# The Masking Tax: How Workplace Products Charge an Invisible Cost on Disabled Employees — Josephine Abbatangelo — session 2026-08-27T05:25:00.000Z → 2026-08-27T06:00:00.000Z _520 transcript lines · 106 slides_ ## Transcript created a whole word of hurt there. But, you know, and I suppose my thought there is we questioned why. And we kept questioning why. Why was this happening? You know, what does this mean and what happens next? And it's it wasn't until though that event that was the catalyst for change for us So I hope that you all get a chance for that catalyst of change but ahead of us, we've got a whole new set of challenges. You know, we we wanna make sure what we're what we're measuring matters. What gets measured for us gets done. So we're challenging that. We have to shift what that looks like within within this new technological construct and context that we're in in the tensions are completely different now to what they were a decade ago. The last, yeah, the the the last and final thought that I'll leave you with is where we're shifting to is rather than these big, I suppose grand and quite, you know, to be honest, these sexy metrics and sexy changes of big, big numbers, we're going to be looking at the individual And for us that means that it's the pets that didn't receive the 50 to a 150 applications during those spike times, we're going to be looking at the ones that only received one. You know, if they're lucky. And so for us, it's about focusing in on how do we equalize this playing field for the pets that aren't as popular as the others and create a more equitable space for them to be seen, get a chance at love and be adopted. And that's not going to show up in the big stats and numbers. So the takeaway is go for less sexy folks. That's the evolution. Please connect. Stay in touch. Thank you so much. For listening. Thank you. Quickly swap over. A lot of the the system spaces no. We'll we'll swap. No. We don't have time. Sorry. No. No. No. We, when we designed a tool or a system or service or whatever it might be, we end up with target users in mind, and when we do a good job, the a as easy as possible and typically that ease relates to emotional load and cognitive load and physical load. For people who don't fit neatly into one of those customer groups or one of those target audiences, the experience is much more effortful. And it comes at a cost. And Josephine's gonna talk us about talk to us about what that looks like in some contexts when we have this when we have this environment where it hasn't really taken our needs into account. Please join me in welcoming Josephine to the stage. Hello. Okay. You can all hear me. Well, it's decided it doesn't wanna work. It's alright. Sorry. Sorry. Come on. It's it's not Why don't you talk us through the experience you're having right now, John? I'll talk to you later. I'll tell you exactly What are you thinking? What are you thinking? So Google Slides, I hate it, but Figma's Figma, their slide system, that's super good. Right? If you just all use Keynote or PowerPoint, it's a save us, demo. Yes. Alright. Okay. Do you wanna put me online? That's right. Yep. Is that you? Yep. That's me. That might be it. That might be mine. But anyway, now I connected. Alright. Do you wanna open it again? Sorry. I closed your windows now. Oh, that's the audience one. Open. I need Jesus. I think we're reliving half the talks today in terms of wonderful talk earlier about stressful moments. It's nothing's working. That's right. Look at that. There we go. There we go. And we should be able to see what's happening right now. It's telling us it's loading. Goodness. Sorry, guys. We'll get there. It's maybe I'll just connect to the WiFi. Do you know what I'll file? That's a four deal. That's why I wanted a hotspot. Alright. Okay. Yeah. Still oh, here we go. Right. Yeah. We can. A few While while we're waiting, I so Can you Ham a few buttons. Yeah, exactly right. Exactly right. So I'm I'm reminded of like a few different things, but there's something about the design of the bathroom here that reminds me why men shouldn't be allowed to make any decisions on their own. And I won't I won't talk about that one just yet. But there was a video of a guy that I saw yesterday who filmed a volcano erupting. And he was sort of on the lip of the volcano taking a selfie as this thing exploded. And you could hear the voice of a woman nearby going, I think we're too close. Like I I think we as the sort of lava started to bubble up and he's like, no, no, no, no, this is awesome as he's taking this video. And then this thing explodes and it starts throwing ash and rock and lava like thousands of feet into the air. And he sort of looks at her with his look and he his face is like, you're right, and I'm gonna hear about this later. If we survive. And they start pelting down the down the side of the volcano. That's the audience. Just one. I'll tell you more about the bathroom later. Yeah. That's the one. Yeah. But it is one of those things. Who knows? I don't know. I don't know. I should really show a greater greater care for his welfare, but there's also a degree of stupid that I just think, look, if that's how you go and and and you enjoyed it, well then fair enough. But yeah, I I I just sort of hold this view and I say this as a man, We're often not fit for public and we're certainly not fit to be left on our own and certainly not making decisions for other people. And then I see parliament and I think of how many men are in parliament making decisions for the entire country. And I wonder at that as well. So there you go. This is not that I make bad decisions, of course. That's the presenter version. But this is, of course, the problem. We actually think we're making good decisions. People seeing my notes? Which one? Oh, the bathroom, sorry? Okay. While while while this goes on, So in the so in the men's bathroom, the, all of the urinals have this little picture of a fly on them. Oh, is that the slide? And the reason they had this fly in them is that, Schibyl Airport in Amsterdam did this trial in the nineteen nineties where they found that if they put a flying on the urinal that