As a designer, you will have to go through rough times. In this presentation, I review how you can get through those rough times by avoiding the seven deadly sins that appear in Design Hell.

2. “When you are going
through Hell, keep going.”

3. 4 June 1940: Battle of Dunkirk

4. Operation Dynamo: The Great Evacuation

5. 338,226 Soldiers Were Rescued

6. 68,000 British Casualties

7. 290,000 French Casualties

8. June 10, 1940: Three Historical Facts

9. June 14, 1940: Paris Falls

10. June 23, 1940: Hitler Visits Paris

11. 28 June 1940: Europe

12. “The Battle for France is Over.”

13. “Battle of Britain is About to Begin.”

14. “When you are going
through Hell, keep going.”

15. How You Can Change
the World?

23. DALLAS
HOUSTON

32. Why Leadership?

33. Research and Testing Expert

34. International Speaker

35. Writer of Books and Articles

36. Keynote Author on SlideShare

37. Addison Treehouse Mentor

38. SMU Instructor for UX

39. UXPA Dallas President

40. Coached Boy’s Soccer (104-12)

41. Conference Organizer

43. Ethics of Leadership

44. Ethics is not about:
“Do This” and
“Don’t Do This”

45. Ethics answers this
profound question:
“What makes me happy?”

50. “When you are going
through Life, keep going.”

51. You are here!

54. Pride

55. Pride is believing you are better
than someone else. Pride (or
hubris) is the most common flaw
in Greek tragedies and myths.
Dante and Virgil see prideful
people must carry heavy rocks
that force them to bow down and
be more grounded.

56. How does a design leader
account for pride in
themselves and their team?

57. Are You Really Doing These Things?
Usability
Testing
User
Research

58. “Humility is not thinking
less of yourself, it is
thinking of yourself less.”

59. Whose Shoes?
User
Research

60. “Before you walk a mile in
my shoes, you have to take
your own shoes off.”

61. Insights or Ammo?
Usability
Testing

62. We talk about:
“Know Thy User.”
We should also say:
“Honor Thy User.”

63. Envy

64. Envy is a jealous feeling or a very
resentful longing for someone else’s
possessions or qualities. It is when
you covet what they have.
When Dante and Virgil meet
envious people, their eyes have
been sewn shut. They lose outer
sight, but they gain insight.

65. How does a design leader
handle envious people,
especially gossiping?

66. Know the Nuances
Grapevine GossipDiscussions

67. Discussions are Positive
Discussions
Workplace discussions are usually:
• Friendly
• Informational
• Supportive
There are no character assassinations or
bullying in these conversations.

68. Heated Discussions are Positive, Too
Discussions
Heated discussions are fine, when you:
• Use a respectful tone
• Listen to other viewpoints
• Focus on the problem, not the person
A heated discussion probably means you
are working on a wicked problem.

69. “In a heated discussion,
ask yourself this question:
Is it personal or personality?”

70. Grapevine = Rumors
Grapevine
Grapevine rumors usually run amok
because of:
• Poor communication
• Changes in the workplace
• Wild guesses by the staff
Grapevine rumors can be very damaging
and demoralizing. They can spread like
wildfire, too.

72. Gossiping is about Envy
Gossipers want attention. They will:
• Adopt a confidential tone
• Impart details to undermine a person
• Do character assassinations
• Create a me-versus-them mentality
You probably hear more information
than you want.
Gossiping

73. 1. Don’t take it to heart.
2. Focus objectively.
3. Deal with it as a task.
4. Arm yourself with facts.
5. Review the context
6. Assess the sources.
7. Be a source of reassurance.
8. Confront the gossipers directly.
When You Get Targeted

74. 1. Don’t participate in the gossip.
2. Ask gossiper about their motivation.
3. Focus on projects, not people.
4. Talk about competitors, not co-workers.
5. Tell gossiper you are prepared to
follow-up with the targeted person.
6. Talk about the positive aspects of
the person.
When Others Get Targeted

75. “The best revenge is
massive success.”

76. Wrath

77. Wrath is a vindictive anger, where
you seek to destroy a person. Wrath
lasts longer than whatever provoked it.
In Dante’s Purgatory, smoke fills the
eyes of wrathful souls. They find it
hard to see and breath.

