iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

These are the orgs who will lead the way. These are the orgs who connect their goals directly to the goals of patients, policy-holders, citizens, and communities. Plus, folks attending my learning groups have fun being with others who care! ❤️

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Join me to learn how to understand people's goals without restricting them to your org's tools & solutions. Why? There ARE orgs that have caring humans as leaders, who have ALWAYS been interested in the process of thinking of better support for patients, policy-holders, citizens, and communities.

indiyoung.com

Training

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

We are finally at the point where directors see that restricting your tools ("make it AI") doesn't work. They are open to better approaches. 😆 Just kidding. We're not there yet.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

10-16 people per group Dates will be planned after 10 people sign up for a wait list. Sign up anytime! Half-price lessons available pre-recorded indiyoung.com/training/

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Learn how: - Listen for people's cognition, without bringing up new topics yourself - Find patterns in these transcripts to make a mental model Skyline - Find different patterns to discover thinking styles people use to approach their goal - Figure out all the nuances of framing a study

indiyoung.com

Training

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Learn with Indi! We gather as international groups and practice lessons together. Sign up to a wait list and we will figure out a date! indiyoung.com/training/

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

My method is Data Science that Listens. (way, way better than sentiment analysis.)

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

'Cognitive empathy' is a different kind of empathy that IS SCALABLE, about understanding the whole set of someone's PAST thinking, emotions, and personal rules. See a picture of the gaps between what an org does and what went through people's minds. indiyoung.com/method/#mmsk...

indiyoung.com

Method

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Empathy has a bad rep because folks think it's only about emotions. It's not. Well, 'emotional empathy' is about recognizing someone's current emotions. But 'emotional empathy' is NOT SCALABLE. An org can only make sure its representatives (sales, VPs, call centers) are good at it.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Originally there was a VARIETY of answers, not just one answer to a search. Originally, search engines helped show people websites and information that were not sponsored by big budgets.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

The AI-search engine reduced search results exactly the way the US economy+deregulation made mega-corporations. It made it really hard for new ideas to surface.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

In your culture, do you ask, "What do you do?" If not, what do you ask each other when you meet someone new? And is this what we mean by "enjoying life?"🩷

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Identity based on our projects is powerful because it can motivate us if we are excited about them. We get creative and have new ideas. Innovation creates a strong economy, if it's allowed. Identity based on projects can also be unhealthy, especially when what pays the bills does not excite us.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

The years rip past. A decade whizzed by. Yeah. Life—are we enjoying it? Family time, outdoors, community events? I was in a crowd yesterday, my once-a-year festival. When I met someone new I asked, "What do you do?" We identify ourselves by the work we do. Our projects.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

But I wanted the Skyline to be made out of native objects, so we can color and edit them in place. Can't do that with an SVG. Why Mural? Because the team there is awesome, I can use it easier with a mouse, and I'm friends with their Chief Evangelist, Jim Kalbach. indiyoung.com/apps/

indiyoung.com

Apps

Data science that listens, Vision that lasts

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Why render in a collaborative space? Well, we've been pasting SVG images of the Skyline there to align capabilities using stickies and to keep collaborating over the years via the structure of the Skyline.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Did you know?! We have launched a Skyline generator! You feed it your synthesized data sheet and a beautiful Mental Model Skyline gets rendered in your Mural board!

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Thinking Styles are for staying true to people's outcomes. How do they think and feel their way through to their intent (aim, purpose, goal)? Match that, and people feel recognized. Solutions 'see' their approach, and support them in it.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Skyline is for seeing where to think. Gaps, opportunities. Pull together all yout signals and layer them on one Skyline.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

How many newsletters have you ignored this week? Well, next week you'll have time. (It was a holiday week in the US, so I ignored probably 5.) 😂😆😱 My newsletter is on Buttondown now! If you were already subscribed, you are still subscribed. 😅 If you want to check it out (next week!), click here:

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Deep listening does not seek to change or manipulate the participant. If anything, the deep understanding that results from listening is used to support someone in accomplishing the purpose they already have in a way that matches their way of thinking better.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Some kinds of solutions seek to change a person’s buying decisions, or to manipulate a person’s behavior, not to their benefit. The gain goes to the corporation; the cost goes to the person.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

➡️If your team is creating digital or service solutions, it's nowhere near as costly to make variations. Our fight now is to convince people in power. So many thinking styles are not supported. 🙉 Those are the markets your org is ignoring. indiyoung.com/explanations...

indiyoung.com

Explanations – Thinking Styles -

Thinking Styles Thinking styles are the only strategic practice that makes human variety visible and actionable — before ideation begins. It is similar to market segmentation except that it surfaces t...