men would aim at it. Okay. And it reduced the sort of spillage by 80%. And it reduced their cleaning cost as an annual bill by like eight or 10% kind of thing. So it's become a standard feature. But it just shows how childish we are Oh, hell no. That that has such an impact. It was actually derived from an older British idea where they used to put a bee on the urinals. Hang on. And that was sort of a little bit more clever because a bee is of the genus Apis. Sorry. I don't need to clock in here. Sorry. We're getting there. Yes. Good. And that's what they used to use instead. But the Dutch used to fly. I don't know what it translates into in Dutch. Maybe it's just as clever. But it reduced cleaning costs by a lot. Anyway, every time I've gone to the bathroom today, I'm reminded that we really are a stupid gender. So Just just one. This one? Yeah. Click. Perfect. Thank you. We have lift off. Are we good? I have more stories. Yeah. Whether you want them or not. Hang on. We do need another one? The opposite. Yeah. Okay. Perfect. No. We don't. Josephine, you good? We have liftoff. Woo hoo. Thanks for your patience, guys. So today I'm talking about the masking tax. Earlier this year, our team looked at Movember's registration data. Some people arrive ready to act and others don't but everyone came through the same flow. We talked about fixing the conversion funnel. But the funnel isn't a 100% of the problem. We don't know what someone is ready to do when they arrive. And we treat everyone the same. And for that, that's that's enough to lose them. I remember thinking, this wasn't just a conversion issue, it was a cognitive one. And I wanna name something really personal here. Because it shapes how I see this problem. I'm a senior product designer. And I live with HEDS and ADHD. I've spent years building products and years quietly compensating for the ones that weren't built for me. HDS, and for those of you who don't know what acronym stands for, it's Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. Means that my body can make ordinary effort feel extraordinary and exhausting. ADHD means my attention and my momentum can drop when a task asks for too much too soon. When I looked at this funnel, I didn't just see a conversion issue. I saw a design that required a capacity that people might not have in the moment. And when you're low on energy or attention, being asked to do the wrong thing at the wrong time can be enough to stop you entirely. And that's why I felt like it was bigger than optimization. The real issue was simpler. These groups are often off overlooked in the product design process, and as designers we often don't know what people need, but we design as if we do. For me, cognitive the cognitive masking looks like compensating for ADHD in environments that reward linear thinking. Constant context switching and visible productivity. It means putting systems in place to stay organized, to stay focused, and to be on top of things even when that takes an enormous effort behind the scenes. ADHD can make it harder to start tasks, to switch between them and keep track of what comes next. So the masking isn't just about looking productive. It's about creating enough structure to keep moving even when my brain doesn't naturally feel linear. And then there's the physical masking. It's the effort of managing pain, fatigue, unpredictability while trying to look reliable, steady, available. For me, that's shaped by my HDS. And I wanna name that because it's personal. Some days just keeping up already takes more out of me than it might someone someone else. Some days flare ups change what I can do without warning. And that's why an always on culture feels so loaded. It asks me to perform a consistency my body doesn't always allow. And this is a hidden this is the hidden tax. It's not just doing the work. It's, carrying the body Oh, sorry. I just lost Sorry. It's carrying the body you're in. And it's not sorry. I It's carrying the body you're in and doing the work in. And it's not passive, it's labor. So who pays the tax? Masking can feel individual. But it isn't rare. A large number of people are living with invisible disability and many don't disclose that at work. And when and when we think about invisible disability, we need to think more broadly. So chronic pain, fatigue, autism, ADHD, mental health conditions, neurological differences, and sensory processing issues all sit within this picture. The issue isn't just the disability itself. It's the workplace conditions that make disclosure feel risky. It's stopped thinking. Sorry. FYI, don't use Figma slides. Has it stopped? Hang on. No. It's just stopped syncing. Alright. So when you try and it's not changing the screen. No. Alright. Okay. Has anyone know Figma slides? Any Figma slides gurus in the house? I'm so sorry, guys. Alright. That's my last was my last most desperate incident. Report an issue. There's a button here. What do I report an issue? Sorry. That's right. Yeah. I'm not sure whether it's because you're Connected to the rest of them. Is that okay? There is a connection. Yeah. It's four gs. Of bars. Alright. I'm just gonna let's see this one. So we just started a whole new slideshow. Alright. Now I just triple check this, but I'm pretty sure that's Excellent. That worked. Alright. There we are. Alright. Well done. So in Australia, one in five people live with a disability. Most are in invisible. Thirty percent of employees with a disability didn't disclose it when their employer asked. And fifty six percent fear career consequences from disclosure. Those numbers tell us something really important. And the issue isn't just the disability itself. It's the conditions that make disclosure feel really risky. And I want you to notice that the risk doesn't stop at the office store. If more than half of people won't tell their employer, the person with the legal obligations to them and a duty of care why would they tell you in a five minute research screener? Or in a support ticket or in a survey after they've abandoned your checkout? It's the same fear and it's the same silence. Which means that the people most affected by the masking tax