Ep 267| Seeing the unseen- 6 Hacks how to increase 10X | Vital skill for a Designer

Welcome to this day four of the podcast. Thank you for staying tuning here. Design for Change. In this Design for Change we are learning and empowering a lot of people through the skill booster initiation. Okay, we are in the day four in fact, which is one of the most important skill which you're going to learn today. Before that, let me set you a small context. Design for Change podcast has heard over 40 plus countries in Spotify and Apple. We've been rated 4.8 and 4.9 and thousands and thousands of listeners are listening every single day for this podcast. And if you wanted to get our previous episodes, make sure you subscribe. And also any pain point you have in design field, you can go to our Spotify channel or Apple and just put a search bar the keyword one or the other way. Your pain point is already addressed here. Okay, so that's what I can say. And also we keep adding a lot more value because you need to understand design is not just learning and getting one job. It's a continuous journey. Through this you can able to innovate a lot of things. Okay, so today we are going to see one very interesting skill called seeing the unseen. Lot of people are very interested to do a project. A lot of people will complete the project, A lot of people will make sure the project is done. But not a lot of people will think about what they are trying to create. A unique differentiating factor. In fact, this is what we're going to go very deep. So listen carefully. This skill is called seeing the unseen. What people normally do a research and complete a project. You will be able to submit a report, you will be able to get one output, you will pitch for industries, you will start getting hired. That is okay. But if you truly wanted to innovate, you have to go beyond the walls. You have to go beyond the people, what they're trying to say, what they're not trying to say. And that is what we are going to see. First of all, this is a very important skill for a designer. It largely helps you to focus only on the user by seeing their needs. You know, what user will not tell you what they need. You have to understand sometimes by anticipating what they require in the future. Same like what Carl Benz did when he invented the first internal combustion engine. Same like what Steve Jobs did when he launched the iPhone. Same like what Newton has did while understanding the gravity, what people have not told them, right? So a lot of design, lot of industries, lot of examples, case studies I can able to bring. In fact, Tesla has made the electricity possible to meet the home needs. But nobody has asked him, right? Nobody has asked anything for any of these people. Bring me this problem. This is called seeing the unseen. It actually fosters your innovation, the creativity in what you build. This kind of a thought process in your design career, you will be able to differentiate at least hundred better than any of the other innovations happening in the market. Also, you have to prevent design failures in the future. It also anticipates some of the problems which you may not face, you may not understand, or maybe the industry may not understand. But if you apply this thought process, you'll be able to do that. Most importantly, it improves the empathy of the user. Because you are going to understand the user from a very far perspective. The importance of this particular skill, I'll tell you see, it helps you understand end to end perspective, thinking holistically. What is a problem, you will be able to get it and you will be able to anticipate the future. And then it gives you a greater competitive advantage. So this is the three important things people are looking for a unique selling factor in this world of distraction. In this world of lot of similar iterative products, right? Watch. If you take 100 brand, is there computer. If you take 100 computers, is there mouse. If you take hundred brands of mouse is there you take anything Guys, car, hundred different type of car is there. So what are the unique differentiating factor? Unless you are bringing the seeing the unseen, you will not be able to differentiate it. Okay, Jagdish, so how to improve it? Let me tell you guys. You can start doing some mind maps. Second, you can start doing some contextual inquiries. Third, you can try to find out some patterns which can able to recognize you internally. If you're doing a research, try to ask lot of questions and be open minded to understand them. Try to mind map it. See the connections behind what's happening. Like let's say people will tell, hey, I have a problem in this. Hey, I have a pain in this. I have a, what you call pain in that. But try to understand what is making them pain. If you are asking sometimes very deeper question and listening to them, maybe they'll give you some other hinters. Pain is not the real case. Maybe they will tell, okay, internally I feel very painful, not in the physical body. See, now they're differentiating pain into two areas. So if you go and deeply break down the inquiry of the user for a particular problem statement, you may understand in a very, very, very different context where people would have not seen it before. So using research, you can do using observation you can do, using lot of method you can do. And also majorly finding out the patterns inside your research. That is why it is very vital to have a pen and paper or a digital tool to go and observe it. Okay? So you can take anything, guys. In fact, if you go to my YouTube channel, I've given you a live demo on how to break down a problem statement, how to break down a user statement, research need and then find out the hidden patterns underneath. Once if you're able to do it, you can replicate in all of the models of your project. Guys, I'll tell you, there are some misconceptions also available here. People tell. Okay, if you want to really see something very unseen, you need to be a Steve Jobs, you need to be Albert Einstein, you need to be some extraordinary genius. No, it is a learnable skill. By repetitively practicing this method, I'll also give you some suggestions and tips anyways you can able to use it. Okay? First is you need to be very careful in listening. Second is you need to observe the users very, very carefully by noting it down by recording the audio or video. Third is make sure you ask a lot of questions. Fourth is observe, listen, make a note of everything and document it properly. Sixth is you can able to detail the document it and later find out the patterns behind what people are saying, what people are not seeing. If you follow the six steps again and again and again for a problem statement, I'm sure guys, you will be able to demonstrate a very different unique differentiating factors what other people are not seeing. This is the only way. What I find in my experience, to do it, there is no magical power. You need to have. Guys and people think this is only during research. I'm telling you, this is also a misconception. It needs to be applied in every part of your project, in every part of your life, even every part of your professional personal life. This is the most, most important skill. Because when you do something in a regular basis and implement it in your lifetime, what happens? This becomes a habit. So how you do anything, how you do everything, this is very important. Because we cannot be two people. We will exactly demonstrate one skill which will be carried