78. How does a design leader
manage their own anger?
And the wrath of others?

79. “I’m going to destroy
Android because it is
a stolen product.
I’m willing to go to
thermonuclear war
on this.”
--Steve Jobs, 2010

80. iReally?

81. “You cannot expect
rational thinking from
an irrational person.”

83. Rationalization
JustificationBlame

84. Use Humor Tell a FriendFocus on Solutions

85. “Some people come into your
life as blessings.
Other people come into your
life as lessons.”
-- Mother Teresa

86. Sloth

87. Sloth is simply being lazy: mentally
and spiritually. On Mount Purgatory,
Dante and Virgil encounter:
• Lazy people that constantly move.
• Other lazy people jog and climb.
• The laziest run at top speed forever.

88. How does a design leader
stay motivated? How do they
keep their people engaged?

89. Manifestations of Laziness
Apathy Entitlement

90. Manifestations of Laziness
Giving Up Finger Pointing

91. Live in the Moment

92. Develop a Mission Driven Mindset

93. Change Behaviors

95. Develop Keystone Habits

96. Keystone Habits for Designers
Usability TestingUser Research

97. Hard Work = Integrity

98. “Work is not punishment.
It’s a reward that gives you
strength and pleasure.”

99. Greed

100. Greed is an insane desire to acquire (or
possess) more than you need. It can
lead to bribery, hoarding, and stealing.
Dante and Virgil see greedy people lie
naked on the ground because they were
concentrated on Earthly possessions.

101. How does a design leader
handle greedy or
possessive people?

102. • I design everything $100
• I design, you watch $200
• I design, you advise $300
• I design, you help $500
• You design, I help $750
• You design, I advise $1,500
• You design, I watch $2,500
• You design everything $5,000
Design Joke on Facebook

103. Typical Sales Funnel

104. Give Time, Talent, and Treasure

105. Share Your Tools

106. Leaders Share Knowledge

107. “No one have ever become
poor from giving.”
-- Maya Angelou

108. Gluttony

109. Gluttony is an over-consumption of
anything to the point of waste. Gluttons
consume too much, too fast, too soon,
too wildly, and too expensively.
On Mount Purgatory, it rains garbage and
the gluttons eat what they can find. Only
one of them notices Dante and Virgil.

110. Millions Line Up for the Latest iPhone

111. 140 Million Trashed Yearly

112. 1,150,000

113. 5 Phones Per Second

114. Enough to Power for Two Years
2016 2017

115. Are You Reducing?

116. Are You Reusing?

117. Are You Recycling?

118. Are You Restoring?

119. Are Your Designs Accessible?

120. “Nothing is a
waste of time,
if you use the
experience wisely.”
-- Auguste Rodin

121. Lust

122. Lust is an intense desire for fame, sex,
money, or power. It is an unnatural
craving we use to justify bad choices.
In Dante’s Purgatory, lustful souls
twist and swirl in a tornado to symbolize
their own lack of self-control.

123. How does a design leader
handle temptations
and distractions?

124. People Lust for Fame

125. We Reject Speakers Yearly

126. Greedy
Spiteful
Snob
Egotistical
Hateful
Insipid

127. “Silence cannot
be misquoted.”

129. “The currency is in
the conversations.”

130. Create Boundaries

131. Speaker Voting System

134. Code of Conduct Policy

135. Green Room Policy

136. Blacklisted a Few Folks

137. Kicked Out a Few Folks

138. Speaker Orientation

139. Speaker Studio to Critique

140. Slides to Help You Prepare

141. Greedy
Spiteful
SnobIntellectual
Egotistical
Hateful
Insipid

142. “When you are going
to lead, keep leading.”

145. How to Lead at Work

147. “You don’t have to be a manager
to be a leader.”
Rule #1

148. “Leaders are readers.”
Rule #2

149. “Seek first to understand,
then to be understood.”
Rule #3

150. “Follow the ABCs:
Always Be Communicating.”
Rule #4

151. “Leaders are learners.”
Rule #5

152. “Don’t mistake silence
for acceptance.”
Rule #6

153. “Leaders are listeners.”
Rule #7

154. “Preparation determines
success.”
Rule #8

155. “Leaders build other leaders.”
Rule #9

156. “When you are going
through Hell, keep going.”
Rule #10