User Defenders Podcast: Inspiring Interviews With Ux Superheroes

Laura Elizabeth believes developers can learn design. She articulates the importance of reflecting on our users’ needs more than our personal tastes. She touches on how making a product makes us better designers. She also inspires us to always be genuine in our dealings with our customers if we want to build (and keep) trust. Secret Identity (4:05) Origin Story (9:55) Biggest Superhero (13:32) Biggest Failure (16:23) Design Superpower (20:54) Transition from Freelance to Product (23:04) Design Kryptonite (26:13) Design Superhero Name (29:34) Should Developers Design? (34:10) Habit Of Success (42:59) Invincible Resource (48:55) Book Recommendation (52:09) Listener Question (54:58) Best Advice (59:39) Connect & Keep Up (64:08) Check out the detailed show notes and Eli Jorgensen’s astonishing superhero artwork at userdefenders.com/040 This episode is brought to you by Adobe, makers of XD. Try it free at userdefenders.com/xd Get your FREE audiobook from Audible at userdefenders.com/freebook. No commitment.

Joe Leech shows us how psychology helps frame what we’re seeing in user research. He articulates why the superpower we need is understanding how business works. He inspires us get out of our seat and talk to executives in the organization more about the business. He also challenges us to not just always be shipping, but always be shipping the right things. Secret Identity/Origin Story (4:39) Biggest Superhero (14:50) Biggest Failure (22:37) Awkward Testing Story (30:03) Design Superpower (32:03) Design Kryptonite (33:34) Design Superhero Name (36:52) Fight For Users (42:03) Psychology & Design (43:05) Habit Of Success (49:48) Invincible Resource (51:26) Book Recommendation (54:40) Best Advice (57:49) Contact Info (59:46) Check out the detailed show notes and Eli Jorgensen’s astonishing superhero artwork at userdefenders.com/039 This episode is brought to you by Adobe, makers of XD. Try it free at userdefenders.com/xd Get your FREE audiobook from Audible at userdefenders.com/freebook. No commitment. Canc

"Do yourself a favor and show this to as many people as you possibly can, because this is going to be the world that we’ll be living in. Being able to show this to somebody and see that click happen, and hear them say, ‘Oh my God, my whole life just changed’ is a really cool thing to witness." – Austin Knight Check out the detailed show notes at userdefenders.com/mr-2  

"We are now in the midst of the largest technological revolution of our lifetime. Like that of the dawn of the PC or smartphone. It’s not so much of a prediction as an observation we can make. We can see that it’s actually happening before our eyes." – Austin Knight Check out the detailed show notes at userdefenders.com/mr-1

Femke encourages us to take pride in our process by being willing to show our crappy work. She shows us how every small step can lead to something big. She teaches us how we can achieve anything in life, if we’re willing to take action. She also challenges us to wake up early to get the stuff done that we “never have time for”. Secret Identity/Origin Story (2:26) Biggest Superhero (9:52) Biggest Failure (13:25) Design & Personal Growth (19:28) Crappy Work Article (23:36) Design Superpower (36:56) Book Recommendation (40:07) Design Kryptonite (43:47) Habit Of Success (47:05) Stay Inspired (53:26) Invincible Resource (55:09) Best Advice (57:56) Contact Info (60:32) Check out the detailed show notes and Eli Jorgensen’s astonishing superhero artwork at userdefenders.com/038 This episode is brought to you by Adobe, makers of XD. Try it free at userdefenders.com/xd Get your FREE audiobook from Audible at userdefenders.com/freebook. No commitment. Cancel in 30 days, and you won't be charged. The book is still

Andy Vitale is using design to literally save lives. He shows us how empathy is the key to any product’s success. He motivates us to stay driven, and bring our own seat to the table. He shows us how true leaders take the time to understand what drives their team. He inspires us to always […]