are also the people least likely to appear in your research. So you have two options. Wait for them to disclose or design and recruit as if they're already here. And you might be thinking, why call it a tax? And I want you to understand that this isn't a metaphor for inconvenience. It's a cost and it behaves like one. First, it's compulsory. You don't choose whether or not you want to pay it. If you wanna participate in work as it currently exists, you absorb that cost yourself. And second, it scales with usage. The more systems you navigate, the more meetings you perform your way through, the more you have to compensate, translate, manage and recover. The cost compounds over time. And third, it's invisible to everyone else. Most of this work isn't seen by managers, colleagues, or product teams. They don't see the effort directly. They see the downstream effects such as fatigue, inconsistency, burnout, or disengagement. And finally, products either charge it or they waive it. And that's the design implication I want to land. Every product decision either adds to that hidden workload or reduces it. Whether the team is conscious of it or not. And now that I've explained what the masking tax is, I want to show you where some products charge it and how you might waive it. I've got four patents that make life harder for people with invisible disabilities. And what you could do instead. I So pattern one is front loaded onboarding. It's one of the clearest ways that products charge the masking tax. These sorts of flows ask the most of us at the moment we have least to give. You have to set up first, value later. And then there's rarely a way to pause and come back. Everything's required. So you don't you can't find out whether the product is worth the effort and until after you've already spent it. There's no way to skip or explore so that the flow quietly assumes you can finish it in one sitting. And if you can't, a time out might take your progress with it. Which means now you're rushing on top of everything else. And that's what charging the masking tax looks like. It's not just one big barrier but a series of small demands placed when someone has the least capacity to carry them. And if front loaded onboarding charges the tax, this is then this is how we might waive it. First, progressive disclosure. Don't ask people to make every decision at once. Let them move forward then reveal complexity when it becomes useful. A good example would be when a product lets you start doing the thing right away without making you configure everything first. And Notion does this really well. You can open a new page and just begin. The templates, the settings, the integrations, they're all there if you need them. But they're not forced on you upfront. Figma's another good one. I think we all use Figma in this room. You can open a blank file and just start designing straight away. The complexity is there but it waits until you actually need it. Good onboarding doesn't just get rid of the complexity, It just doesn't dump it all on you right from the start. Second, persistent state. Let people be able to save their progress, automatically. If someone gets interrupted, they get distracted, or they run out of energy, They should be able to come back without having to start over. Third, skip and defer. If something isn't essential yet, don't force it. Let people keep going and fill in the rest later. Underneath all of that is the broader principle of designing for forgiveness. People will lose focus. They will close the tab. They will miss a step they'll make a wrong choice or they'll need to leave and come back. Good onboarding doesn't punish that. It helps people recover, continue and find their way back in. And why this matters is that onboarding is also a cognitive load problem. Working memory is limited so every extra field decision or instruction takes up mental space. And when we reduce unnecessary load, people are more likely to understand what's happening, stay orientated, and keep going. And that's why these patterns work. Progressive disclosure narrows the attention to what matters now. Persistent state protects context so people don't have to reconstruct progress from memory. Skip and defer reduces pressure to decide everything upfront. And designing forgiveness means building for real human behavior and not just a happy path. And that's the shift I'm talking about. The goal isn't to remove complexity entirely, it's to sequence it better. Reduce unnecessary cognitive load and build flows that can handle real human behavior instead of ideal behavior. And that's what a more humane onboarding looks like. It respects interruption It respects uncertainty and it respects the fact that people don't always arrive with full capacity. Now some of you are thinking, our flow is complex. Because it has to be. We have compliance requirements. We have legal steps We have things that we just can't skip. And that's fair. So let's look at a product with real unavoidable complexity. So If you list a place on Airbnb, they need your address. Your photos, your pricing, your legal declarations, your safety details. None of that is optional and none of that is quick. Roughly one decision per screen. Your draft saves continuously. You can leave for a week, come back and pick up where you were. The complexity didn't go anywhere. It was just broken into pieces small enough to carry and the product remembers where you got to. That's the whole argument. I'm not asking you to remove the hard parts. I'm asking you to stop requiring that someone get through all of them in one sitting at full capacity on their first attempt because that's the assumption underneath most complex flows. Not that the work is hard but that the person doing it will be at their wit their best the entire way through. And the next two patterns live in workplace stalls. That's not a detour because for a lot of designers in this room, the workplace is your product. The second pattern is notification systems. And they can be the clearest way products charge tax. They're often designed they're often designed around systems system priorities rather than the needs of the