May | 2012 | Balanced Action

Is Technology part of Nature?

May 22, 2012 by philipp68

According to the dictionary one of the definitions of nature is: A creative and controlling force in the universe. When I think about nature I certainly think about all the plants and animals, the whole ecosystem on planet earth. But what about my mobile phone? Is my iPhone part of nature? Is it part of the ecosystem we life in? Here a small story I made up to contemplate this silly question: Once upon a time lived Roxie. An open […]

Categories: Life & Work • Tags: Compassion, Ecosystem, Nature, Technology

A Lack of Appreciation

May 18, 2012 by philipp68

Ever felt frustrated because you don’t get enough appreciation at work for what you do? You are not alone. Did it ever happen to you that you invest all your energy into your work, create something beautiful, something you are proud of and then receive no or only negative feedback? It seems to be a common illness of this world, especially the corporate world. As kids we doodle something and our parents say: “Wonderful, nice colors, incredible, you will be […]

Categories: Life & Work • Tags: Appreciation, Compassion, Heart, Wisdom

It’s all in the DETAILS

May 8, 2012 by philipp68

Want to dramatically boost the user experience of your systems? Ban the word DETAIL from your vocabulary. Why? Your interaction designer will call the ingenuity in a particular beautiful piece of code a detail. Your software architect will call the beautiful shading of the buttons a detail. Your project leader will call your daily interactions with your colleagues a detail. Your CEO might call everything EXCEPT the stock price a detail. What do YOU call a detail? There is nothing […]

Categories: Life & Work • Tags: IAD, Interaction Designer, User Experience

It’s not HOW you do it, it’s WHY you do it!

May 6, 2012 by philipp68

A great user experience does not come from the perfect process, it comes from the right attitude I often ask myself why some teams seem to produce better results while having more fun on the way. The other day, while listening to a wise Sadhu in “Enlightened Up!” I had an epiphany: “It’s not how you do it, it’s why you do it!” That’s the whole secret. Let me explain. Imagine you are in the process of developing a new […]

Categories: Life & Work • Tags: Interaction Design, Usability, User Experience, Wisdom

The Middle Way

May 6, 2012 by philipp68

How Siddhartha can help you to find the middle path between agile and waterfall development philosophies Three years ago my wife, a good friend and myself travelled for the first time to India. On my iPhone the audiobook “Siddhartha” from Herman Hesse, my parents had given to me for my 40 birthday. I was both shocked and fascinated by this incredible country. On the train ride from Goa to Mumbai I was listening to the wonderful story of Siddhartha Gautama, […]

Categories: Agile, Life & Work, Waterfall