[steve_adams_86]

This is great. Everything I could think of and more.

All of my years dealing with UX, the best work I've done has been when I think less of what I believe, what I want, what I think is right; it's not about that. It's entirely about the people you're building for. They aren't users, they aren't UUIDs in a database, they're human beings.

I started my career fairly sure that I knew what I was doing and I knew how to solve problems. I was totally incorrect. People solve the problem for you, but you have to watch and listen. You can fill in gaps and use intuition here and there, but for the most part, you're working in the interest of the people you build for. They aren't using what you build in the interest of proving your sensibilities.

[sonofhans]

> People solve the problem for you, but you have to watch and listen.

I love this. It reminds me of my favorite saying about design: “People don’t design ships. The ocean designs ships.”

At work I try always to say “human” rather than “user,” for just the reasons you state. Like you, I think I’ve done my best work when I’ve been able to remove myself from the equation. It’s one reason I like building software that I’ll never use myself — it keeps reminding me that I’m not my customer.