person receiving the message. For people with ADHD, badges, mentions, read receipts, and oh, And read receipts. Sorry. I've lost my place. For people with ADHD, badges, mentions, read receipts, and urgency cues aren't small distractions. They become attention traps because these systems treat switching attention as easy when it often takes real effort to recover focus You can see that in the patterns themselves badge counts that can't be dismissed without reading, mentions that creates social pressure to respond, read receipts that make attention visible and urgency indicators that keep escalating. The issue isn't just the noise. It's that these systems can turn attention into an obligation placing the burden and the coordination on the recipient. And if notification systems are one of the easiest ways that products charge the tax, this is how we can take that burden back. First, give people granular control. Let them decide what actually deserves interruption. And let that vary by context. Not everything should be treated an emergency. Second, remove social signal signaling where you can. It's not always possible. Read receipts, presence indicators, little status pressures, those should be opt in not the default. People should be able to engage without feeling like they're being watched. And third, batch notifications. Deliver them on the user's schedule not the senders. That way attention becomes something people can manage instead of something constantly being taken from them. So the goal isn't silence, it's control. Let people choose when they interrupt their own focus instead of having every system do it for them. And pattern number three, designing for variable capacity. Present presence and productivity tools often assume capacity stays constant. Workplace systems tend to reward visibility and steady output even though human capacity changes from day to day. The result is a system that rewards visible consistency and leaves little room for someone to say, you know what, today is a low capacity day. The main point is simple. People don't have the same capacity every day. If a system only works when someone is at their best, it's not really working for everyone. Flare days, interrupted days, low focus days, pain cycles. Shutdowns and stop start work. We all know it. The 50,000 meetings in a day. They're often reduced to the same label, under performance. And this is the pressure that people feel in the system. If you're online you seem committed. If you reply quickly you seem productive. If tasks go overdue, it can feel personal. And if progress isn't neat and linear, the system can make that feel wrong too. So how would you waive the tax? Status stats tell you very little about the work itself. A better system gives you signals about what's moving, what's blocked, and what's been completed. So you can understand the progress without relying on visibility alone. Especially when someone's capacity changes from day to day. Instead of asking, are they online? Ask, is the work moving? And design your signals around that. So And, pattern number four is buried accessibility settings. One of my favorites. When accessibility is buried, it can feel like the product is saying this isn't important and you aren't in important. The real tax is the extra work of finding it. Asking for it, justifying it, or relying on support just to turn it on. When accessibility is hidden in separate settings absent from onboarding or framed as a special request, access starts to feel exceptional rather than feel expected. Accessibility should feel like a normal preference. Not a special request. Good design lets people adjust things like text size, contrast, and layout in clear and familiar ways. When these options are visible in the main settings, they feel standard. When they're hidden or treated as workarounds, people could feel like they are for something unusual just to use your product properly. Better design surfaces relevant settings At the moment, they're useful. Using contextual prompts, onboarding and visible cues. So support feels built into the product rather than hidden behind a set set up friction. And that matters because discoverability is part of usability. When products introduce features in context and at natural pauses, people are more likely to find and use them and when important settings stay buried the burden shifts back to the user. The design move is simple. Put accessibility and customization in private in primary settings. Where people already expect to shape their experience. When those options are visible and standard, they read as ordinary preferences rather than special accommodations. And the masking tax doesn't disappear just because you can't see it. It shows up in your metrics instead. And then by then, the damage is already done. It shows up when people drop out of flows at the moments that demand the most cognitive effort. It shows up in support tickets for things that should have been built in. And it shows up as silent churn People quietly stop using the product and never tell you why. Adoption stalls and there's no return on investment. That means these aren't separate problems. They're signals. If you know how to read them, they will tell you where the product is asking too much and that's where the work begins. But inclusive design patterns are only as good as the people we in the research that shapes them. At as designers, that talk to users, well hopefully you're all talking to your users, Let's chat about changing our practice and recruiting participants for what you can't see. Many standard screeners unintentionally filter people out. Not because they're irrelevant but because the questions are too narrow, overly diagnostic, or focused on visible or already disclosed conditions. As a result, invisible disability is often excluded before research even begins. This is why asking a question like, do you manage any ongoing conditions that affect how you work from day to day matters? Open non diagnostic phrasing gives people space to describe how their experience. Experience. It's a small shift but one that makes invisible conditions more likely to surface in ways rigid screening