thinking, Doom Loops, Attention, Beliefs, Filter Bubbles & More Courage is not the Absence of Fear - Michael Hyatt Indi's book recommendation: Liminal Thinking: Create the Change You Want by Changing the Way You Think - Dave Gray Indi's top 3 tips for delivering more value: Build relationships Listen first Algorithms are no neutral