“I got into UX to do good—to make things more usable, more understandable, more human-centered. I can’t remember the last time I felt like I was actually doing that in my day-to-day work.” 

I’ve been having different flavors of this conversation a lot lately—with people who feel disillusioned with big tech, or frustrated by a lack of commitment to accessibility in their design orgs, or exhausted by the frantic growth-at-all-costs mentality in their startups. 

Maybe you’ve had the same thoughts on your mind. Or maybe you’ve been pushing those thoughts down—too worried about keeping your job to ask yourself whether you even still believe in it. Either way, I want to invite you to a Very Special Edition™ of Loose Threads, happening on September 18.

First, independent systems designer and creative strategist Ida Persson will join us for a watch party of her Throughline 2026 talk (that’s the regular part). But here’s the very special part: after the talk, she’ll facilitate a brand-new workshop designed to get you thinking about what it would mean to design for new metrics—metrics beyond the ones that capitalism teaches us to value. And did I mention it’s totally free? Yep. Just RSVP and you’re in.

(Note that unlike our other Loose Threads events, we’ll only share the recorded talk afterward. The workshop is meant for active participation, and won’t be recorded!)

This session is not a quick fix. You won’t leave with a foolproof plan that resolves the tension between needing a paycheck and craving a world that’s more aligned with your values. Anyone who promises that is lying.

But here’s what I can promise you: Ida’s presence is a breath of fresh air in a moment where I think a lot of us really need it. She brings so much humanity, generosity, and calm to a space. And she’s the perfect person to help all of us reconnect with the parts of our brains and hearts that have maybe been lying a little too dormant lately. 

If you want a reminder that better things are possible—and some fresh lenses for looking at your work and your life—join me. I’ll be right there in the audience with you.

—Sara

Friday, September 18 from 12-1:30pm ET  

What becomes possible when we move beyond growth, speed, and efficiency? 

We live and design within systems that shape what we value. Faster is better. More is better. Convenient is better. Growth is better. Efficiency is better. We’re taught to measure value through the things we can buy, sell, and consume.

But a world organized around growth and consumption comes with a cost: to our wellbeing, to our communities, and to the planet. 

Over the past few years, Ida Persson has been exploring those costs—and what it might look like to shift away from them. So for our September event, she’ll be joining us for a watch party of her 2026 Throughline talk, DesignShifts: A better future for and through design. 

After the talk, she’ll be hosting an interactive workshop that asks the questions: what becomes possible when we shift beyond the dominant narratives of growth, speed, and efficiency and start centering other values? How might that change the way we live, work, and design?

Together, we’ll pause to notice the values shaping our everyday choices, work, and design, and explore what else we might design for—and what matters beyond the usual measures of success.