What if life, work, and transformation were just better versions of play? In this episode, you’ll meet Claus Raasted, Experience Designer, Viking impersonator, and founder of The College of Extraordinary Experiences. From a childhood spent LARPing to advising McKinsey, Klaus shares how designing intentional, immersive worlds can lead to real-world change. Whether you're building onboarding for a sales team or a castle-based retreat, this one’s for anyone curious about how experiences can shape who we are and who we become.

00:00 The Persona of Klaus Raasted

03:51 Foundations of LARPing: A Journey Begins

09:39 From Participant to Organizer: Building a Career

13:21 Evolving Narratives: The Growth of Role-Playing

18:01 Transformative Experiences in LARPing

18:04 The College of Extraordinary Experiences: A New Chapter

19:55 The College of Extraordinary Experiences

21:19 The Power of Shared Experiences

22:42 Intentional Experience Design

26:20 Co-Creation and Chaos in Experiences

28:21 Insights from McKinsey: Data-Driven Decisions

33:49 The Evolution of Experience Design

40:46 Finding the Right Balance in Experience Design

44:58 Resources for Experience Design Enthusiasts

Claus’s bio & links

Claus Raasted helps organizations both big and small become better at GETTING S**T DONE and serves as Director of the College of Extraordinary Experiences. He travels the globe as a keynote speaker and has been both a Coach and Senior Advisor at the consulting giant McKinsey. Raasted is the author of 46 books, the latest of which is fittingly titled Claus Raasted’s Little Book of Getting Shit Done. He also has a past in reality TV, but these days, who hasn’t?

www.clausraasted.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/clausraasted

Dive into a captivating discussion on experience design with Mat Duerden, Department Chair of Experience Design and Management in the Marriott School of Business at Brigham Young University and Co-Author of the book Experience Design. Reveals how intentional design can transform everyday moments into powerful experiences. Mat shares his journey from adventurous childhood whitewater rafting to pioneering leadership in experience design education, illustrating the “experience ladder” from ordinary to transformative.

They also explore how attention has become scarce in today’s fast-paced world, emphasising co-creation, reflection, and lessons learned from recent global shifts. Discover how thoughtful design can spark meaningful change in personal and professional realms.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Experience Design

02:47 Personal Journey and Early Influences

05:59 Defining Experience Design

08:57 Academic Environment and Experience Design Education

12:00 Global Trends in Experience Design

14:59 Intentionality in Experience Design

18:13 The Experience Ladder: From Ordinary to Transformative

21:12 Reflection and Meaning in Experiences

24:03 The Importance of Transformative Experiences

26:47 Navigating Transformation in a Rapidly Changing World

32:47 The Scarcity of Attention

35:44 Guided Transformations in Experience Design

37:40 The Role of Experience Designers

41:51 The Evolution of Work Experiences

50:28 Future of Experience Design

01:01:25 Connecting Through Experiences

Mats bio & links

Mat is the Department Chair of Experience Design and Management at the Marriott School of Business at Brigham Young University. His experience design research focuses on memorable, meaningful, and transformative experiences. He also collaborates on research exploring the neurological connection between storytelling and social connection.

Mat’s publications have appeared in various journals, including the Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Environmental Psychology, Journal of Adolescent Research, and Journal of Leisure Research. Mat co-authored Designing Experiences with Robert Rossman, which was published in 2019 by Columbia Business School Press. In 2021, Axiom Business Awards selected the book as a silver medalist winner in the Business Intelligence/Innovation category. Mat works with organisations across various sectors, including healthcare, education, not-for-profit, tourism, manufacturing, and consumer product goods, to provide training and consulting around experience design.

Mat Duerden (LinkedIn)

Professor

Alumni Distinguished Fellow

Department of Experience Design and Management

Marriott School of Business

Brigham Young University

Co-author of Designing Experiences

In this episode of The Experience Designers, I sit down with Dr. Paul Zak, the neuroscientist who wrote the book on trust and human connection. A TED speaker, best-selling author, and founder of Immersion Neuroscience, Paul has spent decades uncovering the brain’s hidden responses to experiences, brands, and relationships.

