Badass
aren't in the successful product. The answers are in the successful product's users. It's not the product success that matters most, it's the successful results of those who use it. Repeatedly. Consistently. Sustainably. The answer to a sustainable bestseller is to shift the focus from making an awesome product to making an awesome user of that product. The answer lies is helping users become badass not just at using the product, but at whatever it is the product can help them do and be. And some of those answers are surprising, counterintuitive, but can be implemented by anyone at any stage in a product's development. Even if you can't improve your product, you can still improve your user's experience by designing for what happens after they use it. Badass: Making Users Awesome is a course in how to create a context in which users can become more skillful, and, most importantly, to stay motivated to keep moving forward. Everything our users experience is part of that context, and even the smallest improvements can have a dramatic impact.
Stats for nerds
19recommend
24mentions
22people
2015–2025years
88% recommend13% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- - The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick
- Deploy Empathy by Michele Hansen
- Badass: Making Users Awesome by Kathy Sierra
- I'm a big fan of Kathy Sierra's "Badass: Making Users Awesome" [1]
Less about UI but really focused on what users feel and how they experience what you build.
1. https://www.amazon.com/Badass-Making-Awesome-Kathy-Sierra/dp...
- I've mainly been learning by doing (and failing), though I've read these books which helped solve problems I had at the time:
- Badass: Making Users Awesome by Kathy Sierra
- Obviously Awesome by April Dunford
- The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick
- Every book Seth Godin has written, particularly This is Marketing
- Deploy Empathy by Michele Hansen
- Forget the Funnel by Claire Suellentrop and Georgiana Laudi
- “Badass: Making Users Awesome” by Kathy Sierra. I don’t see it often in lists like these. But it’s an awesome and approachable book for framing your products, services, user journey, and marketing from the viewpoint of how they’ll make your users successful and feeling amazing.
- Hiya,
I'd consider these books/articles/podcasts:
* Secrets of Consulting by Gerald Weinberg: http://geraldmweinberg.com/Site/Consulting_Secrets.html Every problem is a people problem.
* Refactoring by Martin Fowler et. al: https://martinfowler.com/books/refactoring.html talks about how and why to refactor, as well as providing a nomenclature for the process.
* Code Complete by Steve McConnell. https://stevemcconnell.com/books/ A bit dated (the last version I could find was from 2004) but a great overview of the entire software process, from requirements to maintenance.
* The Mythical Man-Month by Fred Brookes: https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/mythical-man-month-the/... best practices about software development, written about a project from the 1960 and 1970s.
* The Joel On Software Strategy Letters: https://www.joelonsoftware.com/2000/05/12/strategy-letter-i-... is the first one. All of them (I think there are five) are great.
* Letters to a New Developer: https://letterstoanewdeveloper.com/the-book/ Please note I wrote this, but I still think it does a good job of discussing the "soft skills" in an easily digestible format.
* Pragmatic Programmer by Dave Thomas and Andy Hunt: https://pragprog.com/titles/tpp20/the-pragmatic-programmer-2... Haven't read the revised 20th anniversary edition, but the first one opened my eyes to the craft of software.
* High Output Management by Andy Grove: https://bookshop.org/p/books/high-output-management-andrew-s... a great way to think about throughput
* The Phoenix Project by Gene Kim et. al: https://itrevolution.com/product/the-phoenix-project/ Fun novel(!) about applying lean management principles to software engineering.
* Radical Candor (haven't read, but it's been recommended): https://www.radicalcandor.com/ About communication.
* Good to Great by Jim Collins: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_to_Great Focuses on what great companies bring to the table. Helps me evaluate where to work.
* Mastery Autonomy and Purpose: A great video about what people really want in work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzXXC4MZZnY
* https://www.manager-tools.com/podcasts a podcast about managing people. You didn't say you wanted to be a people manager, but knowing what managers think about will make you more effective in any org.
* Managing Humans by Michael Lopp: https://managinghumans.com/ The whole Rands site is work reading, but I enjoyed this book about how to manage teams and build software. See above.
* Don't Make Me Think by Steve Krug: https://sensible.com/dont-make-me-think/ Easy ways to think about usability, focusing on webapps. Short and easy.
* Badass: Making Users Awesome, by Kathy Sierra: http://seriouspony.com/badass-users-the-book Will help you put yourself in the shoes of your users and think about how to build software they will love. Short and easy.
Hope this helps.
- Yes, it also degrades the possibility of getting higher confidence from practice and training.
I can recommend Kathy Sierra's book "Badass - Making your users awesome" on a refreshing perspective on learning, teaching and communication https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24737268-badass
