A lot of people in our industry haven’t had very diverse experiences. So they don’t have enough dots to connect, and they end up with very linear solutions without a broad perspective on the problem. The broader one’s understanding of the human experience, the better design we will have.
Month: August 2013
Sam
Things I Cannot Recall — Blind Pilot
live and awesome.
How do you honor your users?
Yesterday I saw this great Steve Jobs quote over on MG’s Tumblr:
“Nike sells a commodity, they sell shoes. And yet when you think of Nike you feel something different than a shoe company. In their ads, as you know, they don’t ever talk about the product, they don’t ever talk about their air soles, how they’re better than Reebok’s air soles. What’s Nike do in their advertising? They honor great athletes and they honor great athletics. That’s who they are. That is what they are about”
It got me thinking about the importance of celebrating your users, developers and customers. Not merely for a simple ad campaign or marketing slogans but as a reflection of who you are, what you care about and your relationship with your users.
I’ve often loved the way David Karp and the Tumblr team honor the creative community since the very beginning. They treat them with respect, they stand up for them, allow them to freely express themselves and they shine a bright light on their wonderful contributions in places like the staff blog, Tumblr Radar and Spotlight.
I’d love to see more startups make this part of their company culture. Ideally it’s there from day one. But it’s never too late. Just take a step back and consider why you are doing what you are doing? What is your relationship with your users all about.
The thing about honoring your users is that it isn’t a one shot, silver bullet deal. It’s a commitment you make and a promise you need to keep.
Hi, Sam.
About to buy the Samsung Galaxy S4 but…
There is so much I find appealing and seductive about Android.
Paul Stamatiou’s post, Android is better, left a mark on me because it basically pointed out all of the frustrating things about iOS and Android keeps getting better and better.
I’ve been putting my money where my heart is and buying various Android devices over the years too. I was an early Android user with the G1 and have owned the HTC Incredible and the more recent Nexus 4.
So back to Paul’s post. I’m ready to hit the buy button and pick up a stock Android (w/o Samsung bloatware) on a Galaxy S4 but….
I can’t. At least not just yet.
Some of my favorite apps still don’t exist on Android but I know they will soon (ie Lift, Jelly, AvgCam Pro and a few others). Although there is a sweet private beta of Foursquare that I can’t use yet because it’s running on Android right now.
But I’m guessing the app parity between the platforms is closing and will continue to close. At least that is what I’m seeing with our portfolio.
Yet I still pause…
This vacation I’m currently on is a pretty good example of why.
Our family is way in deep with iOS. All of our chargers on this trip, in our cars and in various rooms in our house have Apple connectors. It’s too easy to plug in and charge without having to get another cable system. (Not to mention, back home all of the iOS devices can beam to the big screens with AirPlay/AppleTV)
I also picked up this waterproof housing for our iPhones. It’s so awesome and we are having a ball with this thing. As far as I know, you can’t get something like this for the Galaxy S4?
So here I am. My heart says one thing and my head says another….
But as for me, I enjoy shooting a picture. Being present. It’s a way of saying, “Yes! Yes! Yes!” It’s like the last three words of Joyce’s “Ulysses,” which is one of the most tremendous works which have ever been written. It’s “Yes, yes, yes.” And photography is like that. It’s yes, yes, yes. And there are no maybes. All the maybes should go to the trash, because it’s an instant, it’s a moment, it’s there! And it’s respect of it and tremendous enjoyment to say, “Yes!” Even if it’s something you hate. Yes! It’s an affirmation.
Henri Cartier-Bresson
James and Sam, doing what they do.