Therapists, as part of their education, must go through therapy themselves. They are expected to achieve a certain level of insight about themselves – their biases, their discomforts, and so on. While we are not therapists, we go out and study people without that level of self-insight! A lack of self-insight sometimes manifests itself as passion, commitment, or being driven by a mission. While those have their place, it’s easy to become blinded by what we can’t let ourselves see. Sometimes this shows up as discomfort at the micro level, when we react to something a user might tell us about themselves; sometimes it’s a macro issue, when we’re uncomfortable with people who hold different values, preferences, or beliefs than ourselves. And it crescendos as know-it-all douchebaggery, when we think our job is to tell other people what’s best for them – when phrases like “frictionless sharing” fall from our lips as naturally as “what time is dinner?” In this workshop we will delve into the concepts of presence and mindfulness and develop an understanding of how this informs how you engage with the world around you, as a designer and a professional and as a person.

1. The Designer is Present
@WIAD_DC / #WIADDC
01WORLD IA DAY 2015 The Designer is Present

2. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleWhat do we mean by “presence?”

3. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleWhat do we mean by “presence?”
Being aware of
and connected
to the present
moment - and
only the present
moment.

4. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleWhat do we mean by “presence?”
Being aware of
your own
thoughts and
feelings…so you
can make
choices about
how to act.
Being aware of
and connected
to the present
moment - and
only the present
moment.

5. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleSelf-awareness is a muscle that grows with time
Why Self-Awareness Is the Secret
Weapon for Habit Change
– 99U, Aug 13, 2014
It’s human nature to first experience
and then explain. Catching ourselves
before we engage in our typical
default reactions is one of the
greatest challenges of our lives, but
when done relentlessly and with
discipline and moments of reflection,
mindfulness ensues. The pursuit of
self-awareness is difficult and
requires dedication.
http://99u.com/30437

6. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleThis is important to us

7. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleMindfulness

8. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleIn the Zeitgeist

9. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleExercise: Let’s do a nano-meditation
“Meditation is not the absence of
thought, but the presence of
awareness.” – Irene Au

10. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleSeven Attitudes of Mindfulness
Non-judging We bring our own ideas to a situation. We
can notice our own thoughts but not act on
them.
Patience Things happen in their own way and in their
own time.
Beginner’s Mind Approach a situation having let go of what we
already think we “know.”
Trust Look to yourself – even if you make mistakes
– rather than outside yourself.
Non-striving Not trying to make things different but just
allowing them to be as they are.
Acceptance Seeing things as they are, now.
Letting Go/Non-attachment Not holding on to how you want things to be.
Adapted from Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn

11. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleValidating is judging; Empathy is not sympathy
http://youtu.be/1Evwgu369Jw

12. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleRelationship between mindfulness and empathy
An Appeal to Our Inner Judge
– NYT, Aug 2, 2014
Recognize and accept that you have
biases. Develop the capacity to
observe yourself in action and to
notice when certain people or
circumstances serve as triggers.
Learning to slow down decision-
making, especially when it affects
other people, can help reduce the
impact of bias. This can be
particularly important when we are in
circumstances that make us feel
awkward or uncomfortable.
http://nyti.ms/1xZb4vw

13. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleRelationship between mindfulness and empathy
No Time to Think – NYT, July 25, 2014
Studies suggest that [a lack of
presence] impairs your ability to
empathize with others. “The more in
touch with my own feelings and
experiences, the richer and more
accurate are my guesses of what
passes through another person’s mind.
Feeling what you feel is an ability that
atrophies if you don’t use it.”
http://nyti.ms/1pzBHFt

14. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleRing my bell

15. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleMind and body

16. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleListening
Yes! Not so much.

17. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleSelf-knowledge elsewhere

18. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleSelf-knowledge elsewhere

19. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleSelf-knowledge elsewhere

20. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleWe are bound by our aspirations/inspirations
We think we know what
the solution is.
We think we know what
other people are about.
We can’t hear them.
We design for our “vision”
not for their needs.

21. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleExercise: It’s Going To Be Okay

22. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title style
Reframing

23. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleA shaggy-dog story

24. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleCognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) – the reframe
How (negative) thinking affects feelings and behavior
“She was totally furious when I handed her the letter!”
[What else could be the reason for her action?]

25. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleExercise: Come up with a really bad idea
Write or sketch the worst
idea for a product, service,
feature that you can come
up with

26. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleExercise: Hand off your bad idea
Pass your bad idea to
someone else…

27. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleExercise: Hand off your bad idea
Pass your bad idea to
someone else…
Design the circumstances
where that bad idea
becomes a good one.

28. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleExercise: Discuss
Pass your bad idea to
someone else…
Design the circumstances
where that bad idea
becomes a good one.
With the people around you,
share a few examples.

29. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title style
Marina Abramović

30. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleMarina Abramović: The Artist Is Present
xxx

31. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleMarina Abramović: The Artist Is Present
xxx

32. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleExercise

33. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleExercise Debrief

34. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title style
Noticing

35. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleNoticing Our Users
Noticing the noticing sensation
Things that make you go “Hmm”
Your attention is grabbed
You stop what you are doing
Laugh/point/cringe
Furrow brow in confusion
Whut tha…?

36. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleNoticing helps you to notice later

37. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleNoticing helps you to notice later

38. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleNoticing helps you to notice later

39. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleNoticing helps you to notice later

40. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleNoticing helps you to notice later

41. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleBuilding Noticing Muscles
Carry a camera/notepad and use it
Thinkaloud protocol – say what you’re
seeing (to a friend or device)
Get out of your regular/comfort zone

42. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleBuilding Noticing Muscles
http://bit.ly/1Dy7D2Z

43. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleExercise: Tuning the senses (time permitting)
Part 1
Close your eyes
Capture observations of other people using only sound
Part 2
Observe behavior (out of earshot) in this room
In another setting we’d go somewhere else, an atrium or upper level
Capture observations of other people using only visual

44. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title style
Resources, presentations and to purchase
http://rosenfeldmedia.com/books/interviewing-users/
More from Steve
Interviews with in-house user research leaders
http://www.portigal.com/series/DollarsDoDonuts/

45. The Designer Is Present ‹#› Portigal
Click to edit Master title styleQuestions/Comments/Takeaways

46. THANK YOU.
Please Contact:
Steve Portigal
Portigal Consulting
steve@portigal.com | @steveportigal
THANK YOU.
WORLD IA DAY 2015 The Designer is Present