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