The words we choose change the things we make and how we think about them. Our words also change how other people make sense of our work.

choose a set of adjectives you want your users to use to describe what you're making. Then, choose a set of adjectives that you're okay with not being used to describe the same thing.

Every decision you make should support what you've defined as good: from the words you choose to the tasks you enable, and everything in between.

Who's most important to get agreement from? Who's most important to serve? What words might make them defensive? What words might put them at ease? How open are they to change? How will this affect their lives? How does the current state of things look to them? Is that good or bad?

What are you trying to change? What is your vision for the future? What is within your abilities? What do you know about the quality of what exists today? What further research will help you understand it? What has been done before? What can you learn from those experiences? What is the market and competition like? Has anyone succeeded or failed at

Understanding the why behind what you're making allows you to uncover your intent and potential.

We live our lives across channels.

What do people need to understand? What are the edges of the map or diagram? What are you not mapping or diagramming? Where will other people see this map or diagram (e.g., on a wall, in a presentation, on paper)?

we need to confront messes without the fear of unearthing inconsistencies, questions, and opportunities for improvement. We need to be open to the variations of truth that are bound to exist.