Bonnie Cook – Design Musings

Review the models covered in Hugh Dubberly’s “How Do You Design?”. Have you identified any steps that should be added to your own creative process? Please provide justification for your thoughts.

Three different models described in Dubberly’s “How Do You Design?” have caused me to reconsider my creative process because of the styles of ideation more so than the process itself.

The IDEO model from 2004 states in five steps their ideation process:

1) Observation

2) Brainstorming

3) Rapid Prototyping

4) Refining

5) Implementation

They elaborate on each step but essentially this is how IDEO takes on design challenges and processes them internally as a group of thinkers. The third element, rapid prototyping, is especially valuable to me as it is something I have not done before. The D-School at Stanford is an institution that I think of immediately as a successful user of rapid prototyping to discover new and effective ways to design something. It is about letting go of the constraints of the premeditated aspect of the creative process and figuring out tangibly ways to solve the issue.

Bryan Lawson’s Creative Process (1990) is simple, yet the descriptors to each of the steps is different from my own process in it’s conscious, careful approach to the solution:

1) First insight – Formulation of the problem

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2) Preparation – Conscious attempt at solution (sort of like IDEO’s rapid prototyping)

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3) Incubation – No conscious effort

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4) Illumination – Sudden emergence of idea

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5) Verification – Conscious development

Lawson’s process interests me because of the more abstracted approach to solving a problem (doesn’t feel as strictly strategic as IDEO’s). The hardest stages for me in the creative process are incubation and illumination because of my lack of patience. I think incorporating these into my process are important to slow me down.

Third, Clement Mok and Keith Yamashita’s Process of Designing Solutions (2003) is lengthy, yet important for me to consider in my creative process for the adaption to “team environments.” Currently my process is very personal and considers how a single person would take on the process (no surprise since it is in fact my own creative process). It is true that I work differently in a group setting generally (which is honestly 50 hours of my week) and the three four-step phases of their process embodies the communal ideation process, somehow even better than IDEO does to some extent. The reapplication of the process into “justifying” the Iraq war was pretty sobering. The third iteration of what “AIGA didn’t tell you” is interesting and is a reality check to keep in mind as I reconsider my ideation process.

I’ve been acutely aware of ways that people are disrupting the habits of reality through redesign and this is a particularly lovely example of what a library can be beyond our expectations.

How to Save a Public Library

*Forgive the spacing issues – otherwise the photos were all over the place!

Reflect on your experiences with disruptive wonder, as described by Kelli Anderson in the video “Kelli Anderson: Disruptive Wonder for a Change.” Are you open to creating disruptive wonder? Is the notion new to you? 

The phrase disruptive wonder resonates what I associate with the other phrase guerrilla artist, not just in the messages that are presented but in dismantling the process of creating a message. I am certainly open to creating disruptive wonders in my work and am deeply inspired by others who do the type of work that Anderson does as it reminds me to also be doing it! A book that I adore is Keri Smith’s How To Be An Explorer of The World. It is worth going out to buy for yourself, your child, your loved one, anyone who you think could benefit from a little disruptive wonder in their life. Go spend time on her website and prepare to be inspired. I attached what I sketched from her homepage prompt.

The entire concept of Keri Smith’s books are to discover the hidden talents in ordinary experiences and objects like Kelli Anderson speaks to in her TED talk. Every page is a slice of pure bliss and I have often left the house with it in my backpack to go do exactly what she inspires through the pages.

Self-initiated projects like this where you go exploring is often how I find the disruptive wonders in the world. It is seeing a pattern of feathers or leaves on the ground, hearing a phrase that a passing child uses that is truly brilliant. It’s all inspiration that goes beyond the confines of how we traditionally work through our process as graphic designers.

Sabrina Ward Harrison is an artist that I deeply admire for her spiritual, raw work that is filled with disruptive wonder. She reflects on not only the ordinary, but also the ugly and avoided. She reenvisions a lot of the ordinary in life through her lens of interpretation and they are beautiful because of that.

Work that is geared more directly to designers yet embodies the aspect of disruptive wonder are Ellen Lupton’s DIY books and IDEO’s method pack. They all inspire new ways of considering what we already know and may take for granted.

