• 🎧 Talk: UX Pathways Podcast — Interview with Susan Weinschenk
• 👩‍🔬 Speaker: **Susan Weinschenk (**CEO & Chief Behavioural Scientist, The Team W, PhD in Psychology)
• 📢 Hosted by: Mark Swaine, UX Pathways podcast
• 📺 Watch / Listen
• ⏱️ Full Talk Length: ~20 minutes
• ⏱️ Summary Reading Time: 5–6 minutes

🧠 Key Concepts

1. Susan’s Background: Psychology + Tech

• Began in psychology, stumbled into UX through a programming assignment at Penn State.
• An error message (“Job Aborted”) triggered her aha! moment: tech must speak human.
• Founded her consultancy, The Team W, with her son, mixing behavioural science and UX.

2. Author of Multiple UX Books

• Her most famous book, 100 Things Every Designer Needs to Know About People, was her sixth — a reminder not to give up after early projects.
• Encourages aspiring writers and UX professionals to stay persistent and embrace iteration.

3. Why Bad UX Still Exists

• Despite decades of knowledge, bad UX persists due to:
  • Flawed software development processes.
  • Misaligned priorities (speed > human focus).
  • Lack of awareness or care from non-UX roles.
  • UX professionals not being involved early enough in projects.

4. Creating UX Aha Moments

• Her workshops are built to give people insight experiences — moments where they realise why bad UX happens and how to fix it.
• Teaching brain science and behavioural psychology is key to improving design thinking.