Creative Thinking Strategy: Design Thinking

On November 6, 2017 we discussed how the design thinking approach is structured, and what we liked about it.  Thinking "sideways" was a common theme that many people liked, along with "all questions are valid."

Here is the link to Stanford University's d school's power point presentation (look only at the first minute, more if you like..)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSuK2C89yjA 


Elise Roy's TED Talk "When we design for disabilities, we all benefit."

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2m97gPI70I 

Main points of her talk:

1. She lost her hearing beginning at age 10, and then fully at age 15 when she became deaf.  She thinks it's the best gift she's ever received because it has made her more observant of the world, and has taught her to "think sideways."  She also thinks that this kind of thinking, and because it's based on her unique experience as a deaf person, can help make the world a better place.
2. She used to be a lawyer defending people with disabilities. Then she got into international law with a non-governmental organization (NGO), and found she spent much of her time convincing people that those with disabilities have a lot of skills. 
3. Designer: she thinks she's been a designer since she was a kid. Design thinking includes these phases:
1. Look at the problems/constraints & EMPATHIZE (put yourself in their shoes)
2. Observe the context & DEFINE what is needed
3. Generate hundreds of ideas; the more, the better: IDEATE
4. Create a prototype: PROTOTYPE
5. Experiment prototype to TEST IT, see how it works
6. REFINE, adapt as needed
7. IMPLEMENT (and check for SUSTAINABILITY)
4. Look sideways (appreciate alternative ways of thinking); ask those stupid questions (all questions are valid); COLLABORATE & GET FEEDBACK from multiple people in multiple professions to generate a lot of ideas.
5. Design for positive change in society
6. Being a BEGINNER can help because you are not weighed down by expertise, nor years of experience:  you have a FRESH approach.
7. Many elements used in products and services for disabled people are now mainstream:  OXO carrot peeler (originally designed for people with arthritis), TEXTING (originally designed for the deaf and hard of hearing).
8. WHAT IF WE CHANGED OUR MINDSET? What if we designed for all by designing for disabilities?
9. Design Thinkers = problem solvers, alchemists
10. She encourages people to fail, again and again because you'll eventually succeed, and adapt your behavior/thinking. 
11. Designers often seek out extreme situations because they inform and give stimulus to designers.
12. Pre-determined solutions often fail because they are not based on OBSERVING & ASSESSING IN CONTEXT (e.g. the deaf in Haiti after an earthquake and their food/goats being stolen without them noticing. Elise Roy designed an alarm based on lights turning on and off so the deaf would realize something was wrong in the middle of the night.