This document outlines 24 axioms of user experience design according to Erik Dahl. The axioms focus on putting people first, focusing on the experience rather than just the function, using stories to understand the world, finding the right problems before solving them, knowing the material you're working with, creating models instead of just narratives, reframing constraints as opportunities, managing complexity without oversimplifying, making prototypes and being willing to discard them, and understanding and working with emotions.

1. UXaxioms
eadahl@gmail.comErik Dahl @eadahl
#uxaxioms

2. @eadahl #uxaxioms
ERIK DAHL
Independent Design Consultant
eadahl@gmail.com

3. WTF IS UX?
#uxaxioms

4. #uxaxioms www.slideshare.net/Hienadz.Drahun/50-visual-definitions-of-user-experience
Visual Design: graphic treatment of interface
elements (the "look" in "look-and-feel")
Informatio
of the info
intuitive a
Interaction Design: development of
application flows to facilitate user tasks,
defining how the user interacts with
site functionality
Navigatio
elements
through th
Informatio
designing
to facilita
Functional Specifications: "feature set":
detailed descriptions of functionality the site
must include in order to meet user needs
User Needs: externally derived goals
for the site; identified through user research,
ethno/techno/psychographics, etc.
Site Objectives: business, creative, or other
internally derived goals for the site
Content R
content e
in order to
Interface Design: as in traditional HCI:
design of interface elements to facilitate
user interaction with functionality
Information Design: in the Tuftean sense:
designing the presentation of information
to facilitate understanding
Web as software interface
Visual De
graphic p
componen
Concrete
Abstract
time
Conception
Completion
Functional
Specifications
Content
Requirements
Interaction
Design
Information
Architecture
Visual Design
Information Design
Interface Design Navigation Design
Site Objectives
User Needs
User Need
for the sit
ethno/tec
Site Objec
internally
This picture is incomplete: The model outlined here does not account for secondary considerations (such as those arising during techn
that may influence decisions during user experience development. Also, this model does not describe a development process, nor doe
user experience development team. Rather, it seeks to define the key considerations that go into the development of user experience o
task-oriented
© 2000 Jesse James Garrett

5. Concrete
Abstract
time
Conception
Completion
Functional
Specifications
Content
Requirements
Interaction
Design
Information
Architecture
Visual Design
Information Design
Interface Design Navigation Design
Site Objectives
User Needs
#uxaxioms
USER EXPERIENCE (UX) DESIGN IS A HOLISTIC
ORIENTATION LOOKING AT HOW ‘WHAT WE
MAKE’ IMPACTS PEOPLE, BUSINESS, AND THE
WORLD; AS WELL AS THE STRATEGY TO
IMPLEMENT IT

6. @eadahl#uxaxioms
AXIOM NO. 01
IT’S ALL ABOUT PEOPLE;
IT’S NOT ABOUT THE OBJECT

7. Joe Ballay

8. [ Sorry. You missed a really great video here. ]

9. ...it is in its transparency that
it fulfills its function

10. @eadahl#uxaxioms
FOCUS ON THE EXPERIENCE,
NOT ON THE FUNCTION
AXIOM NO. 02

11. Get out something to
write on/with.
ACTIVITY

12. You have 20 seconds.
Design a vase.
ACTIVITY

13. You have 20 seconds.
Design a vase.
Design a better way
for people to enjoy
flowers in their home.
ACTIVITY

14. You have 20 seconds.
Design a vase.
Design a better way
for people to enjoy
flowers in their home.
Design a better way
for people to connect
with nature.
ACTIVITY

15. @eadahl#uxaxioms
STORIES ARE HOW WE
UNDERSTAND AND
SHAPE THE WORLD
AXIOM NO. 03

16. Clifford Geertz
Culture is simply the ensemble of stories
we tell ourselves about ourselves.

17. Pace Layers

18. Harry Crews

19. [ Sorry. You missed a really great video here. ]

20. Truth of the matter was, stories was
everything and everything was stories.
Everybody told stories. It was a way of
saying who they were in the world. It
was their understanding of themselves.
It was letting themselves know how
they believed the world worked; the right
way and the way that was not so right.

21. @eadahl#uxaxioms
PROBLEM FINDING BEFORE
PROBLEMS SOLVING
AXIOM NO. 05

22. “If I had an hour to solve a problem
and my life depended on the solution,
I would spend the first fifty-five
minutes determining the proper
question to ask, for once I know the
proper question, I could solve the
problem in less than five minutes.”
Albert Einstein

23. “If I had eight hours
to chop down a tree,
I’d spend six
sharpening my axe.”
Abraham Lincoln

