We’ve known this for years: users don’t read. They skim, scan, guess, and move on. But in design reviews, we still act like every tooltip will be studied. Like every line of microcopy is sacred.

It won’t be. It isn’t. And yet we keep:

❌ Explaining core flows with full paragraphs

❌ Burying functionality under clever, pithy labels

❌ Writing help text no one will find, let alone finish

The problem isn’t the user. It’s the designer.

We’re still designing for an imaginary audience: careful, curious, and willing to learn. That user doesn’t exist. Real users are in motion. They’re distracted. They want to be done.

Good interfaces assume impatience. They don’t rely on explanation. They reduce decisions, shorten paths, surface intent.

Most UX copy is either:

❌ Too vague to help

❌ Too long to finish

❌ Or too precious to matter

The fix isn’t better writing. It’s less dependence on writing. The best UX happens before words are needed. Structure replaces instruction, motion replaces messaging, and labels become obvious, or unnecessary.

Users don’t read. Design like you believe that.