It all seems to circle around to becoming more passionate about whatever mediums we explore (even if we think we’ve seen them in every possible way). Poet Wallace Steven’s poem “13 Ways of Looking at a Blackbird” resonates this sentiment. We can see things anew all the time if we begin to think in this manner.

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird  by Wallace Stevens

I
Among twenty snowy mountains,
The only moving thing
Was the eye of the blackbird.

II
I was of three minds,
Like a tree
In which there are three blackbirds.

III
The blackbird whirled in the autumn winds.
It was a small part of the pantomime.

IV
A man and a woman
Are one.
A man and a woman and a blackbird
Are one.

V
I do not know which to prefer,
The beauty of inflections
Or the beauty of innuendoes,
The blackbird whistling
Or just after.

VI
Icicles filled the long window
With barbaric glass.
The shadow of the blackbird
Crossed it, to and fro.
The mood
Traced in the shadow
An indecipherable cause.

VII
O thin men of Haddam,
Why do you imagine golden birds?
Do you not see how the blackbird
Walks around the feet
Of the women about you?

VIII
I know noble accents
And lucid, inescapable rhythms;
But I know, too,
That the blackbird is involved
In what I know.

IX
When the blackbird flew out of sight,
It marked the edge
Of one of many circles.

X
At the sight of blackbirds
Flying in a green light,
Even the bawds of euphony
Would cry out sharply.

XI
He rode over Connecticut
In a glass coach.
Once, a fear pierced him,
In that he mistook
The shadow of his equipage
For blackbirds.

XII
The river is moving.
The blackbird must be flying.

XIII
It was evening all afternoon.
It was snowing
And it was going to snow.
The blackbird sat
In the cedar-limbs.

I understood flow before reading the article by Csikszentmihalyi, but did not think of it as a shared experience in the way that is explained. It is something I have experienced naturally and within a project. Today I spent 6 hours working on a homepage mockup for my companies website. I stopped once to get coffee and use the bathroom. While working I was listening to music and was not really aware of the span of time that passed me by. This was definitely a flow moment. What I learned about flow through the article this past weekend was that it is apart from happiness. I assumed that they had to be interconnected and that flow was only a branch of happiness. Per Csikszentmihalyi, that’s not the case. It is a concept that is very specific and very broad at the same time. I have experienced flow when playing games, reading a book (quite often!), painting, working in a darkroom, driving, and most certainly while designing.

My understanding of flow in my life is when I am able to focus. What could potentially be flow in my daily life is often interrupted, whether by an outside source or by myself. I am most likely to experience flow when I am prompted into something. If I plan to spend the day out photographing a place or thing, I can easily find myself in the flow of the process. Even though the phenomenon is more abstract, I think it is best aided by objectivity of some sense.

I am someone who enjoys what I do, even if I do not always love my job of doing it. I find my flow much more often when I take on projects that give me more responsibility than when I am only producing. I think it is because I am having to be creative and lead and it keeps some part of my creative mind from getting bored. It is like the Buddhist advice regarding uniqueness. I also find it easier to attain the sense of flow if I have white noise of some kind. When I am working out, I am able to go for much longer and don’t focus on the time if I am also listening to music. The same happens when I am at my desk designing. The silence, though helpful in some ways, is not entirely helpful for me.

What I like about the Flow article most is its application of flow to solve stress. By keeping ourselves aligned with our realistic goals, we can work with a sense of direction and some of the “holy smokes I have too much to do” goes away, at least so we can knock some of the work out of the way. I have to get into this type of thought when I am overloaded with things to do and feel pressed for time. Two weekends ago when I had a lot of school work as well as freelance, I had to split my tasks into parts of the day. By looking at them as individual tasks to accomplish through flow, I wasn’t overwhelmed with the large amount of time total I would need to spend in that state. The start and stop for shorter projects kept me from feeling too panicked.

The obstacles of life are best met with creative and meaningful intent and the idea of finding flow to do so is appealing. It is no surprise that this was initially published in Psychology Today. It is really a “redesign” of our human experience, which is something I can appreciate in a world that does not cater to the luxury of flow very often unless we make it for ourselves.

