So called Design thinking process - Why shouldn't we challenge?

Why do we really have to challenge the process of design thinking? Right. It's been there for years and some of the big industries in the design field are so far applying it. And why are we really not challenging that and what will happen when we challenge that and why it is really necessary to create our own design process and how we can really prove it. So this kind of questions, normally designers don't ask, few designers really ask and they become excellent people first before becoming designers and then their design reflects that. Okay, so this particular podcast is going to address these three things and you're going to learn a very, very different perspectives if you are a designer, if you are starting as a designer, or if you don't know what is even design. Okay, so with that information, let's dive into the so called design thinking process. Welcome guys. Welcome, welcome. Thank you for staying tuned in with me in Design for Change podcast. This is me, Jagdish and thank you for the lot of overwhelming response I've been getting in Spotify for the podcast. Thank you guys. Keep supporting and I'll be adding lot many podcast also in the future. Okay, so the big I would not say challenge, I would say we don't ask this question normally. Okay. Why we have to really follow a design thinking process, the so called design thinking process. Right? I'll tell you what is the reason. We don't really question that because we are scared. We don't want to take that risk. We wanted to safely follow process the second we wanted to feel ourselves secure, right? Like, oh my God, if I put something else different, then people will treat me like I'm a outsider. That insecurity feel, oh, we might lose this client. Oh, we might lose this project. Oh, what if others will say that insecurity will always have been hitting us. The second thing, okay, make sure you are falling in that. Guys, it's totally fine when you change when you wanted to change. The first thing is to realize where you are right now. Okay, it's fine. You can be in the scared zone, you can be in the second insecure zone. Third is, you don't have time for that. Nobody has time, right? Everybody in the world has no time. So we don't have time to really question this. This is a big problem. If you're telling time is your big problem, you are lying yourself. Simple. You're putting your own excuses for your life. Nobody can save you. Fine. It's good at least that you know that you don't have time so that you can find a ways how you can manage your time and manage your priorities. Okay. The fourth is you will start. You would have start building your career in a false assumptions and misconceptions. Okay, Maybe somebody would have impressed you. Maybe you would have chosen design. Something is not working for you. Maybe you would have taken a wrong decision in your career. So this is the fourth option is very important. A lot of people don't challenge this status quo or so called design thinking process because they itself don't feel the design career is perfect for them. If you feel design career is perfect for you, then you will ask a question. Hey what? Why don't we create our own unique process? Design itself is unique. Why don't we create that? So make sure you fall in any of the categories. If you're not having this clarity. If you have the design thinking answer, that's totally superb, guys. Okay, this podcast is going to make sure you are enjoying this. Okay. But people who don't have this answer. Yeah, I'm going to, I'm going to sometimes beat you also in this podcast. Not literally physically, but in your thoughts. You can really disagree with me. That's totally fine. You can, you can. I mean this podcast intention is also to make you question that to make you question me also. That's why I've opened a chat also and I've asked a question also in my podcast so that you can participate in that poll and we can have a healthier discussion. Okay, this is the first part of this podcast. Second is I'm going to be explaining you four different things of why this state so so called design thinking process we have to question and why it is important for us. I'll tell you guys. First is usability. Human centered design we call it. Right, let's understand a small story here. See, before 18th century, 17th century and all, there was a lot of war machines. Okay? People wanted to build more war machines. They have to kill more enemies, right? That's how their survival is dependent upon the design. In that particular century is very different. People has a different needs, people has a different wants, right? At that particular point of time, killing enemies is the first priority. Not having a fancier chair or fancier table or fancier mobile application and website is not the point there. Somebody needs to live in this world, right? So that wars and kingdoms and acquisition was largely dependent. So people are designing machines faster to kill more humans, to kill more, destroy the buildings, to more conquer the different lands. So the machines were built like that the armies have designed. There were military engineers who are designing that. The problem Came when they wanted to kill more humans. How do you shoot 10 times faster compared to one time? What they're killing humans as right? So we wanted to increase 10x faster in our productivity now. But 300, 400 years before that's not the case. Okay, so the need was different. See, there was need of furniture also. There were need of products also. They were need of other problems also. But more pressing problem is survival. The kingdom and the acquisition. And the more people have died in the history before compared to now. Okay, we are in a safer world now, this past