Some design flaws are loud and obvious—like an app crashing or a website freezing. But others are subtle: a faucet that turns the wrong way, a classroom door that confuses everyone, a printer menu that feels like a puzzle.

What Are “Invisible Problems”?

They’re not obvious failures.
They’re doors that look like pull but need a push.
Microwaves with too many buttons.
Confusing interfaces. Illogical layouts.
They cause friction without showing their face.

Don Norman, a design legend, coined the term “Norman Door” to describe these hidden failures—objects that look like they should work one way but behave another. You’ve used them. You’ve adapted. You may have even blamed yourself. But the real problem? Design that ignores human instincts.

Key Concepts:

Affordances are visual clues in an object that suggest how it should be used. When they lie, people suffer.
Feedback confirms whether your action worked (e.g., a click sound, a door swinging open).
Cognitive load increases when systems ignore how people think or expect to behave.

Why This Matters

Invisible problems:

Slow people down
Cause frustration
Waste time, money, and trust
Make people feel like they’re the problem

When you start spotting invisible problems, you begin to see design not as decoration—but as a way to serve (or sabotage) human thought.

Fun Fact

“Every time you write instructions, you’re admitting the design is broken.” – Don Norman