approach rarely allow. The question, do you use any tools or workarounds to help you manage your energy or focus during the day? Matters because many invisible conditions don't show up unless there's direct disclosure. People may never name ADHD. Fatigue, pain or burnout in a screener. But they'll often describe the systems, tools and workarounds they rely on to get through the day. That's why it's a useful prompt. It shifts the conversation away from diagnosis and towards lived experience. Instead of asking people to identify with a label, you're asking how they actually manage focus and energy in real life. Which is often where the most valuable research signals are. This is the point where recruitment and method have to line up. It's not enough to invite a more diverse group of participants if the format of the interview or study assumes everyone can attend live. Respond in the moment, stay focused for long sessions or perform well under pressure. Offering async options is a practical way to reduce this mismatch. Methods like, diary studies, discussion boards, asynchronous interviews and video response tasks Give people more control over timing, energy, focus and disclosure. They often produce better insights because participants can engage in ways that fit their actual lives rather than forcing them into a format built for someone else. And here's a way an easy way to you can do a simple audit on any product, flow, or screen in in your coming week. First, ask whether it assumes consistent capacity and if it does, how could you design for variability instead? Second, ask whether it penalizes nonresponse. Or non presence. If it does, what could be an async alternative? And third, ask whether someone would have to disclose a disability just to use it comfortably. If they would, how would you remove that requirement? Those are three quest Those three questions are a quick way to spot where the masking tax is hiding. And once you spot it, you can start designing for it. It's not all doom and gloom. I thought I'd mention a few people who were doing it well. And close to home Australia has got some strong contenders. The city of Cockburn was recognized at the Australian Access Awards as joint website of the year and government website of the year which shows accessibility can be achieved in real public sector products. And not just in theory. The National the National Library of Australia and Vision Australia are useful examples for different reasons. Both make their accessibility commitments explicit. They treat them as part of the core And The reason I mentioned these isn't to say that they're perfect, It's to show that accessibility can be visible it can be intentional and built into mainstream Australian digital products. And I want to leave you with some practical actions to take. ## Slides ### 00:00:07 # Where to from here? [Image of a small grey kitten playing with a green string or blade of grass] [PetRescue logo] ### 00:00:28 # Goodhart's Law Closely related to the Cobra Effect, stating that when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. [Headshot of a black and white dog looking up] [PetRescue logo] ### 00:00:47 # Goodhart's Law Closely related to the Cobra Effect, stating that when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. [Headshot of a black and white dog looking up] [PetRescue logo] ### 00:01:08 # Goodhart's Law Closely related to the Cobra Effect, stating that when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. [Image of a black and white dog looking up] ### 00:01:28 ## Goodhart's Law Closely related to the Cobra Effect, stating that when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. [Close-up of a black and white dog looking up with its mouth slightly open] ### 00:01:48 ### ON THE PROGRAM - **Jess Witt** Lead Consultant: Strategy & Design - Versent - **Jessie Pahng** Design leader - Independent - ** ### 00:02:13 # THE INVISIBLE TAX ## HOW PRODUCTS CHARGE AN INVISIBLE COST ON DISABLED EMPLOYEES AND HOW TO WAIVE IT ### JOSEPHINE ABRAHAMANGELO ### 17 AUGUST 2023 ### 00:02:36 # THE INVISIBLE COST ## HOW PRODUCTS CHARGE AN INVISIBLE COST ON DISABLED EMPLOYEES AND HOW TO WAIVE IT JOSEPHINE ARBATANGELO 17 AUGUST 2023 ### 00:02:48 # THE INVISIBLE COST ## HOW PRODUCTS CHARGE AN INVISIBLE COST ON DISABLED EMPLOYEES AND HOW TO WAIVE IT JOSEPHINE ABRATANGELO 17 AUGUST 2023 ### 00:03:09 # THE MASKING TAX HOW PRODUCTS CHARGE AN INVISIBLE COST ON DISABLED EMPLOYEES AND HOW TO WAIVE IT JOSEPHINE ABBATTANGELO 27 AUGUST 2024 [Movember logo with a mustache icon] [Spotlight effect shining from the top right corner] ### 00:03:31 # THE MASKING TAX ## HOW PRODUCTS CHARGE AN INVISIBLE COST ON DISABLED EMPLOYEES AND HOW TO WAIVE IT JOSEPHINE ABBATTANGELO 27 AUGUST 2024 [Illustration of a spotlight shining down on a stage] ### 00:03:47 # THE MASKING TAX HOW PRODUCTS CHARGE AN INVISIBLE COST ON DISABLED EMPLOYEES AND HOW TO WAIVE IT JOSEPHINE ABBATTANGELO 27 AUGUST 2024 [Movember logo with a mustache icon] [Illustration of a spotlight shining from the top right onto the center of the slide] ### 00:03:53 # THE MASKING TAX HOW PRODUCTS CHARGE AN INVISIBLE COST ON DISABLED EMPLOYEES AND HOW TO WAIVE IT JOSEPHINE ABBATTANGELO 27 AUGUST 2024 [Movember logo with a mustache icon] [Illustration of a spotlight shining from the top right onto the center of the slide] ### 00:05:09 [A mostly blank white slide with a green banner or text at the very top, which is partially visible and unreadable] ### 00:05:48 [The slide is a light blue gradient with faint, abstract white shapes. No discernible text or specific visual content.] ### 00:06:37 [Slide with a light blue and green gradient background] ### 00:07:03 [Screenshot of a web-based code editor interface with a blank main content area and control buttons at the bottom] ### 00:07:26 ### Screenshot of an application interface [Screenshot of an application interface showing a sidebar navigation menu with options like Home, About, Contact, Settings, and Logout] ### 00:08:36 [Blank white slide with a small, faint logo in the bottom right corner] ### 00:09:02 # THE INVISIBLE TAX ## HOW PRODUCTS CHARGE AN INVISIBLE COST ON DISABLED EMPLOYEES AND HOW TO WAIVE IT JOSEPHINE ABBATANGELO 17 AUGUST 2023 ### 00:09:24 # THE INVISIBLE COST ### HOW PRODUCTS CHARGE AN INVISIBLE COST ON DISABLED EMPLOYEES AND HOW TO WAIVE IT JOSEPHINE ABBATANGELO 07 AUGUST 2024 ### 00:09:44 ### SETTING THE SCENE **I DESIGN FOR ACCESSIBILITY.