Designers have a tick, we have an innate need to critique. It comes easy to us, it’s always obvious what should have happened, when, and to what end. This tick exists even when we are humbled by a role, dealing with endless constraints and nothing but wicked complex problems. Our spectator eye is perfect and all knowing after all.

The tick dials up a notch when it encounters products, technologies or scenarios that seem to fall foul of our assessment of doing good, being useful, and being human-centred. We ‘ick’ products that seem over-hyped and under-designed and we often celebrate when they fail.

The thing is, we can’t afford to critique from afar in all cases. So many of these seemingly hostile technologies will shape our world. The human-centricity we hold so dear doesn’t come for free, it comes with the hard graft and focus of those on the inside, those willing to tread the unpopular path in the hope that our skills and our values make the right kind of difference.

In this talk, Lola shares her adventures in the world of blockchain, the hostility she experienced in her first go-round in 2018, and why she's chosen to head back to a technology that is going through its largest reputational and social crisis to date.

This talk was filmed at Leading Design San Francisco 2023. Find out more about the event details here - https://leadingdesign.com/conferences/sanfran-2023

Leading Design is a programme consisting of conferences, retreats and coaching. Find out more about Leading Design on our website - https://leadingdesign.com/