Jason Unger

When it is Right to Tell Someone They're Wrong?

Posted by junger - 12/07/09 at 06:12:03 pm

Being agreeable is good thing, right?

It's easier to hold a conversation, share your thoughts and grow relationships with agreeable people. And agreeable people are nicer, more helpful and caring than people who like to argue.

So it's easy to see why we're taught to be agreeable, even if it means we have to agree to disagree.

But that doesn't always work, like when agreeing comes at expense of the truth.

Today, I was given a lesson on some Web usability best practices that were 100% wrong. I mean, I know this — I study usability and have gone to trainings on it. And it wasn't just one mistake, either, it was two big mistakes that contribute to failure, not success.

But even though I knew better, I didn't say anything. It just wasn't worth it. I thought about saying something, though, but there was really no upside to it.

I may not be a totally agreeable person, at least according to Wikipedia and my predictive index. Read this:

Jason is an independent and individualistic person, strong-minded and determined. Venturesome, he will stick his neck out and take responsibility for risks when he believes he is right. He finds the challenge of new problems and new ventures stimulating, and responds to them with action. He has a lot of confidence in himself, his own knowledge, ability and decisions.

I don't know if that makes me egotistical, or just confident, or what — my PI also says I value my own "ideas, judgments, and opinions more than he does those of most other people" — but it got me thinking: when is it right to tell someone they're wrong?

Is ignorance really bliss? Does the truth matter?

Let me know what you think in a comment.

Surprise: Your Users Don't Have Time For You

Posted by junger - 08/27/08 at 09:08:13 pm

Your readers have better things to do than read what you have to say.

Don't believe me? Try these facts on for size:

• 79% of your readers scan text; they don't read it
• Reading on a screen takes 25% more time than on paper
• Intro texts are skipped by 2/3 of users

That's all according to Jakob Nielsen's research, as conveyed during Usability Week 2008 in New York.

Why don't they have time for you? They don't think you're useless, but they care more about themselves. Who can blame them?

Your readers come to you to get a specific piece of information, and then they move on.

So to keep them around, you should bury what they're looking for, right? Wrong.

Give them what they want — right away.

3 Tips for Fast and Easy Comprehension

To make you content easier to digest, use these three methods:

• Lead with the conclusion.
• Shorten your sentences. Use one thought per sentence.
• Visually separate key points with lists or bold.

Old media writers are horrible at this. They bury the lead somewhere in the third or fourth paragraph. Each paragraph is more than 3 sentences long. And the conclusion is at the end.

Don't worry about "giving away" the ending before the reader has done any work. That's not how they see it. Remember: you are not your users.

If you consistently deliver the information that your readers want and how they want it, they'll be back.

Make them happy. Give them what they want as quickly as possible. Or they'll choose someone else to give their time to.