Interview with Lea Kovac Beckman

Software Crafts Podcast

If you are curious about the guest, we are hosting Lea Kovac Beckman. She is challenged with the heuristic “Be curious” from the Xebia Essentials repository (https://essentials.xebia.com/curiosity/). She describes how cycles of curiosity and boredom can foster innovation, what is the impact as persons, but also in this digital era, and how it impacts teams and organisations.

She shares how she uses innovation in her work and how curiosity and collaboration can be partners in finding a better solution rather than thinking in isolation.

Lea recommends the following resources:

Lea recommends the following resources:

• Curiosity: The Good, the Bad, and the Double-Edged Sword, by Christopher Bergland (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-athletes-way/201608/curiosity-the-good-the-bad-and-the-double-edged-sword)
• "Izzy, Did You Ask a Good Question Today?", from Isidor I. Rabi in New York Times" (https://www.nytimes.com/1988/01/19/opinion/l-izzy-did-you-ask-a-good-question-today-712388.html)
• Why boredom is bad... and good for you, from David Robson, (https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20141218-why-boredom-is-good-for-you)
• The Importance of Being Bored in a Digital Age, by Alec Sears (https://thriveglobal.com/stories/the-importance-of-being-bored-in-a-digital-age/)
• Conscious competence learning model by psychologist Noel Burch
• The Flexibility of the Four Stages of Competence by Jared Spool (https://articles.uie.com/four_stages_competence/)
• Just Enough Research by Erika Hall

Lea (@leakovac) is an independent UX Design consultant with a focus on user research and strategy. Together with product teams she has for many years developed digital services and tools for leading Swedish media companies like the Swedish Television and Bonnier News. She enjoys working closely with journalists, an environment where you are rewarded for asking questions.

Essential to her work is bringing different perspectives and skillsets together in all parts of the work process, in reaching a common set goal – both in discovery and delivery. She's experienced that the whole team approach mindset is more innovative, effective and exciting. It enables you to learn about, understand and affect areas that would otherwise be out of reach an