way to do my job. With my well-researched evidence, I was able to lead the UX design the way I thought best 95 percent of the time. Using a feature comparison on competitors and UX influencers, you can compare everything from visual design, to interaction design, to feature sets, to how the content is displayed. The objective is to avoid being as clueless about your competitive environment as our friend in Figure 6-10 clearly is. Sometimes, you can capture the necessary iPhone or Android screenshots from the competition’s store or you can just spend the money ($10 to $30) on the applications. Charge the client, or pay for it yourself and bill your client for an extra hour. Ultimately, the comparison will save you and your client time and money. It will open your mind, especially after the deep, focused dive you took in Chapter 4 and Chapter 5. PERSONAL DISRUPTION The big payoff of exposing yourself to new experiences outside of your comfort zone is that they make it possible for us to grow as people. You change when you disrupt habitual patterns, and it affords you new ways of doing, being, and experiencing. For example: When I took up ballet at age 45, I finally learned how to stand up straight. When I took up gardening at age 42, I finally learned how to make a tasty fresh salad. When I had my son at age 39, I finally learned how to slow down and just let some things happen. Looking at everyday things with fresh eyes helps us to look beyond the obvious and unearth new mental models. Disruption, whether in our professional or personal lives, breaks down the self-imposed walls that lock us into conceiving or designing the same thing over and over again.