 |
| Source: dailydesignnews.com |
Summary
“People seek
out and pay attention to information and cues that confirm their beliefs. They
don’t seek out—in fact, they ignore or even discount—information that doesn’t
support what they already believe.” – Susan Weinschenk
100 Things
Every Designer Needs to Know About People is a book by the renowned behavioral
psychologist Susan Weinschenk that explains the various aspects of everyday
design that is important to come out with a practical solution; something that
is quite crucial for every designer to ensure that they meet the expectations
of their clients with complete satisfaction.
Weinschenk
has written this book, keeping in mind how the designers work for creating
great user experience. It is for all kinds of designers – a website designer, a
car model designer, or an engineering device model maker. The book put a lot of
emphasis on the fact that the right kind of design for people is something that
is greatly influenced by a designer’s experience of what she/he knows and
understands about those people, for whom she/he is working on a design.
The book
gives a detailed elaboration of differentiating between the good and bad types
of design, based on the user's requirements and interests.
Why I
picked this book
As an artist
and writer, I have always been fascinated by finding out what kind of content
people like and why they like it. Besides, I am also a student of Interactive Media
Management and the core objective of this program is to learn about the best
user design experience and how to implement it. The title of the book really
intrigues me. So, I went through a few of the reviews online and decided to
give it a go.
My expectations
from the book and what I got out of it
Before
opting for this book, I went through several reviews by my professors,
batchmates, and websites like Goodreads to get a glimpse of what it has to
offer. I had been looking forward to honing my skills of observing the users in
a better manner and design for them that serves the objective. Once I began
reading the book, I found it meets all my expectations.
I found this
book quite helpful in getting a clear understanding of how the design
aesthetics work and what I should take care of while working on any design
element for the users.
Key
Takeaways
The book
categorically divides people's perspective of art based on their emotions,
interests, and decisions. it elaborates on the following aspects:
1. What people read
2. What people remember
3. What people think
4. Where people focus
5. Motivations
6. People as social animals
7. What people feel
8. Mistakes
9. What people decide
Out of these
9 categories, the ones that I found quite crucial for any interactive media
professional are what people remember, what motivates people, and
what people feel.
What
people remember
Every single
minute, an individual goes through hundreds of visual elements in his life –
posters, flyers, banners, online ads, television commercials, and many more.
Hence, the attention span of every individual is significantly lesser than what
it used to be a decade ago. As Agile coach and group fitness coach Geoff Mazeroff has stated, people remember only 4 things at once. Therefore, a designer needs to observe what a
user remembers amid the hoard of all the visual elements and plan his design
strategy accordingly.
What
motivates people
People tend
to be motivated when they know that they are getting closer to their goals.
They like it when they know that they have control over something that they own
or want to own. As a designer, coming out with elements that give the user a
more interactive control is something that will always satisfy them.
What
people feel
Human beings
are emotional animals. They are attached to certain people, places or objects
such as specific food or sports. Therefore, by analyzing a user’s psychology
and by focusing on their various interests and choices, a designer can come out
with a product to which the user will feel attached, something that will
comfort them and give them a feeling that it is all theirs.
My
professional and personal insight
I found
these key points quite crucial, both personally and professionally. Not only
they are important to understand the user’s psychology in the best manner
possible, but also to deliver the end product that meets the expectations with
utmost satisfaction. As mentioned on Goodreads,
this book combines real science and research with practical examples to deliver
a guide every designer needs.
Besides,
this book has changed my perspective of seeing everyday things to a significant
extent. I observe my surrounding elements with a keener interest; doors,
tables, chairs, staircases. This book has opened the doors in my thinking
process that were closed and I didn’t even know they existed in the first
place!
