Writing
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4 July 2026
Deeply personalised learning
If I am reading business advice, it is tailored to my unique goals and situation. If I am learning with someone else, there is a scoreboard. Spaced repetition and active recall built into…
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20 May 2026
Learn and teach
Learn about users. Teach what you've learned to the builders and decision-makers. What makes a researcher effective at this? Here's a take: 1/ Teach only some of what you learn - and do it…
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15 May 2026
It's just an AI wrapper
Nobody looks at a drill and says "it's just a motor." Nobody calls a fan "just a motor with blades." But that's exactly what those things are. It's just that someone put the effort to…
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13 May 2026
AI changes the question
AI changes the question. When an analyst dismisses an alert because the AI flagged it low-priority, did they evaluate it independently or accept the recommendation? Defer too readily and…
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22 April 2026
A reckoning with complexity
Do you take the flight to close the deal, knowing your company has a net-zero pledge? The carbon is real. So is the relationship that won't form over a Zoom call. Do you recommend the…
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20 November 2025
Facilitating insights, not delivering them
The thing is: Researchers aren't the decision makers. We learn from users and carry that information to the people who make decisions. But traditional delivery often fails. Research repos…
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30 October 2025
Steel-manning research findings
1/ risk and impact. what are they risking if they don't act on it. what can they gain if they do. great to include numbers that measure the impact. estimates, quick arithmetic - and walking…
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10 March 2025
First principles of user research
1/ Start with the assumption that you don't know what users need or how they think. (Epistemic Humility) 2/ What people say often differs from what they do. 3/ Many usage behaviors rely on…
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31 December 2024
Learning flows both ways
AI capabilities are improving quickly and users' mental models are shifting with it. What works in Week 1 might be irrelevant by Week 4. In this evolving relationship, designers need to…
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30 July 2024
Andrea Knight Dolan on AI in research
Andrea Knight Dolan is a leading expert in applying AI to UX research. She offers consulting, teaching, and mentorship services to help organizations harness the power of AI for better user…
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5 May 2024
When everyone can create
You no longer *need* to know: - color theory to create illustrations, or - data structures and algorithms to write a program, or - the difference between inductive and deductive reasoning…
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22 September 2023
Books aren't sacred
They are objects like any other. Ink on paper. Dead weight. Collecting dust. A book is only valuable to the degree you engage with it. Argue with the author. Wrestle with the ideas. Test…
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