A joke works because everything is predictable until it isn’t. Thorbjørn thinks breaking rules works the same way, and that a lot of creative work gets it backwards by trying to be new in every direction at once. The question “What’s something you were taught…
Category: Podcast Episodes
What’s the one thing about human attention that most designers never learn to use on purpose? The question “What’s the one design principle that you think is massively underestimated even by experienced designers like yourself?” This one comes from Martin’s own list, not a listener…
We’re back. After a break, Thorbjørn and Martin relaunch Hidden By Design in two tracks: Talks, opinion-driven conversations like this one, and Learn, deep dives into specific design mechanics and theory. This first Talks episode covers bad design, deceptive design, and what AI is doing…
Figure ground is a funny thing. In essence, it simply mean “forground and background” which should be pretty obvious to have. However, what its all about is how the forground and background of anything plays together, so that you as a designer can use the…
Recently, I wanted a cup of coffee from a coffee machine. I put my cup roughly where I believed that the coffee would come out, I then pressed the coffee I wanted, and then waited.. and waited.. and waited.. then looked at the panel, and…
Prototyping is the art of creating early models to test ideas, emotions, and processes. To make it easier we have split it into three main types: passive prototypes (like mood boards or soundscapes), business prototypes (minimum viable products for market testing), and interactive prototypes (hands-on…
The worlds WORST Chewbacca sound effect is in this episode. If you never heard about Diegetic and Non-Diegetic sound effect, you are not alone, but after listening to this episode, you will know what it is. And you will know how bad Thorbjørn is at…
A composer is a person that decides how you should feel, and then, makes you feel that. Sounds familiar? In this episode we are doing something that we dont do often, interview a person, and this person is Michael Coltham a composer whos box, is…
“This is Dave’s printers. I’m not here at the minute. Please phone me back, see you later.” If you want to hear Martin fail at making an example of a bad voiceover, this is the episode. Even trying to do a bad job, he does…
What is a problem statement really, and is it really nessecary? (Yes it is 😉 ) “Job to be done” is a tool to help you really understand the problem and stay focused on the problem rather than on the solution. Thinking of the good…
Postels law, also known as the “Robustness principle” originally comes from the development and ideas of how the internet should be designed. The TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) was designed with the following sentence as a central point “be conservative in what you do, be liberal…
Do you rember that party you attended, where there was this one person who was really funny, and was the center of attention, and said so many funny things. And then, do you remember other conversations that was happening that night? It likely that you…
Im not a businessman, I dont sell out, I am a designer! I believe that this is a pretty common mindset, and also a really healthy one. But.. and yes, there is a but. If you do not make money, you are not free to…
Damn, I really need the toilet, but I am far away from home! We have all been there, out for a walk, and in need of a toilet! And it appears that the close we get to home, the more we need to go! At…
What is bad design, and how do you identify it? Sometimes you will look at something, and think.. bah, that is a really bad design, the experience is totally off. And often you know this instinctively, but what if it is just a matter of…
UI is not design! And with that out of the way, lets get to the meat of this episode. This is an episode about understanding what User Interfaces (UI) is and isnt. Now that you read this far, then I feel I need to make…
This episode is about the relationship between emotions and decisions. We discuss how emotions are the brains way of making decisions, where as an example “hot state” decisions are made at high emotional influence. Think about your emotions like a cup with a tiny hole…
Why do we need to be great storytellers? And where does Storytelling fit into Design and user experience. This is what we are talking about in this episode. By listning to this you will learn: Resources: Simon Sinek – Start With Why Anthony Jeselnik Studying…
Design Ops is there to help Designers “Doing the job that matters” NNGroup defines the Design Ops as “The orchestration and optimization of people, processes, and craft in order to amplify design’s value and impact at scale.” As soon as more people works together,…
Nothing is also something! And that is exactly what we are talking about in this episode of Hidden By Design. Most people are afraid of Whitespace, and in many cases that is a problem if you are a designer. This conversation will let you know…
Understanding the difference between simple and simplistic, is fundamental to being able to do great design. The second thing you should learn is that users dont care about your design! Once you have these two things in place, then it becomes easier to focus on…
A while back, we asked around for everyones favourite designs and what good design meant to them. In this episode we go through some of the answers and have a discussion about that. Thank you to all who contributed, it was really a pleasure reading…
Time and the use of time is massively underestimated as a tool for anyone who is creating experiences. As a designer, and creator of creative content, there is two types of times. Physical time and Experienced time. In this episode, you will learn how to…
Nudging is the art of “ever so gently” influencing someones behaviour. This could be as simple as a countdown counter to make someone make a choice faster, or in a more serious case, package pills in a way that lowers the suicide rate on a…
Respect a whole person, before you expect a whole person! Let me start by killing a misconspetion about Psychological safety. There is no “Kumbaya” over it, and it does not mean that there will be no conflicts. In fact, Psychologica Safety is about handling conflicts…