My creative process in graphic design is more regimented than my creative process is for other creative acts, such as painting or gardening (things I do for myself and purely for pleasure). The most obvious reason for my process having a particular process with graphic design is because besides being what I love to to do, it is what I do professionally.

The process begins with a kickoff (meeting) with the client. We introduce ourselves, I give a little background information about my design expertise and we then begin to discuss why the client needs my help. S/he describes what they envision happening with their concept and I listen and take notes. I ask them open ended questions about what they are looking for. We talk about the time and cost parameters that surround the project.

Next comes the contract. I go and write this up specifically for a client after meeting the first time. I believe that the contract is as much a defining narrative of what we plan to do together and how we want to work as much as it is for my protection. In this contract is something sort of like the diagram that I made for this post – it defines how we can get to the solution together and explains what I am doing for them at different stages. It is nice because it serves as a type of itinerary for both of us.

Research is already happening before it becomes the official stage in my process, but after writing the contract, I engage in exploring what other designers have done to solve problems similar to the client for who I am designing an end-product. I make sure to explore any competing companies or earlier compositions of the idea. I begin to jot down words, sketch little inspirations, and drag images into a folder on my desktop.

Thumbnails evolve from my research process. I am making moldboards that show what the tone will be for the project (not as much color as pattern and style). I share with the client my research as well. I think it helps to go ahead and hear their feedback for elements that they like and don’t like at this stage and why because it answers questions I didn’t think to ask earlier.

Revisions – this is after the presentation of my research to the client. From the feedback, I go back out into the world and explore some more. I refine the thumbnails to better suit what the client is looking for if they were not satisfied the first time. I may do a second revision before moving forward depending on the complexity of the project.

Sketches are what I intend for the end product to look like. If it was a website I was designing, I would be presenting gray screens of how the content would appear. If it is a logo, I would be presenting drawn out iterations. This stage serves as my design’s conception.

Revisions come from this both personally (me realizing a direction doesn’t work very well once I begin to execute it) or through the client saying they don’t like where something is going.

Secondary Research is what I do to solve more complex problems that are arising in the process. If there is a way to execute something that I am struggling with, I look to see how other people have gone about doing it (especially within the Adobe programs if I do not know how to do something).

After spending time learning and designing, I am presenting to the client digital comps that are either computer sketches or a chosen hand drawn sketch that is being translated into the design solution. I make 3 – 5 variations of my approach, because it gives me a chance to hear what a client likes or dislikes about each one (rather than just getting the feedback on one idea).

By this point, I am working to go through my design and get it to the point of where the client is happy with it. We are going through the editing stage with fine tooth combs on both sides. I am currently in this stage with a client working on a logo. This is the hardest stage for me personally because I am trying to maintain the energy/excitement that I had in the beginning of the project, yet produce something that is strong without getting sloppy.

Eventually, a final is chosen and I create a file that includes this for the client. I save it to the appropriate formats and send it to the client. I bill the client an invoice of the project as well as a summary and close the job.

Something I like to do (that I was inspired to do actually by my current job) is to do a project postmortem feedback meeting. A few months after the design is out in the world, meet with the client again and hear about what they like or don’t like and what they have experienced on their end. I also like to hear what they think about working with me and things I can improve upon. It’s always quite humbling!

Once I reach the finish line for my creative process, i’m usually crossing the start line into another project. The process keeps me going and ensures that I am doing my best for each job.

Describe the process you applied to Exploration A. What were points of success with your process? 

Exploration A reminded me of what a general, chaotic, and even gorgeous mess I make of my design sometimes. It felt like it was methodological enough in the beginning when we were making extensions to word lists and considering what things could mean beyond initial response. I was feeling slightly obnoxious even, like I had discovered some uncharted territory in my abstract associations that would gain me respect and some medal of honor for my wit.

We then start putting together associations with images and color swatches. I’m still keeping it together here, exploring elements that I think are neat. I design a concept map that is a little different from the types of maps I have seen floating around in the design world. I felt super cool that I was able to associate words, images, and swatches overtop of these ripple effects.

