Around five year back I read this book, but this book gave me a whole new perspective on how people make decisions when interacting with our designs. Kahneman explains that people think in two ways: System 1, which is fast and intuitive, and System 2, which is slow and analytical. As designers, our goal is to keep users in System 1—where everything feels smooth and effortless, the moment they’re forced to switch to System 2, the experience can become clunky or frustrating.
Source: Daniel Kahneman
One thing that really stuck with me is how he talks about cognitive biases, like the anchoring effect or loss aversion. It’s fascinating how these biases influence behaviour. For example, the way we design pricing models or set up calls-to-action can totally shift user decisions. Showing a higher price first, then the actual price, anchors users to think they’re getting a great deal. And loss aversion? That explains why people panic about losing access to a free trial or limited-time offers. It’s not just about what they gain—it’s what they don’t want to lose.
Another big takeaway for me was around cognitive load. Kahneman points out how System 2 gets overwhelmed when there’s too much information or too many decisions to make. It really reinforced for me the importance of simplifying interfaces, keeping things clear, and using familiar patterns. Less mental effort means happier users.
The planning fallacy—that really resonated with me It’s about how we often underestimate the complexity of a task, which, let’s be honest, happens all the time in design projects. It’s a good reminder to test early, validate ideas, and stay grounded in real user feedback instead of just going with our assumptions.
Honestly, this book has so much that ties directly into designing better experiences. It’s not just about understanding behaviour—it’s about designing for it. I think every UX designer should read it; it really changes the way you think about people and how they interact with what we create.
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Designing for the mind: what thinking, fast and slow!
2 Dec 2021
Around five year back I read this book, but this book gave me a whole new perspective on how people make decisions when interacting with our designs. Kahneman explains that people think in two ways: System 1, which is fast and intuitive, and System 2, which is slow and analytical. As designers, our goal is to keep users in System 1—where everything feels smooth and effortless, the moment they’re forced to switch to System 2, the experience can become clunky or frustrating.
Source: Daniel Kahneman
One thing that really stuck with me is how he talks about cognitive biases, like the anchoring effect or loss aversion. It’s fascinating how these biases influence behaviour. For example, the way we design pricing models or set up calls-to-action can totally shift user decisions. Showing a higher price first, then the actual price, anchors users to think they’re getting a great deal. And loss aversion? That explains why people panic about losing access to a free trial or limited-time offers. It’s not just about what they gain—it’s what they don’t want to lose.
Another big takeaway for me was around cognitive load. Kahneman points out how System 2 gets overwhelmed when there’s too much information or too many decisions to make. It really reinforced for me the importance of simplifying interfaces, keeping things clear, and using familiar patterns. Less mental effort means happier users.
The planning fallacy—that really resonated with me It’s about how we often underestimate the complexity of a task, which, let’s be honest, happens all the time in design projects. It’s a good reminder to test early, validate ideas, and stay grounded in real user feedback instead of just going with our assumptions.
Honestly, this book has so much that ties directly into designing better experiences. It’s not just about understanding behaviour—it’s about designing for it. I think every UX designer should read it; it really changes the way you think about people and how they interact with what we create.
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