The Informed Life

Peter Bogaards is an evangelist, educator, and coach at Informaat experience design. Peter has shared design knowledge via his InfoDesign blog since 1997. In this conversation, we discuss his recently proposed canon on UX. Show notes Peter Bogaards (about.me) Informaat InfoDesign – Sharing knowledge is better than having it A canon of user experience: Seminal works of a discipline (A work in progr...

Madonnalisa Chan is director of product management, taxonomy, and content services at Salesforce. I’ve known Lisa for a long time and admire her work as a taxonomist. But this conversation doesn’t focus on her work; instead, we discuss how she uses physical notes to manage her personal life. Show notes Madonnalisa Chan on LinkedIn Salesforce Pensieve (Harry Potter Wiki) Learning How to Learn cours...

Boon Yew Chew is a strategic designer at Elsevier and a leader in IxDA, the Interaction Design Association. In this conversation, we delve into Roam Research, which Boon uses to take notes and tame “an ever-evolving multi-dimensional beast of knowledge.” If you’re enjoying the show, please rate or review it in Apple’s Podcasts directory:  https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-informed-life/id1...

Dan Klyn is co-founder of The Understanding Group , an information architecture consultancy based in Michigan. Dan has also created useful and influential IA frameworks, and in this conversation, we focus on his latest: the BASIC framework. If you’re enjoying the show, please rate or review it in Apple’s Podcasts directory:  https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-informed-life/id1450117117?itsc...

In observance of the winter holidays, this episode doesn’t feature a guest interview. Instead, I reflect on five themes that emerged in the diverse conversations we hosted on the podcast during 2021. I wish you and yours happy holidays! Cover photo by Waldemar Brandt on Unsplash . If you’re enjoying the show, please rate or review it in Apple’s Podcasts directory: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/pod...

Dan Brown is the co-founder of UX design studio EightShapes . He’s also the author of Communicating Design , Designing Together , and Practical Design Discovery . In this conversation, we focus on Dan’s Information Architecture Lenses, a set of cards that help designers interrogate IA decisions. If you’re enjoying the show, please rate or review it in Apple’s Podcasts directory:  https://podcasts....

Hans Krueger is co-founder of the international design consultancy MetaDesign. He also co-founded another design consultancy, FutureDraft, where we worked together for several years. In this conversation, we discuss Hans’s trajectory and how ancient teachings have helped him better understand his emotions. Show notes Hans Krueger (LinkedIn) Now Partners Erik Spiekermann Uli Mayer-Johanssen MetaDes...

Annie Murphy Paul is an acclaimed science writer. Her work has appeared in the New York Times , the Boston Globe , Scientific American , Slate , Time magazine, The Best American Science Writing , and other publications. Our conversation focuses on the subject of her latest book, The Extended Mind , which is about how human cognition relies on our bodies, other people, and the material world. I lov...

Patrick Tanguay is a self-described "generalist, synthesist, and curator of eclectic ideas." His weekly newsletter, Sentiers , surfaces deep posts about highly relevant topics and provides insightful commentary and ideas. In this conversation, we discuss the tools and methods that enable his curation and sharing process. Show notes @inervenu on Twitter About Patrick The Alpine Review Sen...

Nathan Shedroff is an entrepreneur, author, speaker, and a colleague at the California College of the Arts , where we both teach in the graduate interaction design program. Nathan has worked for a long time on driving innovation and sustainability through design. This conversation focuses on his latest project: Foodicons, which is creating a shared, open-source, and royalty-free iconographic langu...

Sunni Brown is a social entrepreneur who uses visual literacy, design thinking, and visual facilitation to solve complex problems. She's the author of The Doodle Revolution and co-author of Gamestorming . In this conversation, we discuss Sunni's current area of focus, which uses Zen Buddhism and design thinking to help individuals craft a more fulfilling and engaged life. Show notes Sunn...

Karl Fast is an independent scholar, information architect, and futurist. He's the co-author of Figure It Out: Getting From Information to Understanding . This is the second half of a two-part conversation about interaction and embodiment. If you haven't done so already, please listen to part 1 before listening to this episode. Show notes @karlfast on Twitter  Karl Fast on LinkedIn Figur...

Karl Fast is an independent scholar, information architect, and futurist. He's the co-author of Figure It Out: Getting From Information to Understanding alongside Stephen Anderson, who was featured in  episode 39 of the show . In this conversation, Karl tells us about what interaction designers can learn from cognitive science. We had a lot to discuss, so this episode is the first of two on t...