Things begin to fall apart in order to fall together. I keep getting constructive criticism from Professor Betgevargiz that makes me feel anxious about achieving this point of success that I was earlier feeling so good about. My process is getting sloppy because i’m trying to find the right solutions so quickly. Some of my ideas are coming together in ways that don’t do justice to the hard work i’ve put toward exploring the words themselves. I’m feeling a bit deflated. I submit a concept of these images within frames to explain the mirror concept. I don’t even see that these don’t look like mirrors at all, rather than looking more like a representation of constraint on images in art. I am trying too hard to make a solution work that isn’t really the right one.

Finally, I’m breaking the glass ceiling over my head. As the earlier ideas that felt so final before this week (5) lay shattered beneath me, I am climbing into a better realm, something that is really 4th order design material. My idea of the mirror is becoming visualized into actual mirror concepts that are unique. I know what I want to do (visually) but don’t know what format I want to present them in yet.

I am laying in bed the night before the end of Unit 4 (3 AM) and realize that I want to present these ideas in postcard format. I feel that disillusioned sense of accomplishment once again. I think I must be a genius for considering this format.

Two days later, i’m talking to Madonna on the phone about my project. She points out to me some really obvious elements i’ve failed to consider. “The cards feel disconnected,” “The Africa postcard feels too much like the RED campaign,” “There needs to be a place for these cards to send people to, a call to action.” Again my creative wheels are churning. What in the hell am I am going to do that is sufficient within such a short time frame? I’m sitting at work but distracted with a flickering film of ideas running through my head.

The postcards now have a direction – a WordPress site that I designed to send the audience to for a call-to-action (several actually). By this point, i’m no longer feeling that design high we all get. I am feeling humbled by the numerous hurdles that i’ve cleared. I can see the finish line but there is so much to do in a weeks time. I’m also simultaneously working to complete a major project for my other SCAD class at this point.

I sleep less than I usually do. I’m feeling grumpy, saying stupid phrases that are mixed up and fragmented that make people look at me and ask, “Are you feeling okay?” I explain that I am a full time grad student who also works full time and I am in fact, okay physically, but definitely feeling the strain of my dual commitments. I get further feedback from the professor saying I need to do more for this project. It is Tuesday. Thus project is due on Thursday. I manage.

Finally. The day of my reckoning. I work from 8-6, go to the gym and nearly fall off the treadmill because i’m tired. I get home and begin my last long night of work for this project. I get home, heat up a frozen meal, and begin. I work and work and work. There are elements I have to leave behind that could be given more love if there was more time. I hate that sense of sacrifice. I submit my final project before midnight. I collapse onto my bed with the lights left on.

Now it’s Saturday beyond the project. I’ve gotten good feedback. The professor seems to like what I did with the project. Classmates are giving me encouraging responses to my work saying they are impressed. I don’t have that same sense of design big-headedness though. I feel too tired and humble for that mess. I’ve really come full circle with this project and pushed myself and literally became a better designer in 4 weeks time. I’m making tweaks to elements I want to improve before the end of the unit. There are silly errors here and there in the project that I must make right (such as sentence structure). I’m a freaking English major too, you know? I guess that doesn’t matter so much when your mind has effectively grown to feel like it is liquified within your skull. I’m doing enough, but not too much during this “design hangover” phase.

I should mention i’m incredibly fortunate. This project, as the entire premise of the program is taking me where I wanted to go. I’m getting exactly what I asked for in a good way.

Revisiting the Graphic Design Definition

What about my perspective has changed so far?

Though I feel like my definition of graphic design as a profession is nearly the same as it was when I first posted, I have discovered that the way I perceive the graphic designing process is very different from what it was to me 5 weeks ago.

The practicality of graphic design from the 5 week perspective:

Graphic design is an art, a science,  and a life philosophy. It is researching and reading and writing and drawing. Graphic design is about people, places, conditions, and events. Within all of these lenses within the design interpretation is a valuable process.