forward in other aspect of our life as well. So when you make it as a habit, what happens? This keeps repeating again and again and again in your life. See guys, I'll give you a slight neuroscience background for it. When you apply this kind of a thinking, your mind starts wandering. When you have a lot of data in front of you, when you have a Lot of research, insights and data in front of you. Your mind starts wandering and it will connect some hidden patterns. This is a neuroscience backing. This is called introspection. The second is you will have a perpetual awareness which is end to end awareness, full awareness, lifetime awareness which is total mindfulness. This mindfulness significantly provide a greater attention to details. See this is a major scientific background which you have to understand. How people were able to connect the patterns and bring the unseen is because they are very, very aware of the current situation. And they are able to try to find out the details which can able to connect this pattern. If you do it continuously, what happens? Your neuroplasticity inside your brain increases. This improves your thought process and pattern connecting again and again and again. When you start ideating this same patterns repeats in your brain again and again. That's what is called neuroplasticity. It improves. See guys brain is like a muscle. Thinking process is like a muscle. When you keep doing it again and again and again, it strengthens, right? Same like the physical body workout what we do in gym. So this is the way to improve it. There is no magical power which you will get from the universe to improve it. You can do many meditations, whatever. If you can just sit in a place and calmly meditate for five to 10 minutes. You can also do this vipassana technique which I also teach for my students. That is also good. But do anything which is comfortable for you. It's not like you have to do only this that. Okay, so any technique is better than nothing. Guys, do something and also practice many mindfulness practice. And also think about divergent thinking. Because divergent is very very important. If you're converging on one idea, that's good. But if you start diverging, you will get a lot of patterns. And also make sure you do focus practice. Because when you do focus practice, you will try to see lot of things underneath it. Lot of times people want is a quick solution, quick ways, quick fix, quick fix, right? Calm down, focus one area because that can help you find out some hidden pattern. See industries who are applying this guys 211 percentage are outperforming the competitors. People who are data driven and insight driven. They are 40 percentage of their needs. What their users are frustratedly facing, they are able to solve it. Which lot of the users are not seeing. Industries who are focusly implementing the strategies to find the unseen patterns. What other competitors are not seeing. They're able to increase their revenues up to five to six times more than any industry. In fact 211 percentage. It outperformed the other industries and also 40% of the user need which is not shown, not spoken, not understood, you were able to find out. This sets you apart automatically and it helps your problem solving ability by even 25 percentage. In fact, there is a stat called neurosight. Insights can provide a cognitive flexibility and this pattern recognition can improve your problem solving up to 25 percentage. Okay, let me give you another side. Also it's not only you are thinking, you can also use some AI tools. You can use Chat GPT, beautiful tool. You can give very good prompt saying brainstorm with me whenever you're asking some idea. You can also ask a prompt saying brainstorm with me and give me more ideas. Any problem statement, Guys, you can just copy paste your problem statement, give one prompt. Can you brainstorm with me to give 10 ideas? ChatGPT will throw you beautiful ideas. You have also did the field research. You have also collected some information. Now you can able to use AI to bring some patterns inside it. Second, you can use Mid Journey. Sorry, you can use Perplexity, you can use Claude AI, you can use Google Bard, you can use Simplified, you can use many, many AI tools. In fact, you can use Miro Assist. Inside the Miro software there is something called Miro Assist. Okay, if you give any topic like let's say you have some content in sticky notes, you can just click it and give Miro Assist. It will show you a lot of brainstorming options inside the Miro tool itself. Because Miro is also coming up with a lot of AI powered tools inside. You can go to my YouTube channel. Guys, I've given you a live demo of this also you can able to do it. Okay, so now we are coming to the end of this podcast. You have to find one user need which lot of people are not talking about. Take one product, take one app, take one website. Take on any service which is there in front of you. Physical product, traditional product. Try to find out in the next 15 minutes after listening to this podcast. One unspoken need, what people require. Use any methodology, but try to find out. Do it in your earlier project. Do it in the object which is in front of you. Don't do anything new once. If you're able to do it, then you will start repeating the same pattern again and again in your project. See guys, listening to this podcast or watching this YouTube or anything will not change anything. You have to ultimately take action for the next 15 minutes for yourself. Think about it, mind map it, reflect it slowly and then find one pattern Then you will understand how observation is very important. How subtle behaviors is very important. How doing it regularly can also increase your thought process by seeing the unseen. Because earlier you would have not seen that pattern in your project. Now you were able to see it very clearly, right? So think about it and there are many tools also you can use ChatGPT and other things to improve it. Okay, I hope you would have understand this. We discussed about the importance of this seeing the unseen. We also seen some techniques to improve it. We have also seen some use cases to see this. We have also seen many misconceptions and the neuroscience backing and the statistics and AI tools and hacks to also include Okay, I also welcome you to a deep masterclass at 11 o' clock coming Sunday to watch this in life and this is one part of the whole equation guys. If you really wanted to get good job in design, you should be able to connect the dots and create your good project and a portfolio to make sure how this is getting connected in your whole equation. Once if you're able to integrate it in your whole problem solving ability, you will be able to create a better case study to pitch for any recruiters, thereby landing into a perfect job which is your dream job, which you have been thinking for a lot of time because a lot of people just randomly do some case study and do it. But if you do it with the scene seeing the unseen pattern, you'll be able to bring a great innovation to your project. To know about it, come to my webinar at 11 o'. Clock. Link is being provided in the bottom description. You can climb that free gift. In fact this webinar is worth of 2000 rupees but we are giving it to the free of cost so that you can able to take some advantage out of it. Also you can read my blog, you can sign up for my YouTube channel to get more instructions and more skills like this because we are going to travel for the next 96 days.