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

When an org makes physical widgets, it's costly to make a bunch of variations. It's costly to do it architecturally, or in civic design, too. But in the case of curb-cuts and ramps-next-to-stairs, we managed to convince people in power that it was required.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Why do we allow this change in meaning of "average" when we are making decisions about the course of our organization? (HINT: the second meaning is myth built on the past 100 years of capitalism.)

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

It's good when we _don't have to_ have "memorable" experiences all the time. Right? The second meaning is "de-complex-ified," or "the one we'll pay attention to." - "Who is our average customer? (user/citizen?)" "Oh, so we have some market segments, divided by demographics and psychographics."

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

🧵 The average. El promedio. It has two meanings. The first meaning is "not memorable." - "How was your day?" "Just average." - "You ate at that place last night. How was it?" "It was fine." - "Did you enjoy the movie." "Eh. It was an average romcom."

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Here is what shows on the photographed notification. The negative sign is hidden in the details. Low Usage: before $75, after $91 = +$6 per month Medium Usage: before $184, after $188 = +$4 per month High Usage: before $304, after $296 = -$8 (negative 8) per month

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

💵 PG&E is doing the same thing as other creepy, profit-maximizing orgs. They have foresaken the people who are trying to afford to stay in California. Their hidden goal: **encourage more usage of the product so they can profit more.** Rent-extraction.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

☀️ They "explain" the new monthly charge as a way to make customers who have solar panels pay equally for infrastructure and services. (Are they guessing who has solar panels based on their low or high usage?) They call it "equitable," which is a mis-use of the word.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

🧠 I was a kid during the so-called "energy-crisis" in the 70's (later shown to be intentionally created). It's embedded in my mind to reduce my energy consumption. Use only as much as needed, nothing more.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Look at these examples for low, medium, and high-usage households. ($24/month applies to each level): +$6 ⬅️ the low-usage people are being punished +4 ⬅️ the medium-usage people -$8 ⬅️ that is a NEGATIVE; the high-usage people are being rewarded

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

I kept this notice on the fridge for a while because something struck me as "off" about it. PG&E (our utility company in northern California) notified us months ago about their new $24/month Base Services Charge. Finally I realized what was "off."

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

Don't you want to increase your market by supporting each of these? It's complex, but their cognition is clear. Look at it via a Skyline, see gaps, set priorities, and expand. Thinking Styles PRACTICE GROUP: starts Fri 21-Aug, morning for #India, #Australia, #Malaysia, an all in those time zones.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

(This is how airlines and banks used to steal each others' customers, before the age of private equity bros buying up everything and running it on fumes.) Learn how people think their way to the outcomes they want or hope for. These are #ThinkingStyles.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

"You just don't get me." Have you ever felt that way? If so, you know what a lot of your users feel about a solution that doesn't quite fit them. They are easily pulled away from your solution.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

If you try to guess at the patterns, you are endangering your team's decision-making. Guesses are subject to assumptions and these are usually risky and cause harm. Thinking Styles PRACTICE GROUP WITH INDI: starts Friday 21-Aug, morning for #India, #Australia, #Malaysia, & all in those time zones.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Listening Deeply: did you read the book or take the course? To truly apply it for your org, you need to find patterns. Otherwise it remains at the 1:1 level, which is fine for relationship/trust building.

Book cover: Time to Listen by Indi Young
Courses: 1. Listening Deeply
2. Finding Thinking Styles
indiyoung.com

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

–– Get the "I SPY: Data Science that Listens" game here: 🔍 indiyoung.com/wp-content/u...

indiyoung.com

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

Extend your total addressable market: By understanding the variety of cognition, your org can finally see and address more people. JOIN THE COURSE GROUP: starts Friday 21-Aug, morning for #India, #Australia, #SouthKorea, and everyone in those time zones.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Thinking Styles PRACTICE GROUP WITH INDI: starts Friday 21-Aug, morning for India, Australia, South Korea, an everyone in those time zones.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Train your AI with people's thinking styles. These are approaches people take to solve the thing they are focused on. The thing that your solution tries to help them with. Easy to learn.

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

The same happens in humans you create solutions for. 🤖 If you are creating solutions that are AI-driven, you're training it with your audience's 🧠 inner thinking and 🩵 emotional reactions,right? You're not? Your boss doesn't want you to take the time to train it? (Wow, that can't go wrong, can it?)

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Indi Young @indiyoung.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

You know how Murderbot gets an emotion-check routine in the new book Platform Decay, by Martha Wells? It has crazy-fun recognizing what emotion it's experiencing then largely ignoring it. But I was not igoring it. (Nor was the author.) Each emotion lead to inner thinking or to another emotion.

Book cover: Platform Decay by Martha Wells
#BookRecommendation

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