How to Beam Light on a Speaker
Specialists often design improvements that inadvertently worsen user experience because they are disconnected from the actual users and their context. This leads to suboptimal solutions that satisfy other specialists rather than end-users.
THE IDEA
How to Beam Light on a Speaker
Those who give lectures to large audiences notice that they—and other speakers—are uncomfortable on the stage. The reason, it took me a decade to figure out, is that the stage light beaming into our eyes hinders our concentration. (This is how police interrogations of suspects used to be run: beam a light on the suspect, and wait for him to start “singing.”) But in the thick of the lecture, speakers can’t identify what is wrong, so they attribute the loss of concentration to, simply, being on the stage. So the practice continues. Why? Because those who lecture to large audiences don’t work on lighting and light engineers don’t lecture to large audiences.
Another small example of top-down progress: Metro North, the railroad between New York City and its northern suburbs, renovated its trains, in a total overhaul. Trains look more modern, neater, have brighter colors, and even have such amenities as power plugs for your computer (that nobody uses). But on the edge, by the wall, there used to be a flat ledge where one can put the morning cup of coffee: it is hard to read a book while holding a coffee cup. The designer (who either doesn’t ride trains or rides trains but doesn’t drink coffee while reading), thinking it is an aesthetic improvement, made the ledge slightly tilted, so it is impossible to put the cup on it.
This explains the more severe problems of landscaping and architecture: architects today build to impress other architects, and we end up with strange—irreversible—structures that do not satisfy the well-being of their residents; it takes time and a lot of progressive tinkering for that. Or some specialist sitting in the ministry of urban planning who doesn’t live in the community will produce the equivalent of the tilted ledge—as an improvement, except at a much larger scale.
Specialization, as I will keep insisting, comes with side effects, one of which is separating labor from the fruits of labor.
When to use it
When designing a new software interface, involve real users in the testing process to avoid features that look good but are impractical.
In urban planning, ensure that planners live in or regularly visit the communities they are designing for to understand daily needs.
When creating training materials, the expert should consider the learner's prior knowledge and avoid jargon that only specialists understand.
In product development, conduct field observations to identify hidden pain points that users themselves may not articulate.
FROM THEORY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
In practice
Stage Light and Speaker Concentration
Speakers on stage are uncomfortable because stage lights beam into their eyes, hindering concentration. They attribute the discomfort to being on stage rather than the lighting, so the practice continues. This happens because speakers don't work on lighting and lighting engineers don't lecture.
Tilted Ledge on Metro North Trains
Metro North renovated trains with modern aesthetics but made the flat ledge for coffee cups slightly tilted, making it impossible to place a cup. The designer, who likely doesn't ride trains or doesn't drink coffee while reading, prioritized aesthetics over function.
Architects Designing for Other Architects
Architects build structures to impress other architects, resulting in designs that do not satisfy the well-being of residents. This is a larger-scale example of the same problem: specialists disconnected from users produce suboptimal outcomes.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Put it to work.
Think of a product or system you use that seems to have been designed without consideration for the actual user. What would you change to improve it?
How can specialists (engineers, architects, designers) better incorporate user feedback into their work?
In what situations have you been the 'lighting engineer' who fails to see the problem from the user's perspective?
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION
Source texts
- Skin In The Game Hidden Asymmetries In Daily Life (Nassim Nicholas Taleb)