** Every product you've designed has either charged this tax or waived it. Most of us don't know which. ### 00:09:46 ## SETTING THE SCENE # **I DESIGN FOR ACCESSIBILITY.** Every product you've designed has either charged this tax or waived it. Most of us don't know which. ### 00:10:09 ## SETTING THE SCENE # I DESIGN FOR **ACCESSIBILITY**. Every product you've designed has either charged this tax or waived it. Most of us don't know which. [Small mustache icon] ### 00:10:31 ## SETTING THE SCENE ### I DESIGN FOR **ACCESSIBILITY**. Every product you've designed has either charged this tax or waived it. Most of us don't know which. ### 00:10:48 ### SETTING THE SCENE # I DESIGN FOR **ACCESSIBILITY**. Every product you've designed has either charged this tax or waived it. Most of us don't know which. ### 00:10:53 ### SETTING THE SCENE # I DESIGN FOR **ACCESSIBILITY**. Every product you've designed has either charged this tax or waived it. Most of us don't know which. ### 00:11:17 ### SETTING THE SCENE I ALSO LIVE **INACCESSIBLE DESIGN** EVERY DAY. > We don't know what people need. > We just design as if we do. [Small mustache icon] ### 00:11:38 ## DEFINING THE PROBLEM ### WHAT IS MASKING? ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ### 00:12:03 ### DEFINING THE PROBLEM ## WHAT IS MASKING? ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ### 00:12:24 ### DEFINING THE PROBLEM ## WHAT IS MASKING? ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ### PHYSICAL MASKING Masking pain, fatigue, and unpredictable flare-ups while performing constant, able-bodied availability in an always-on work culture. ### 00:12:48 ## DEFINING THE PROBLEM # WHAT IS MASKING? ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within ### 00:13:12 ## DEFINING THE PROBLEM # WHAT IS MASKING? ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ### PHYSICAL MASKING Masking pain, fatigue, and unpredictable flare-ups while performing constant, able-bodied availability in an always-on work culture. ### 00:13:34 ### DEFINING THE PROBLEM # WHAT IS MASKING? ## COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ## PHYSICAL MASKING Masking pain, fatigue, and unpredictable flare-ups while performing constant, able-bodied availability in an always-on work culture. [Small mustache icon] ### 00:13:47 ## DEFINING THE PROBLEM # WHAT IS MASKING? ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ### PHYSICAL MASKING Masking pain, fatigue, and unpredictable flare-ups while performing constant, able-bodied ### 00:13:55 ### DEFINING THE PROBLEM # WHAT IS MASKING? ## COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ## PHYSICAL MASKING Masking ### 00:14:19 ## WHAT IS MASKING? ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ### PHYSICAL MASKING Masking pain, fatigue, and unpredictable flare-ups while performing constant, able-bodied availability in an always-on work culture. ### 00:14:40 ## DEFINING THE PROBLEM ### WHAT IS MASKING? ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neuro ### 00:14:45 ### DEFINING THE PROBLEM ## **WHAT IS MASKING?** ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ### PHYSICAL MASKING Masking pain, fatigue, and unpredictable flare-ups while performing constant, able-bodied availability in an always-on work culture. [Small black mustache icon] ### 00:15:08 # DEFINING THE PROBLEM ## WHAT IS MASKING? ### COGNITIVE MASKING Masking executive dysfunction by compensating for context-switching challenges and performing linear, neurotypical productivity within tools designed for linear thinkers. ### PHYSICAL MASKING Masking pain, fatigue, and unpredictable flare-ups while performing constant, able-bodied availability in an always-on work culture. [Small black mustache icon] ### 00:15:29 ### THE SCALE ## WHO PAYS THE TAX? IN AUSTRALIA # 1 IN 5 live with a disability and most are invisible Source: ABS, Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia; University of Sydney, Invisible disabilities: they are more common than you think. ### 00:15:47 ## THE SCALE # WHO PAYS THE TAX? ### IN AUSTRALIA **1 IN 5** live with a disability and most are invisible Source: ABS, Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia; University of Sydney, Invisible disabilities: they are more common than you think. ### 00:15:49 ## THE SCALE ### WHO PAYS THE TAX? IN AUSTRALIA # 1 IN 5 live with a disability and most are invisible Source: ABS, Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia; University of Sydney, Invisible disabilities: they are more common than you think. [The number "1 IN 5" is underlined in yellow, and a small mustache icon is in the bottom right corner.] ### 00:16:12 ## The Scale ### Who Pays the Tax? IN AUSTRALIA **56%** fear career consequences from disclosure Source: Australian Disability Network, Workplace Adjustments Research Report/infographic. ### 00:16:34 # THE SCALE ## WHO PAYS THE TAX? ### In Australia **56%** fear career consequences from disclosure Source: Australian Disability Network, Workplace Adjustments Research Report/infographic. ### 00:16:49 ## THE SCALE ### WHO PAYS THE TAX? IN AUSTRALIA **56%** fear career consequences from disclosure Source: Australian Disability Network, Workplace Adjustments Research Report/infographic. ### 00:17:10 # THE CORE CONCEPT ## WHY **"TAX"**? ### IT'S COMPULSORY - You don't opt in. - If you want to participate in the workplace, you pay it. ### 00:17:32 ### THE CORE CONCEPT ## WHY "TAX"? ### IT'S INVISIBLE TO EVERYONE ELSE Employers don't see it. Products don't account for it. It shows up in burnout data instead. ### 00:17:47 ## THE CORE CONCEPT ### WHY "TAX"? ### IT'S INVISIBLE TO EVERYONE ELSE Employers don't see it. Products don't account for it. It shows up in burnout data instead. ### 00:17:52 ## THE CORE CONCEPT ### WHY "TAX"? ### IT'S INVISIBLE TO EVERYONE ELSE Employers don't see it. Products don't account for it. It shows up in burnout data