Deep Listening - Indi Young
Ep. 44
You probably would agree that if we want to make products and services that people want and use, we have to talk to those people. Whether you’re involved in product strategy, UX, development, marketing, any part of building products or a business or a service – I imagine you’d agree that you’ve got to understand what your audience or user’s goals, what will really serve their needs and motivates them. And how do we do that? We talk to them. More importantly, we listen to them talk. So, how do we get them to talk about what’s really most important to them?
You might say, ask them. And if I’m not getting the right information, maybe I need better questions. And you wouldn’t be wrong, asking good questions is really important in user research, but today we’re going to explore a different approach than what you might be used to in user research.
The emphasis here is not on asking people the right questions, it’s on identifying the objective, and then, listening. And listening some more. And not guiding the conversation, but just… listening deeply. It's focused on getting into someone's most inner unconscious purpose and motivations, and this will help you identify the most important opportunities to act on. This is something you can practice with customers for product strategy, and you can also use these techniques in relationships at work to create impactful change in how you work together. It’s harder than it sounds, but the results can be eye-opening.
My guest, Indi Young, is a researcher who coaches, writes, speaks, and teaches about inclusive product strategy. Her books on mental models and empathy are widely known & respected, and personally, I've been a fan of hers for years and I have learned so much from her. She's developed this approach of deep listening over many years, she offers training and coaching in it, and now she's written a book about Deep Listening called Time to Listen.
Order Indi’s book here: https://indiyoung.com/books-time-to-listen/
Get training by Indi on Deep Listening: https://indiyoung.com/training-sectionpage/
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