Link to Six App - https://your6.com/
Connect with Paul - https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-j-zak-91123510/
TED talk - https://www.ted.com/talks/paul_zak_trust_morality_and_oxytocin

What if the magic behind your favourite experiences wasn't just a coincidence? In this second part two of this two-part series with Goc O'Callaghan, Co-owner of ArcTanGent Festival and Global Experience Lead at Buro Happold.

In this episode, we peel back the curtain on the often-overlooked and unknown 'dark side' of Disney's magic. From the hidden infrastructure at Disney parks to designing festivals that feel like second homes, Goc reveals how intentional design can transform ordinary spaces into extraordinary memories.

Get ready to explore behind the scenes of thoughtful details, and see how the environments around us are engineered to make us feel, move, and connect in profound ways.

00:00 Introduction to the Experience Designers Podcast

01:05 Guest Introduction: Goc O'Callaghan

02:06 The Dark Side of Disney

03:13 Disney's Design Secrets

07:07 Real-Time Feedback and Customer Experience

08:47 Designing for the Senses

10:48 Applying Disney's Principles to Business

15:36 Experience Design in Structural Engineering

18:55 Quantifying Experience

31:26 Personalizing Office Spaces

38:02 Final Thoughts and Recommendations

43:55 Conclusion and Farewell

We're taking you behind the scenes of an incredible journey, exploring the power of memorable experiences and the lessons we can learn from one of the major memory makers out there: music festivals. I had the pleasure of sitting down with Goc O'Callaghan, co-founder, owner, and festival director of the legendary ArcTanGent Festival in the UK.

This is a festival that started as a childhood dream in a bluebell forest and grew into a multi-award-winning independent festival. This is the first of a special two-part series in which Goc shares her story of building something extraordinary from the ground up. In this episode, we dive into those early days and the magic of creating memorable experiences.

In this episode of The Experience Designers, we dive deep into the world of neurodiversity with Tina Squire, an expert in fostering neuro-inclusive environments. Tina shares her personal journey with ADHD and how it has fueled her passion for creating workspaces where neurodiverse individuals are not just accommodated, but truly celebrated. This episode explores the importance of designing work experiences that embrace every individual's unique strengths, from recruitment to retention, and everything in between.

In this episode, we’re joined by John Sills, managing partner at The Foundation and author of The Human Experience. John shares an incredible story of how a broken train in Switzerland became one of the most memorable customer experiences he’s ever had—and not because it went wrong, but because of how it was handled.

Together, we dive into the heart of what makes customer experiences truly remarkable: human connection, ownership, and care. We explore why so many business leaders feel disconnected from their customers, the role technology plays in both enhancing and damaging experiences, and how companies can cultivate human traits like empathy, respect, and responsibility in everything they do.

Join us as we uncover the real secret to turning an ordinary—or even negative—experience into something extraordinary. Whether you're in customer service, leadership, or just curious about the magic of human-centred design, this episode is packed with insights and inspiration you won’t want to miss!

In this episode, Elena Aylott shares her unique journey from executive assistant to Vice President of Global Communications and Employee Experience at Oriflame Cosmetics to founding her own company, The Aylott Group.

She emphasizes the importance of trust, adaptability, and community-building within organizations. Key takeaways include the impact of personal and corporate trust, the role of HR as a mega facilitator, and leveraging employee communities for organizational success. Elena also highlights the power of authentic personal branding and the crucial role of human experiences in fostering strong, interconnected networks.

00:00 Introduction and Welcome

00:12 Reflecting on a Unique Journey

02:26 Starting at Oriflame

04:38 Challenges and Growth

09:32 Building Trust and Impact

14:22 The Role of HR and Leadership

32:01 Community and Networks

35:48 The Power of Connection and Trust

36:51 Challenges in Corporate Values

37:22 Creating Unified Communities

39:47 Moments That Matter

43:09 Leveraging Internal Strengths

48:59 Authentic Personal Branding

54:13 Humanizing Leadership

59:53 Belief and Leadership

01:02:01 Final Thoughts and Reflections