communication
Observation: speaking in metaphors.
What is it about the metaphor that is so attractive to Designers? It almost feels as if a zippy metaphor will save the day when it comes time to justifying your design. Too often, though, a metaphor ends up feeling forced. I constructed this parable (you can pull the metaphors from it) not to long ago to explain why adding more functionality to a piece of software was not as important as improving user experience:
You go to the store and buy an unassembled bookshelf. You get home, grab your tool box, open up the package, and start laying out the pieces. It quickly becomes apparent that you have no idea how to assemble the bookshelf. That’s where we step in an hand you a hammer. You say, ‘But I already had a hammer’. We reply, ‘Yes, but this one’s bigger’.
Does this get the point across? Not really. We could probably cull a decent metaphor out of the ‘bigger hammer’ idea. If anything, this is an implicit argument about why it’s more important to make software intuitive rather than adding more features. However, there are some gaping holes in this narrative. For example, I conveniently ignore the fact that most sensible people would use an instruction manual to put together a bookshelf. Perhaps I could use that fact for my argument. It could go something like this:
When I go to buy a bookshelf, I am not looking for a box of wood, some screws, and an instruction manual. I am looking for a bookshelf.
That, however, talks about user goals rather than about the functionality vs. user experience. We need to be careful about the way we as Designers try to explain/justify (aren’t those really the same) our ideas. Too often the use of a metaphor obfuscates the points we are trying to make. It’s like saying, “I shared my wisdom, now you figure it out”. Drop the oblique metaphors and say what you want to say. As Designers, one of our basic competencies should be the ability to communicate effectively. All the ideas in the world are meaningless if you can’t convey them to your stakeholders.