This was the second year I attended both the Hooked Workshop and Habit Summit. Since I learned so much last year I decided to go back and I’m glad I did, Nir Eyal does a really great job of keeping things fresh. The book these events are based on “Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products” was written by Nir (who is super personable) & the info is applicable to so many things I’ve worked on before and are working on now.

This year they took the 50/50 pledge and had a fantastic line up of speakers, I was super impressed with both the content & the quality of the speakers, just like last year.

Thank you @HabitSummit for taking the 50/50 Challenge & prioritizing #genderequality at your events! You rock! #HabitSummit

— Kali Williams (@Kali_Williams_) March 22, 2016

There was more time for networking this year, though I would’ve preferred to focus on the learning (which apparently puts me in the minority!) The event attracts a large International crowd, nearly half of attendees traveled to Stanford for the sole purpose of attending.

“It’s not the best products that win. It’s the product that can win the monopoly of the mind.” @nireyal @HabitSummit

— Tasha (@TashaDrew) March 21, 2016

Here are some notes from my favorite sessions of the day.

Persuasive Web Design – How to Get People to Take Action (Without Using Words) – Peep Laja

This was the most concretely useful of the day for me, with 20 info-packed minutes about the psychology of web design. I’ve been in the website development business for 15 years and am always looking for new ways to entice customers to get the most out of our offerings.

“Even if the design is fantastic, if you have shitty copy no one will buy what you’re selling.”

Habits at Work – Merci Victoria Grace

Merci is quite a dynamic speaker and though she shared a number of tips I’ve heard before, they were all something I needed to hear again.

One of the reasons to write down your thoughts/ideas so you can stop thinking about them (& come back to it when ready) @merci #HabitSummit

— Kali Williams (@Kali_Williams_) March 22, 2016

Putting ourselves in someone else’s shoes is mentally exhausting (but super important) – @merci #empathy #HabitSummit

— Kali Williams (@Kali_Williams_) March 22, 2016

What The Psychology of Video Games Can Teach You About Product Engagement – Jamie Madigan

Gamification is a huge topic and though I’ve tried to implement some elements in my sites before, I’ve never had much success. I’ve found other presentations on the topic to be overly focused on ‘insider’ understanding, meaning if you aren’t a gamer yourself they’re not that helpful. But this 20 minutes actually made a lot of sense to me felt way more accessible than any other presentation on the topic I’ve seen before. And he wins for the best slide of the day!

We feel better abt ourselves to be biggest in small pond rather than smaller in big pond @JamieMadigan #HabitSummit pic.twitter.com/wJw56tNx02

— Kali Williams (@Kali_Williams_) March 22, 2016

We are wired to prefer a “sure thing” over anything w/even a minimal risk – @JamieMadigan #psychology #HabitSummit

— Kali Williams (@Kali_Williams_) March 22, 2016

Designing for a Future Self – Yingzhao Liu

Among all the “action” topics, this one one was moving & more on the inspirational side. She showed a few LinkedIn videos that were actually really touching and gave me a much more holistic impression of the company than I’ve ever had before.

To be influential u have to be able to be influenced. To transform your users, be open to transformation yourself -Yingzhao Liu #habitsummit

— Kali Williams (@Kali_Williams_) March 22, 2016

Why Engagement Matters to Investors – Sarah Tavel

This session was really enlightening and made me think about the stickiness of products/services/apps in a whole new way, which is helpful for the many pots I have in the fire.

There’s cheap growth & there’s good growth. They aren’t always the same. – @sarahtavel #growthhacking #habitsummit

— Kali Williams (@Kali_Williams_) March 22, 2016

Here are a few other tweets that I like too!

Teams over-value consensus (the bandwagon effect) so no one wants to voice concerns – @cindyalvarez #HabitSummit “Building Habits as a Team”

— Kali Williams (@Kali_Williams_) March 22, 2016

“Want to feel like the smartest person in the room? Step into a closet full of idiots.” –@jamiemadigan #HabitSummit

— Robert J. Moore (@robertjmoore) March 22, 2016