instead. ### 00:18:13 # WHERE PRODUCTS CHARGE THE TAX Four patterns that make life harder for people with invisible disabilities and ways to move beyond them. [Icon of a magnifying glass with a dollar sign inside] ### 00:18:34 ### PATTERN 01 ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING ### HOW IT CHARGES THE TAX Front-loaded onboarding charges the tax by demanding focus, decisions, and persistence before the product gives anything back. All fields required. No skip. No saved progress. ### 00:18:46 ## PATTERN 01 ### **FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING** ### HOW IT CHARGES THE TAX Front-loaded onboarding charges the tax by demanding focus, decisions, and persistence before the product gives anything back. All fields required. No skip. No saved progress. ### 00:19:09 # PATTERN 01 ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING ### HOW IT CHARGES THE TAX Front-loaded onboarding charges the tax by demanding focus, decisions, and persistence before the product gives anything back. All fields required. No skip. No saved progress. ### 00:19:30 ### PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING **NOTION** Lets you start with a new page immediately. Settings, templates, and integrations are available but never required upfront. ### 00:19:47 ### Screenshot of a Notion workspace setup screen titled "Let's set up a home for all your work" ### 00:19:51 ### Screenshot of a Notion workspace setup screen titled "Let's set up a home for all your work" ### 00:20:12 ### Screenshot of Figma interface [Screenshot of the Figma design tool interface, showing the Layers panel with "Page 2" selected, and an empty dark canvas.] ### 00:20:33 # PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING ### SKIP AND DEFER Every optional decision should be skippable and changeable later. ### 00:20:47 # PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING ### SKIP AND DEFER Every optional decision should be skippable and changeable later. [A small mustache icon in the bottom right corner] ### 00:20:54 ### PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING ### SKIP AND DEFER Every optional decision should be skippable and changeable later. ### 00:21:15 # FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING ## PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ### SKIP AND DEFER Every optional decision should be skippable and changeable later. ### 00:21:38 # PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING 1. **Progressive disclosure** Only what matters now 2. **Persistent state** Progress survives leaving 3. **Skip and defer** Not everything, not yet ### 00:22:03 ### PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING 1. **Progressive disclosure** Only what matters now 2. **Persistent state** Progress survives leaving 3. **Skip and defer** Not everything, not yet 4. **Designing for forgiveness** Real behaviour, not the happy path ### 00:22:24 # PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING ### 00:22:46 ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING ### PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX **AIR BNB LISTING FLOW** Address, photos, pricing, legal, safety. None of it optional. One decision per screen. Draft saved. Leave and come back. ### 00:22:47 ## FRONT-LOADED ONBOARDING ### PATTERN 01: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX **AIR BNB LISTING FLOW** Address, photos, pricing, legal, safety. None of it optional. One decision per screen. Draft saved. Leave and come back. ### 00:23:11 ### Set up your Airbnb listing [Three mobile app screenshots showing an Airbnb listing setup flow] [Isometric illustration of a house interior on one of the app screens] ### 00:23:34 ### Smartphone app icons with unread notifications [Close-up of a smartphone screen showing the green Phone app icon with a '12' notification badge and the green Messages app icon with ### 00:23:49 [Screenshot of a smartphone home screen showing Phone and Messages app icons with notification badges. The Phone icon has a red badge with "12" (circled in yellow), and the Messages icon has a ### 00:23:57 [Screenshot of a smartphone home screen showing Phone and Messages app icons with notification badges. The Phone icon has a red badge with "12" (circled in yellow), and the Messages icon has a ### 00:24:22 # PATTERN 02 ## NOTIFICATION SYSTEMS THAT PUNISH ### HOW IT CHARGES THE TAX Notification systems often prioritise organisational goals over human needs. ### 00:24:44 ## PATTERN 02 # NOTIFICATION SYSTEMS THAT PUNISH ### HOW IT CHARGES THE TAX Notification systems often prioritise organisational goals over human needs. ### 00:24:46 ## PATTERN 02 ### NOTIFICATION SYSTEMS THAT **PUNISH** #### HOW IT CHARGES THE TAX Notification systems often prioritise organisational goals over human needs. ### 00:25:07 # NOTIFICATION SYSTEMS THAT PUNISH ## PATTERN 02: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ### GRANULAR CONTROL Let users define what warrants interruption, per context. ### 00:25:30 # PATTERN 02: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## NOTIFICATION SYSTEMS THAT PUNISH ### REMOVE SOCIAL SIGNALLING Read receipts and presence indicators should be opt-in, never default. ### 00:25:48 # PATTERN 02: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## NOTIFICATION SYSTEMS THAT PUNISH ### BATCH NOTIFICATIONS - 'Digest' mode that delivers on the user's schedule, not the sender's. ### 00:25:51 # PATTERN 02: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## NOTIFICATION SYSTEMS THAT PUNISH ### BATCH NOTIFICATIONS - 'Digest' mode that delivers on the user's schedule, not the sender's. ### 00:26:14 ### Screenshot of a user profile for Alex Rivera [Screenshot of a user profile card showing a profile picture, the name Alex Rivera, Product Designer, and the status "Online" highlighted with a yellow ### 00:26:38 ### PATTERN 03 ## DESIGNING FOR VARIABLE CAPACITY ### HOW IT CHARGES THE TAX If a system only works when someone is at their best, it doesn't really work for everyone. ### 00:27:04 ## PATTERN 03 ### DESIGNING FOR VARIABLE CAPACITY ### HOW IT CHARGES THE TAX - Being online can feel like the price of being seen. - Fast replies can feel like the price of being productive. - Overdue tasks can feel like the price of falling behind. - Steady progress can feel like the price of doing the job right. ### 00:27:26 ### PATTERN 03: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## DESIGNING FOR VARIABLE CAPACITY Status dots tell you very little about the work itself. Better systems show what's moving, what's blocked, and what's been completed, so progress doesn't depend on visibility alone. ### 00:27:47 # Accessibility [Screenshot of an iPhone's Accessibility settings, overlaid on a desktop application showing a similar interface] ### 00:28:09 # PATTERN 04 ## BURIED ACCESSIBILITY SETTINGS ### HOW IT CHARGES THE TAX If accessibility is hidden, the product says: **“this isn’t important.”