Creativity is not just something someone is. Creativity is something that you can be, and train yourself to be. How can I do this, you might ask yourself! Well, you can start by listening to this episode of Hidden By Design, were we will describe…
There is a lot of talk about AI these days. And when it comes to Design and Creatives, there is a lot of fear that AI will come to take our jobs. At Hidden By Design we believe that AI wont take your job. But…
Design thinking is not a new concept, in fact, some would claim that its more than 80 years old and in the making. Design thinking is a method to address human needs and desires in a technologically feasible and strategically viable manner. But how does…
Getting feedback can feel overwhelming and be a bad experience, if done wrong. It can feel personal and agressive, and can often leave you feeling bad about yourself. Giving feedback is a super difficult, and is not, contrary to popular belief an exercie of guiding…
Design Systems is the bridge between professions which most important role is to be the foundation of creating a culture. This is one of the new enlightenments I got out of listening to John Bevan talking about his Passion for Design Systems. If you want…
Motion design is the trade of making design move. In this episode we interview Mark Lawrence, a 24 years in the making and super talented Motion Designer, and he tells us all of the knicks and knacks of motion design. We learn what it is,…
George Miller, wrote a paper in 1965, called “The magical number seven, plus or minus two” which describes limits to our capacity for processing information. This paper laid out the groundwork for “Miller’s Law”, which is “The average person can only keep 7 (plus or…
How fast, or how slow, are you at taking action and making desicions ? Well, that really depends on how many things you are supposed to relate to, how clear the hieracy of the design is presented, how much else is disturbing the picture, and…
Gamification is NOT when you add a leaderboard and set highscores. Gamification is NOT when you simply take popular gamemechanics and push them into your designs, thinking that it will increase engagement. But what is is then? Listen to this episode about gamification, and you…
The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist. Season 2 kicks off with a bang as we dive into the intriguing world of Deceptive Design (formerly referred to as “Dark Design”). We’ll unravel the mysteries surrounding it and show…
We have ended season 1. And to be honest, we cannot wait to start releasing Season 2 and all of the amazing stuff we have in store for you. So, stay tuned, in a couple of weeks we will be with you again, and start…
With this season finale we are answering questions that you, the listeners, have been asking. So, take a few minutes to sit down and listen to us funble around, trying to answer these excelent questions ! You will learn the following Thank you for listening…
The season finale is upon us, but fear not, its only a short break while we prepare season 2. We will be back in September again. In this episode you will learn if Martin paid attention during class, and that Thorbjorn prepared some really though…
“Alright, folks! Buckle up for another mind-bending episode of Hidden By Design, where we unravel the mysteries of perception with a dash of humor and a sprinkle of wit. Prepare to have your mind blown! According to the legendary words of Gustave Flaubert, ‘There is…
Welcome to our latest episode on Hidden by Design where we will be talking about ‘Emotional Design,’ we dive deep into the magical world of aesthetics and its impact on our creativity and problem-solving abilities. As Don Norman famously stated, ‘attractive things make people feel…
What do you really know about colours? That there is 3 primary colours, or do you know the colour wheel.. or who invented the colour wheel? Well, we can promise you, that in this episode of Hidden by Design, we will teach you something that…
Perception and reality is two different things! This is the quote that we start out this episode with, and it set the stage for what you are about to learn. What is actually there is not the same as what people believe is there. And…
Is it possible to meassure how good your design is? In this episiode we will be discussing Utility and Usability, how they are connected and talk about how this is part of understanding and creating userfriendly design. There is 5 traits of good usability as…
Have you ever heard someone say: “Thats not intuitive!” ? Well, chances are that you have, and especailly, as a designer, you will hear this phrase a lot. But what does it mean? In this episode of Hidden by design, we will explore the idea…
Do you have good judgment? Are you able to reflect properly on available information, and come to a sensible conclusion? What can affect your ability to come to this conclusion? Get the answers to all of these question by listening to this episode of Hidden…
Did you ever say that you were in flow? Most of us have, but have you really thought about what it means, and where the word “flow” comes from? In this episode of “Hidden by Design” we are going to take you into the realm…
Our brains really like that things are the way it believes that things should be! So, how do we determine how our brain believe that things should be? Give this episode a listen, as we discuss the ideas of constraints and convensions. I’m in favor…
How does the human brain work? (It doesent) What is Automatic thinking and Reflective thinking? How do we remember things? (We dont) “Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that’s even remotely true!” – Homer Simpson The the answer to all of…
Affordance, is a word that is thrown around a lot in Design. But what does it actually means, and how do you approach it as a designer? We don’t see things as they are. We see things as we are! – Anaïs Nin? Babylonian Talmud? Immanuel…
Design, what is it? A question that have a lot of different opinions attached to it. Design, and the job of a Designer, often gets reduced to “Just make it look pretty” or “This is not intuitive”. But what is design then, if it is…