century. So that need has arise the people to invent different machines. So that's why they thought, okay, how can I scale this machine? Then comes design principles, then comes design process, then comes usability. Then comes a little widening their perspective. Second is people wanted to make sure that interface is simple. See, interface is not ui. What we are talking about. Interfaces are operating that gun machines operating that war machines. Let's say if any war happens, that particular entire army wipes down. What if the next people, next generation comes? Like, let's say they recruit new people for the military, right? They have to learn all the machines faster. How will he learn it in that particular span of time? It takes two, three months to learn to operate that machine. Learning right? By the time enemy will come and kill you. So engineers and military, engineers and government and people have thought, how can we make this machine simple? So that it's simple like on, off, when you on bullets will go, machine will shoot, people will die. When you off, it will off. So how can you make that level of simplicity? There comes principles of usability, there comes principle of ergonomics, there comes principle of how we can make it so good so that people can able to do it very fast. The scalability is also point of view. And usability is also a point of view. See, there is a guy called James Garrett who has actually brought this principle of you have to define the user needs, you have to create a Persona, you have to create a structure for this entire requirement. Clearly. And then you build the solution, and then you build a fancier interface outside. See, many people have challenged this. But this is exactly the structure what people need to follow sometimes to get that solution. See, always you don't have to go upside down. You can come from the other side. Also, let's say if you're redesigning something, you can come from the interface side. What are the elements which is making this interface good? How should I, what are the problem people are facing? How should I solve it? And Then you can create solution and then you can restructure it and then you can question and then you can solve. See it's other way around also. So this is the first aspect usability. You need to understand history guys. 1950s and after a lot of software things have come. Only coders and software people are able to interact with the machines and software. Not common people can do that is where comes user interface and user experience and design. Where people have made interface very simple to create that particular language. You don't have to learn coding to do any kind of a software now. I mean any kind of interface now. You can build your own apps very easily. You can build your own websites very easily. Right? So that level of simplicity came from this story. Only the need and necessity was properly understood and common people cannot operate this war machines. That simplicity came, that user interface came. Same happens when it comes to 1950s, 60s. The software admin was very huge. People are not able to operate the software properly. Right. So people have thought how I can make this very simple interface so that people can interact with software easily. You don't need to learn coding. You just have to understand what you require, how you require and how you get to get that simple buttons interface. All these elements came little later. It's very important to understand this history guys. When you wanted to define your own process, this is the first element. The second is people follow Double diamond process. What is double diamond? What is convergent divergent thinking? What is Ideo toolkits? What is this Frog Design studio? So there are big design studios and some of the big design organization like let's say World Design Organization, World Economic Forum. Like these people have a different process to solve a problem. They don't only design products. They also solve problem of hospital. They also solve a problem of sexual harassment. They also problem solve a problem of voting system. Right? So people solve different, different intangible problems also like intangible products also. So it's good to understand Double Diamond. Double diamond is going wider and coming up with smaller solutions. I mean narrowing down to a particular solution. Also let's say if you're thinking about how different ways I can illuminate a room. Yeah, I can keep a tube light. Yeah, I can keep a night lamp. Hey, hey, I can, I can put a torchlight. Hey, I can use entire space opened. I can break the wall so that more light will come. I can put bigger windows. So see, I've given you four different ideas of illuminating a room. But this is called Divergent. You're just expanding Your horizons to bring solution. Now I'll tell about what is convergent. Okay, when you design something like night lamp. Okay, how can I make this night lamp better? Okay, I can make this night lamp round. I can make this light lamp pointed. I can make this light lamp flexible so that people can bend it and use it. I can use this night lamp in a more modular way so that they can dismantle and carry it in their bag. So you have to go wide. Also when you're thinking and solving a problem, you need to go narrow. Also when you're solving a problem, this is called converging and diverging like double diamond is a process what people call you have to ideate a lot of things, iterate a lot of things and then you have to come down with one solution. And when you narrow down on night lamp, you can ideate more night lamps, how they can become. And even when you narrow down a night lamp, how flexible I can keep that night lamp. Again, you can hundred ways you can ideate for flexibility again. When