In this conversation, we discuss Career Architecture , the focus of her current coaching work and subject of her upcoming book. Listen to the show  Download episode 68 Show notes MagsHanley.com Mags Hanley on LinkedIn Seth Godin BBC Career Architecture by Mags Hanley (preorder) Some show notes may include Amazon affiliate links. I get a small commission for purchases made through these links.

No guest in this episode. Instead, I answer listener questions. If you have a question you'd like me to address on the show, please email me at live@theinformed.life or tweet to @informed_life . Listen to the show  Download episode 67 Show notes The Informed Life  episode 17: Rachel Price on Improvisation  The Informed Life  episode 65: Sarah Barrett on Architectural Scale A brief history of...

Jim Kalbach is the chief evangelist at MURAL, a leading provider of online visual collaboration software. He's the author of Designing Web Navigation (O'Reilly, 2007), Mapping Experiences (O'Reilly, 2016), and his latest, The Jobs to Be Done Playbook (Rosenfeld, 2020). In this conversation, we dive into Jobs to Be Done, how it relates to design, and how jobs can create an “out of bo...

Udhaya Kumar Padmanabhan is a Global Strategic Design Director at Designit , an international strategic design consultancy. He is based in Bangalore, and in this conversation we talk about challenges and opportunities inherent in designing information systems for the Indian market. Listen to the show  Download episode 65 Show notes Udhaya Kumar Padmanabhan (LinkedIn) Designit Languages of India (W...

Sarah Barrett is a principal IA Manager at Microsoft. She's been writing compellingly about information architecture in Medium, and in this conversation, we focus on her most recent posts, which deal with how architectural scale affects our perception of information environments.  Download episode 64 Show notes Sarah R. Barrett @documentalope (Sarah Barrett) on Twitter Known Item (Medium publ...

Sophia Prater is a UX design consultant and chief evangelist of object oriented UX, a methodology that helps teams tackle complex design challenges. In this conversation, we discuss OOUX and how it differs from other methodologies.  Download episode 63 Show notes @sophiaux on Twitter Rewired (Sophia's consultancy) Ooux.com The Object Oriented UX Podcast Object-Oriented UX , by Sophia Prater (...

Alla Weinberg helps teams and organizations improve the quality of relationships at work. She has a background in design, but now calls herself a ‘work relationship expert.’ In this conversation, we discuss her new book, A Culture of Safety , and how teams can create environments that allow people to do their best work together. Listen to the show  Download episode 62 Show notes @IamAllaW on Twitt...

Jeff Sussna is a consultant and author specialized in helping organizations deliver software more effectively. This is Jeff’s second appearance on the show. In this conversation, he tells us about Customer Value Charting, a visual tool that helps teams balance strategy and agility. Listen to the show  Download episode 61 Show notes Sussna Associates Designing Delivery: Rethinking IT in the Digital...

Kat Vellos on Friendship Kat Vellos uses her background in experience design to empower people to learn, grow, and thrive. She’s written two books on adult friendship, We Should Get Together and Connected from Afar . In this conversation, we discuss the importance and challenges of making friends, especially during this time of ‘social distancing.’ Listen to the show Download episode 60 Show notes...

Matt LeMay is a product management consultant and author. He’s a co-founder and partner at Sudden Compass , which helps companies reconnect with their customers and helps teams focus on addressing human needs. He’s the author of Agile for Everybody and Product Management in Practice . In this conversation, Matt shares with us One Page / One Hour, his pledge to make project collaboration more agile...

Jesse James Garret is a renowned leader in the user experience design field. He’s a co-founder of the influential UX consultancy Adaptive Path and author of The Elements of User Experience . These days, Jesse coaches UX design leaders. In this conversation, we discuss the relationship between leadership and information architecture. Listen to the show  Download episode 58 Show notes Jesse James Ga...

In his consulting practice, Ben Mosior teaches Wardley Mapping, a tool for visualizing strategic intent. In this conversation, we dive into Wardley Maps: what they are and how they can help us make better strategic decisions.    Listen to the show   Download episode 57   Show notes   Learn Wardley Mapping @HiredThought on Twitter The Phoenix Project by Kevin Behr Leading Edge Forum Wardley maps: T...