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“Please listen to me” – The Worker
Two truths: 1) They know their job better than you 2) They already want to change something Arrogance leads to you coming in with solutions. Sometimes your solutions might even be right, be beneficial, be good for the people you’re solution-izing. But it’s likely, nay certain, that they already want to fix something, want to make…
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Define “Only Enough”
Don’t try to define everything. Not only is it a fruitless task that will forever remain beyond your grasp, it is counter-productive. If you wanted robots, you would have bought robots, not decided to work with living breathing socializing human beings. Robots are cheaper, frankly. No, you have humans around you that can think and decide and…
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The Arrogance of Ignorance
Why do you pretend like not knowing is okay? If you’re trying to do good work in a position that you’re unqualified for, shouldn’t you be asking questions of everybody who comes along? Why are you pretending to be blissful, when you’ve caused harm around you? If she’s explaining something to you that you need…
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Design for the concrete, allow for the abstract
The best designed systems are made easy for the people who think in concrete, in the here-and-now to understand. Software system? Make things happen on-screen, not behind the scenes. Management system? Show people clearly the if-this-than-that rule. Customer facing system? Instant response, instant gratification. Vendor-facing system? Immediate pay. Government system? Show voters that it makes a…
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New Year, More Change
There are two types of change: The type you create (and thus control) The type you don’t create (and can’t control) Remember: Your new year will be filled with change. Pick the kind you prefer.
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Complexity, continued
I got some pushback on my definition of complexity–people thought I oversimplified it. Through discussion, there were good points made. People trying to protect their jobs is NOT the most common cause of unnecessary complexity. Often, people are asked to do things with little help or training, and they do the best they can in…
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Honest Complexity
Dishonest complexity happens when you make things more complex to protect your job. IT technicians can do this and get away with it. Accountants can too. Lone programmers often do this as well. Its easy for doctors, pharmacists, dentists and other highly-educated workers to make this happen. Making something more complex than it needs to…
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A system’s ability to learn
Learning is not strictly an individual human’s job. It is also the job of the system in which they work. There’s examples of computer algorithms that learn from experience, some with more success then others. My favorite algorithm is the auto-correct on my iPhone, that allows my thumbs to flail about with wild abandon and…