** It can also feel like **“you aren’t important.”** [Small mustache icon] ### 00:28:31 ### PATTERN 03: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## BURIED ACCESSIBILITY SETTINGS ### NORMALISE ACCOMMODATION Frame these as preferences, not workarounds. ### 00:28:46 ## BURIED ACCESSIBILITY SETTINGS ### PATTERN 03: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ### NORMALISE ACCOMMODATION Frame these as preferences, not workarounds ### 00:28:52 # PATTERN 03: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## BURIED ACCESSIBILITY SETTINGS ### NORMALISE ACCOMMODATION Frame these as preferences, not workarounds. ### 00:29:13 ### PATTERN 03: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ## **BURIED ACCESSIBILITY SETTINGS** ### PROACTIVE PROMPTS - Offer relevant settings at natural moments, not buried in setup. ### 00:29:35 ## PATTERN 03: HOW TO WAIVE THE TAX ### BURIED ACCESSIBILITY SETTINGS #### PROACTIVE PROMPTS - Offer relevant settings at natural moments, not buried in setup. ### 00:29:47 ### BRINGING IT TOGETHER ## YOU CAN'T SEE IT, BUT YOUR DATA CAN The masking tax doesn't disappear just because you can't see it. It shows up in your metrics instead. And by then, those users are already gone. ### 00:30:08 ## BRINGING IT TOGETHER ### YOU CAN'T SEE IT, BUT YOUR **DATA CAN** ## SILENT CHURN - Users quietly stopping - no complaint, just gone. [Small black mustache icon] ### 00:30:30 ### CHANGING YOUR PRACTICE ## RECRUIT FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE Standard research screeners exclude people with invisible disabilities by default - either through the tasks required, the session format, or the absence of relevant screening questions. ### 00:30:47 CHANGING YOUR PRACTICE ## RECRUIT FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE Standard research screeners exclude people with invisible disabilities by default - either through the tasks required, the session format, or the absence of relevant screening questions. ### 00:30:50 ### CHANGING YOUR PRACTICE ## RECRUIT FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE Standard research screeners exclude people with invisible disabilities by default - either through the tasks required, the session format, or the absence of relevant screening questions. ### 00:31:12 ### CHANGING YOUR PRACTICE ## RECRUIT FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE Standard research screeners exclude people with invisible disabilities by default - either through the tasks required, the session format, or the absence of relevant screening questions. Here's what to add: **DO YOU MANAGE ANY ON-GOING CONDITIONS THAT AFFECT HOW YOU WORK DAY-TO-DAY?** Open, non-diagnostic, captures hidden conditions [Small mustache icon] ### 00:31:33 ### CHANGING YOUR PRACTICE ## **RECRUIT FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE** DO YOU USE ANY TOOLS OR WORKAROUNDS TO HELP MANAGE YOUR ENERGY OR FOCUS DURING THE DAY? Surfaces ADHD and fatigue conditions. ### 00:31:49 ## CHANGING YOUR PRACTICE ### **RECRUIT FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE** - DO YOU USE ANY TOOLS OR WORKAROUNDS TO HELP MANAGE YOUR ENERGY OR FOCUS DURING THE DAY? - Surfaces ADHD and fatigue conditions. ### 00:31:53 ## CHANGING YOUR PRACTICE ### RECRUIT FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE - **DO YOU USE ANY TOOLS OR WORKAROUNDS TO HELP MANAGE YOUR ENERGY OR FOCUS DURING THE DAY?** - Surfaces ADHD and fatigue conditions. ### 00:32:16 ## CHANGING YOUR PRACTICE # **RECRUIT FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE** ### OFFER ASYNC PARTICIPATION OPTIONS The format of research should match the diversity of your participants. ### 00:32:37 # CHANGING YOUR PRACTICE ## RECRUIT FOR WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE ### OFFER ASYNC PARTICIPATION OPTIONS The format of research should match the diversity of your participants. ### 00:33:02 ### TAKE THIS BACK TO YOUR DESK ## THE MASKING TAX AUDIT 01 DOES THIS ASSUME CONSISTENT CAPACITY? If YES - how might you design for variability instead? [The number 01 is underlined in yellow. A small mustache icon is in the bottom right corner.] ### 00:33:24 ## TAKE THIS BACK TO YOUR DESK ### THE MASKING TAX AUDIT 02 - DOES THIS PENALISE NON-RESPONSE OR NON-PRESENCE? - If YES - what's the async alternative? ### 00:33:47 ## THE MASKING TAX AUDIT ### TAKE THIS BACK TO YOUR DESK 3. WOULD SOMEONE HAVE TO DISCLOSE A DISABILITY TO USE THIS COMFORTABLY? If YES - how do you remove that requirement? ### 00:34:10 ## BRINGING IT TOGETHER # WHO DOES IT WELL In Australia, the **City of Cockburn**, **The National Library of Australia** and **Vision Australia**, show that accessibility can be built into real, public-facing products. [Logo for City of Cockburn] ### 00:34:32 ## BRINGING IT TOGETHER ### WHO DOES IT WELL In Australia, the **City of Cockburn**, The **National Library of Australia** and **Vision Australia**, show that accessibility can be built into real, public-facing products. [Logo for City of Cockburn, featuring a wave graphic] [Logo for National Library of Australia, featuring a building graphic] [Logo for Vision Australia, featuring an abstract loop graphic] ### 00:34:47 ## SOMETHING YOU CAN ACTION THIS WEEK Add one invisible-disability question to your next screener, or run the three audit questions over a single screen [The word "ACTION" in the heading is underlined in yellow]