Buy the Book Buy Justin’s great book through my Amazon affiliate link, and help User Defenders at no additional cost to you. Win/win! Buy Book “We create human-centered interactions and experiences in our field. Empathetic purpose drives our every decision. Mobile First? In reality, it’s humans first. This same mentality, turned inward, forms the cornerstone […]

Nick Finck teaches us the value of being a connector, and mentoring other designers. He gives us a really compelling, dare I say accurate look into the future of UX. He inspires us to make sure we unplug every once in a while. He also motivates us to find the sweet spot between users, the […]

Samuel Hulick shows us how to build bridges for our users. He motivates us to make sure that the effort put into building the software is not wasted in the onboarding experience. He also inspires us to stay curious, and always be learning. Secret Identity/Origin Story (5:04) Onboarding Defined (9:30) Biggest Superhero (16:08) Biggest Failure (17:00) Weirdest Teardown (32:00) Design Superpower (39:20) Design Kryptonite (41:24) Design Superhero Name (42:40) Habit Of Success (48:30) Invincible Resource (50:23) How Much Is Too Much (52:00) Best Advice (64:20) LINKS Samuel’s Personal Twitter Samuel’s Professional Twitter Samuel’s Website Product People, Mind the Gap! [ARTICLE] Never Mix Up Features with Benefits Ever Again [ARTICLE] The Art of Building (or Burning) Product Bridges [ARTICLE] Kathy Sierra (Business of Software 2009) [VIDEO] Extra Credits (YouTube) [VIDEO]

New Season Starts 6/12 If you’re seeing this on your podcast player, you can also watch the video here. Greetings User Defenders! The new season is starting June 12th and I could not be more excited to share it with you. So much so that I put together a teaser reel. Oh, and I put […]

Jonathan teaches us how product managers are the glue between design and engineering. He reminds us that the most important role we can play in the success of a product is being a voice for the customer. He encourages us to never give up on our personal projects. He also motivates us as designers to […]

“I saw a study that said speaking in front of a crowd is considered the number one fear of the average person. I found that amazing. Number two, was death. Death is number two? This means, to the average person, if you have to be at a funeral, you would rather be in the casket […]

Andrea Picchi reminds us that the core of design is always about people. He dives deep into the importance of design thinking. He motivates us to embrace ambiguity, and to fail as often as possible without losing the job. He also inspires us to believe in design and to always defend the user’s point of […]

Sarah Doody inspires us to break out of our comfort zones early & often if we want to achieve great things. She teaches us that our drawings should serve more as a communication tool than an art project. She encourages us to tap into our superpowers of using both sides of our brain. She also […]

Mat Marquis reminds us that web design is scrappy business. He inspires us to fight for what we truly believe in. He shows us how we can take our designs and skills further by learning a little code. He motivates us to continue to hone our communication skills by writing a lot. He also encourages […]

Aaron Gustafson inspires us to build a web for all people. He encourages us to keep an open mind about perspectives that are different than our own. He motivates us to keep focused on context when it comes to the users we’re designing for. He also challenges us to plant seeds of growth in others […]

Ling Lim inspires us to be relentless in our pursuit of the person we want to become. She teaches us to create products that connect with our users and their lives by becoming them as much as possible. She challenges us to not sacrifice the sentimental quality of a product when we design for it […]

Chris Coyier teaches us that if we care about succeeding in something, we need to be willing to persist for a long time. He inspires us to grab hold of the joy that comes from building for ourselves, too. He encourages us to not just use a framework because we're "supposed to", but to use whatever tool is right for the job. He also enlightens us to the superpower of using SVG in practical ways. LINKS Chris' Twitter Chris' Website CSS-Tricks CodePen The Snowballing Of Practice Made By [VIDEO]

After nearly a year of consistent podcasting, it’s time for me to hit pause… You can also read about this.

I have a listener survey and one of you suggested Nir Eyal as a superguest. Today (thanks to your suggestion) I got to interview the man himself. Nir is the author of the buzz-worthy book Hooked: How To Build Habit-Forming Products. Nir did not disappoint. The guy is a wealth of knowledge and you’ll notice listening […]