Design Thinking: The one thing that will transform the way you think

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What's the one thing that will transform the way you think? Design Thinking. The startups, trailblazers, and business mavericks of our world have embraced this process as a means of zeroing in on true human-centered design. Design Thinking is a methodology for innovators that taps into the two biggest skills needed in today’s modern workplace: critical thinking & problem solving. Of course, if you ask 100 practitioners to define it, you’ll wind up with 101 definitions. Pete Sena of Digital Surgeons believes that Design Thinking is a process for solving complex problems through observation and iteration. At its core, he describes it as a vehicle for solving human wants and needs. Minds are like parachutes; they only function when open. Thomas Dewar was a Scottish whiskey distiller. Communicating ideas or insights is often the hardest part of the design process. And PowerPoint and Excel spreadsheets are limited in their ability to do this. But the communication tools used in Design Thinking—maps, models, sketches, and stories—help to capture and express the information required to form and socialize meaning in a very straightforward, human way. The Five things that all definitions of Design Thinking have in common: 1. Isolating and reframing the problem focused on the user. 2. Empathy. A design practitioner from IDEO, the popular design and innovation firm strapped a video camera to his head and it was only then that he recognized why the ceiling is such an important factor when working with hospital patients. As a patient you lay in bed and stare at it all day. It’s these little details and true empathy that can only be realized by putting oneself in the user’s shoes. 3. Approach things with an open mind and be willing to collaborate. Creativity with purpose is a team sport. 4. Curiosity. We have to harness our inner 5-year-old here and really be inquisitive explorers. Instead of seeing what would be or what should be, consider what COULD be. 5 - Commitment. Brainstorming is easy. It’s easy to want to start a business or solve a problem. Seeing it into market and making it successful is not for the faint of heart. We’ve all read about big “wins” (multi-billion dollar acquisitions like Instagram and WhatsApp). What we don’t read about are people like Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers, who work for years before becoming industry sensations. Pete describes what he refers to as the “Wheel of Innovation” as a process that continuously focuses on framing, making, validating, and improving on your concept. Be it as small as a core feature in your product down to the business model and business idea itself. Design is about form and function, not art. What are the business benefits for Design Innovation? IDEO started an idea revolution when they coined this phrase DESIGN THINKING. Organizations ranging from early-stage startups up to Fortune 50 organizations have capitalized on this iterative appr

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