The Unlikely Lesson My Bike Taught Me About People
I just bought a new bike computer.It’s the little gadget that sits on the handle bars and tells you your speed.Anyway, I opened the box and look what I saw:
Do you see this huge piece of paper?Look at the size of it compared to my bike.These are the setup instructions.It took me 10 minutes to read this thing and figure out how to program it for mph, and a 24hr clock.But wait, it’s not rocket surgery.
So why all this reading!?
This is a classic example of how frustrating documentation is.This documentation is here instead of the developers of the bike computer just building something that makes sense without instructions—this is called “intuitive.”I’m paying the price, as the end user, for bad design.But, Chris, how is this relevant to me? I’m not a designer of any kind.The point isn’t about the mechanics of the computer, the point is about how the designers weren’t focused on the end user. You can take this approach in ANYthing you do.Let’s take writing an email for example.Most people read emails on their phones and most busy people get hundreds of emails a day.
How does this translate?
Write in quick, easy to read sentences. Use bullets. Hit the return key a lot and avoid big blocks of text.Reply here if you have more ideas of how to put this into action.The more we share our approaches and examples, the faster we can improve.
2 Minute Action:
Who is your end user?Students? iOS users? Chefs? Painters? Cyclists? LEGO enthusiasts?Thinking about how painful the experience is for your end user, how can your interaction with them easier?How else might you improve your interaction with them?Hit reply and let me know.
The 2 Minute Life Changing Assessment
What are your goals?Close your eyes for a minute and picture what it would be like to be there.
Be specific.
Where are you?How do your days go?Who are you with?The more specific you can be, the better. The point is to realize that it’s these experiences that are what you desire, not the number of dollars you think it’ll take or the title on your business card. Once you’re specific about these questions, you’ll have to take action on the life changing assessment I use many times per year.
2 Minute Action:
Are your current daily behaviors on track to getting you there?That’s it. That question is the whole assessment. You don’t need a specialist to know the answer. You’ll feel it in your gut. Today is the day to either start something or refine your methods. You only have the rest of your life.
A Secret Weapon Most People Don’t Know They Have
When you learned geometry, it wasn’t because you were going to need it later in life.It was taught so you would learn to sit still and follow instructions.Mans maybe that’s important for some people some of the time.But what it doesn’t teach is the practical skills you need to be a productive and informed citizen.Until we change the way we educate, it’s up to you to educate yourself with the things that are useful.That means it’s up to you to determine what’s useful and do the work to learn it.Owning your future means envisioning it, backwards engineering what it takes to get there, and executing relentlessly.Its up to you to figure out how to do all three.Theres no manual and you won’t learn these skills in school.
2 Minutes Action:
Who is someone you admire?Call/email them and ask about their journey.If you have one person in your life who you admire and will talk to you for 30 minutes a month, you have won the lottery.This resource can be a secret weapon that gives insight into yourself and your potential future.