4 min read
Are you playing chess or poker?
Most stalled design reviews aren’t about taste. They’re about which game each side thinks it’s playing.
Inspiration
Sanket Daithankar
Product & Game Designer
I help teams ship products faster, with research backed design that keeps users coming back.
Chess and poker in design reviews
Most stalled design reviews share one root cause: the two sides are playing different games. Designers tend to play chess. Business partners tend to play poker. In chess, a move is costly and hard to undo, so you think it through. In poker, a bet is a cheap way to learn something, so you place it and adjust as you go. Many design disagreements have little to do with taste. They come from each side assuming a different game is on the table.
Two instincts, one meeting
I once sat in a review where a founder wanted to push a pricing change live that same day, while the designer asked for three weeks of research. Each was right about their own instinct and wrong about the decision actually in front of them. Neither was being obstructive. They were both applying a sound rule to a situation it did not suit.
The question that settles it
What really matters is whether the decision can be reversed.
If it can, you are playing poker. Ship quickly and let the data guide you.
If it cannot, you are playing chess. Slow down and take the time to be sure.
A pricing test you can roll back tomorrow is a small bet. Changing a core data model, or making a public promise to customers, is a move you cannot retract.
Name the game out loud
When a review stalls, ask the room which game you are playing. Putting a name to it shifts everyone from defending positions to weighing the decision itself. It resolves more arguments than any slide deck ever will.
Do your reviews lean towards chess or poker?