26. PROBLEM
SOLVERS
PROBLEM
FINDERS
HOW DO I
DO GOOD
WORK?
WHAT IS
GOOD WORK?

27. REFRAME THE
PROBLEM TO OPEN UP
NEW SOLUTIONS

28. GLOBAL VS. LOCAL MAXIMA

29. @eadahl#uxaxioms
KNOW YOUR MATERIALITY:
PEOPLE, TECHNOLOGY,
BUSINESS, AESTHETICS…
AXIOM NO. 08

30. +
FULL STACK UNICORN

31. SYNTHESIS OF MANY FIELDS
CONSTANTLY EVOLVING LANDSCAPE
Literacy of Materiality and Curiosity

32. COMPREHENSIVE DESIGNER
ARTIST + INVENTOR +
MECHANIC + OBJECTIVE ECONOMIST
+ EVOLUTIONARY

33. SELL YOUR EXPERTISE AND YOU
HAVE A LIMITED REPERTOIRE. SELL
YOUR IGNORANCE AND YOU HAVE AN
UNLIMITED REPERTOIRE
- RSW on Charles Eames

34. WE AREN’T EXPERTS.
WE ARE EXPERIMENTERS.
@eadahl#uxaxioms

35. @eadahl#uxaxioms
CREATE MODELS
NOT JUST NARRATIVES;
USE FRAMEWORKS
AXIOM NO. 10

36. The Deal Addict will split their time
between Browsing and Shopping.
Their Browsing is punctuated by an
effort to find the best deal regardless
of the product. Their Shopping is
defined by comparative pricing.
Inspire Me will spend a majority of
their time Browsing. Their
experience is marked by an indirect
path through the product offering to
find something that excites them.
Basic Value will not spend any time
in the Research or Browse phases
and will spend as little time as
possible in the Shop phase. They
want to get their shopping done and
get on with life.
The Flexible Learner will split their
time evenly across the phases as
they inform themselves. They may
not finalize the purchase within the
30 minute window.
Critical Explorer will spend all of their
time in the Research phase. They
are unlikely to complete their
Research and commit to a purchase
within the 30 minute window.
Research
Research is the gathering and/or
analysis of detailed information about
a specific product, groups of products
or services.
Deal Addict needs to feel powerful
and successful at saving money;
feed that need with information
about savings.
Inspire Me shops for pleasure,
wants to surf around. Help them
jump from one idea to the next to
see what is hot.
Basic Value will appreciate
consistency. Keep designs and
interactions for basic shopping
activities consistent and
predictable.
Flexible Learner needs to stay in a
comfort zone. Provide a
consistent experience with
information, language and
interactions across channels.
Critical Explorer wants in-depth
information about products. Help
them dig deep to find out more
and provide that information.
Browse
Browse is the perusal of products or
services without the direct intention of
purchasing.
Shop
Shopping is the act of searching for a
specific product, groups of products or
services with the direct intention of
purchasing.
Purchase
Purchasing is the act of the exchange
or transaction between the guest and
the store.
Goal Save Money
EMOTIONAL ANALYTICAL
See What’s New Supply Basic
Needs
Feel Confidence Find More
Information
The Critical Explorer will
move out of the Research
phase if/when the right
product is identified.
Flexible Learner will
move onto Shop only
when they are confident
in their decision.
Inspire Me will move
out of Browse when
something delights
them.
Basic Value will move
out of the Shop phase
when the needed
product is located.
Deal Addict will move
from Shop to Purchase if
they are confident they
are getting the best deal.
Target Personas | :30 Minutes to Shop This diagram shows how each persona would spend 30 minutes of their online experience.
Heuristics
Deal Addict Flexible LearnerBasic Value Critical ExplorerInspire Me

38. [ Sorry. You missed a really great video here. ]

40. FITBIT ONE

41. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS

42. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS

43. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
PUNCHING
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS

44. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS

45. Light
Strong
Direct
Indirect
Sudden
Sustained
WEIGHT SPACE TIME
GLIDING
LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS

46. LABAN MOVEMENT ANALYSIS
FLICKING:
WRINGING:
DABBING:
PUNCHING:
FLOATING:
SLASHING:
GLIDING:
PRESSING:
Flexible, Sudden, Light
Flexible, Sustained, Strong
Direct, Sudden, Light
Direct, Sudden, Strong
Flexible, Sustained, Light
Sudden, Strong, Flexible
Sustained, Light, Direct
Direct, Sustained, Strong

47. @eadahl#uxaxioms
REFRAME CONSTRAINTS AS
FORCING FUNCTIONS
AXIOM NO. 11

48. New Languages

49. @eadahl#uxaxioms
TAME COMPLEXITY;
DON’T SIMPLIFY
AXIOM NO. 12

50. COMPLEXITY
DESIGN
OPPORTUNITY
TIME
i
$

51. The law of conservation of complexity
in human-computer interaction states
that every application has an inherent
amount of complexity. This complexity
cannot be wished away and has to be
dealt with, either in product
development or in user interaction.
Larry Tesler, Xerox PARC

52. COMPLEX, BUT NOT COMPLICATED

53. @eadahl#uxaxioms
MAKE STUFF AND
THEN KILL IT
AXIOM NO. 21

55. @eadahl#uxaxioms
UNDERSTAND AND PLAY
WITH EMOTION
AXIOM NO. 24

56. EMOTIONS
TOUCHPOINTS
BJ FOGG’S
BEHAVIOR
CHANGE
FRAMEWORK
BIG IDEAS

57. www.uxaxioms.com
#uxaxioms

58. THANK YOU
eadahl@gmail.comErik Dahl @eadahl