you want to prove flexibility again, you can widen up your perspective and think how different ways I can keep flexibility option. Why is the flexibility really needed? So this kind of ups and downs can happen. There is something called double diamond. There is something called conversion diamond which I explained you. And there are some templated toolkits guys, which you can also go through it. It's totally fine. You can go through that process and understand. Okay, this is the second aspect of it. You can go to a website called IDEO101 toolkits. They have. You can download that PDF, it's free. Only you can use that. And you can define your process in that way also. See, you have to understand the history. Also first point I said about usability and military needs and software, everything. Second is defining this double diamond process and convergent divergent thinking and becoming creative going out of box. But this is okay, second step third, what is your process? Hey, Jagdish, when a client comes, I'll think about it. That's okay. Hey Jagdish, no, I have a rigid process. I'll first do a research, then I will ideate a problem, then I will find a solution. Then I will build a wireframe, then I'll build a solution, then I'll test it. Is it correct? I don't think it's correct. Because it may be correct. I would say like that, okay, it may not be correct at certain situations. So what is yours? Let's say if you're building a product from the Scratch what approach you will use? Let's say if you're building a redesigning a product of existing product which is already there in the market, what approach will you use? See guys, the third aspect, the third point, what I'm explaining you is very important. It's not required to follow usability human centered process. It's not required to follow a design thinking process. It's very important to define your process based on that particular context. See, you can be an artist, you can be something like a very historical guy who comes from a very historical background. You can be a psychological guy who understand user needs in a much better different perspective. Your essence and your own story and your own cultural upbringing and your own perspective will shape your process. This is the only way you can define your process without following any so called design process. Are you guys getting it? This is the main point. Without following any process, ideal process, or double diamond process, or divergent convergent thinking, you can think about what is making you solve that problem. Who is your client? What is your need, how you can solve. When you define that, this becomes a bible for you guys. This becomes a rule book for you. This becomes a toolkit for you. And let me tell you guys, people who don't know how to create their own story and form a process, nobody can save you. You will be pulled away by your organization. You will be pulled away by your client. Your client will not even have any design knowledge, but he will just pull you up because you are not forming your own process and defining it to solve it. And then you will be pulled. Hey Jagdish, that's okay. Third point is fine here. Now I'm going to create my process, but who will validate that? Okay, let's say I'm more creative guy. Okay, I'll first start with like let's say solution. Okay, I'll build solution first and then I'll test it and then I'll reiterate it and then I will do research and then I will do primary, secondary research and then I will go and ask my customer to define it correctly and then I'll make the final solution and then again I'll test it. See, I've used six different process here. I've used testing two times. Yeah, for me this works better. I feel for others it might not work. So define your process clearly and then you can move for the step four which is validating it. See guys, this podcast is going to help you also how you can validate it. See, the first time when you think about a process it will be too obvious. Everybody would have thought it, everybody would have known it. You would have seen in online, you would have seen in YouTube, you would have seen in idea toolkits. Everything is fine. But you need to ask a question at every point of time. What am I feeling now? Is it really correct or not? If you ask this question at every point of time in design, when you feel lost or you will find the right answer. Guys, this is the first way to check yourself. Second way to check yourself is asking the right questions to the people of your audience. How do I find Jagdish? Which is right or wrong? Understand the need of the problem and understand the approach, whether it's going to solve that problem and ask that relevant question. Let's say if you're solving a problem of alcohol drinking. Let's say if you're following a problem of people getting relationship problem, you need to understand what, what is exactly making these people lose their relationship. When you go and deep dive into this process to ask people, observe everything, then you'll come to know, okay, it all comes to material, it all comes to not having a proper financial freedom. That is what is making this relationship problem happen. So revolve around that and then check your process whether it's fitting there or not. This is the second way you can validate your process, guys. See, many people will have, hey Jagdish, I'll make my process, but how do I validate? This is the way to validate, okay, you need to ask whether it is going to solve that problem and it's fitting that process or not. Third way is, is it really solving that problem on that particular point of time? Like let's say one month your project client has given timeline. Maybe if it is a medical product design, many times you'll be forced to solve a problem in no span of time because that's a medical emergency. People are dying already. Let's say we are in Covid world where if the ventilator is not designed in one or two days or maybe one month, lot of people would have died at that time, at that time, before one month. How do you solve the problem? See guys, I've given you three ways to check. First is asking yourself. Second is going and asking the customers and fitting your design process in your story. They're thinking about that. Third is making sure the timeline, what you have designed is perfect to solve it or not. This is how you can check your robustness of your process. You don't have to follow any kind of a bible or any Kind of a rule book or any kind of so called strict rules to do do it guys, if you do this only you will form your own design story. And when you form that design story, guys, you will have one word to tell. This is what I am. When your personality is clear, when your answers is clear, then you will solve 100 different problems. Guys. Even if government comes and asks you can you solve the problem of sexual harassment using your design thinking process people you will be able to solve it. You, you will not say hey, I will only design chair table here, I will only design some banking applications here. No, because your perspective has been widened. You are trying to solve a problem and you will understand your process is very different and you will find a different way to solve it. Not designing posters will always solve a sexual harassment problem, right? When I watch ideo case studies and all this is what people also say, then I, then I can relate it to it. So when, when I make posters and when I create awareness message that is not going to really solve that. Maybe that can augment that experience. But the real problem is something else. There are a lot of attributes which is associated to sexual harassment. How they can solve it, finding out the problems, creating a system, finding a solution. And then you can, you can design a chair also for solving sexual harassment problem? Yeah, it is possible. That's what it's very important to understand the context of your user and understand the context of the customer and the timeline. And then you design that to design a chair in that way so that it can protect the privacy of sexual people who are attracted to opposite and they can have their own privacy so that sexual harassment problems are not happening. Hey Jagdish, how can you relate to chair and the sexual harassment? I'm giving you an abstract understanding guys. You need to relate it because end of the day you don't know what you're going to solve. Okay? Sexual harassment is your problem but how you're going to solve it, you don't know it yet. While you explore the process on your own story only you will come to find out that solution. At the end of the day. I'll tell you an example guys. There is a chair which is designed which is called theft proof chair. Okay? If you hang your chair in, if you hang your bag in that particular chair, nobody can steal your bag. Hey Jagdish, how theft proof and chair is related. I told you just now. There is a hook design which is there in the chair which is, which is capable of locking your, what do you call that particular bag so that people cannot quickly pick up your bag. That is like a curved hook so that people will not be able to take it out very fastly, consciously. He has to take out that knob properly and then take out that. Only user who puts that hook can able to take that. So theft is avoided. See, theft and share is no way related, but they have solved it. Same wise sexual harassment problem could be also solved in different way. I'm just taking that metaphor as chair. But you have to diverse your thinking to solve that problem when you are able to do it. Yes, guys, you have found out your own process. Congratulations. You have learned first thing in design. Congratulations. You have defined your own process. Okay, to finally close this podcast, I'm going to be giving you a golden tip. Guys. Artists are not paid that much high. You know why? Because they express their own themselves to make their pleasure pleasure for themselves. Right? When that pleasure is solving somebody else's problem, you will get paid for that. When your passion and when your artistic skills are. When your skills is solving somebody else's problem, then you will get that monetary equivalent and you will have that value. It's always not monetary equivalent. You will have that value equivalence for that. When that is getting impacted, then your career will flip in a different way. Then you will start seeing more value added in your solutions. What you do, then you will start seeing a different perspective of design thinking and you would have found out your own design thinking process. Right. So have you guys understood? Probably many people would have not understood. That's okay. You can drop in an email. I'll be explaining it more in my own. In your own clearer sense. Because if I understand your perspective, then it's good to talk from there. Guys, I'm really happy to engage in this kind of conversation. Just drop in an email to me and if you wanted to take my mentorship also to learn design thinking process in own way. I help with my students to define their own process. I don't impose that. I don't ask them to do ideation research this Saturday. I ask them to define their own way. So if you wanted to take my mentorship. Yeah guys, you can feel free to contact me. I'll be more than happy to help you. And if you find this podcast has added value and made you a little what you call thinking in a different way, yes, you can give me a better rating. 5 star rating in Spotify and Apple. Thank you so much guys. Take care. Bye bye. All the best.