Discovering design solutions is not entirely learned nor intuitive. I have come to realize that my design process was mechanized to some degree for me to be able to get through a project. Slowing down to document every possible resource, track out my thoughts into complex maps that show associations that I could not have possibly conceived without drawing outside of my own boundaries, and continuing to question myself along every step of the design process has enabled me to dissect my behavior as a designer. Before the course my process with a typical material design problem (such as creating a logo) looked something like this:

1) Meet with client (kick-off)

a) Take notes, ask open-ended questions

2) Produce contract

3) Send first rounds

4) Interpret first round feedback

5) Repeat 3 and 4 until final

6) Send final files

7) Get paid (hopefully)

Now it has changed a bit

1) Meet with client (kick-off)

2) Produce contract

3) Create mind map and base first rounds from associations drawn here

4) Send first rounds

5) Interpret first round feedback

6) Create second mind map that expands where client is giving feedback – continue to produce work that communicates this message well

7) Repeat 4 and 5 until final

6) Send final files

7) Get paid (hopefully)

Depending on the situation and the client, I prefer being able to do more than this. I think this realistically represents a basis of what I have done habitually on a daily basis up until January of this year and the process that I am trying to implement to better solve client needs.

If anything, my definition of design will need to be revisited every 5 weeks for the rest of my life!

Tonight i’m working between finalizing the slides that I want to accompany my audio component (which I have written into a transcript and practiced). There are 20 slides total (including the introduction and the sign off page) and I am nervous about appropriately pacing myself through the presentation. Below is my self-assessment of this project based on the criteria provided in the unit content.

Owning the Content

I feel confident about owning the content by now as I have spent enough time reading the articles and working through the nooks of each researcher’s paper that I feel like their thoughts are living in my head. I can quote who believes what without needing to reference the sources. The story of my limited literature review makes me feel energetic because I understand where I can go with it.

Practice Makes Perfect

As I am still practicing, I know it is not perfect yet. I am working to pace myself to make sure that everything is ready tonight and I can just focus on recording and posting the presentation tomorrow night.

Engaging the Audience and Enticing Discussion

Though I feel like my information is engaging, I am anxious about making sure that viewers feel the same way. I am trying hard to make sure my visuals offer as much reflection as the audio to keep the viewers listening and interested.

Self-Criticism

I have been working hard to make sure my presentation is not only interesting, but really does offer an unbiased perspective on what research has been done about Storytelling in Graphic Design so far. As I look at my presentation tonight, I still see a “direction” that lends to the listener believing that storytelling is necessary for graphic designers to use in their work. Because a limited literature review needs to be able to see the issue from both sides, I need to go through and tweak out these parts that go beyond informative into persuasive.

My Own Presentation (Thus Far)

Presentation Introduction

The introduction is interesting and the part I worked hardest to make engaging. It is a story about telling stories! I provided the necessary background information for what i’ve been researching and why I am interested. Without it becoming a autobiographical account, I kept the information succinct.

Presentation Tone 

This is the part that I have trouble with. I want to make sure that I pause to allow reflection and absorption of information but I want to keep the audiences attention and am having to do so without being able to take on any body cues. This is unlike any other presentation i’ve had to give as these types of elements must be considered.

Vocabulary Presentation

Though design storytelling is not “defined” officially, I create my own definition through hybridizing storytelling and graphic design. Throughout the presentation, I do not lead the listener away from the topic, yet I cover all of the important areas of research.

Visual Presentation

I think I am worrying too much about this part. I’ve gone deep into “designing” the presentation and part of me feels like it is especially important since I am going to be presenting about the importance of a designer crafting stories for listeners. I am literally practicing what I am preaching (or at least presenting).

Presentation Flow

Based on the amount of slides and the time it takes for me to get through the information, I feel like the flow is nice. I do not feel like there are too many slides and I am having to rush through them, and I also have allowed for the possibility that my speaking may take a little longer once I begin to “present” with the visuals.

Presentation Timing

Currently the timing is right below 7 minutes. If it went as long as 8 minutes, I would not be encroaching on the “too long” time frame, which is 10 minutes according to the rubric (3 minutes over). Timing is something that makes me nervous, so that is why I am making sure I can dedicate an evening to getting it right.

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So far, so good. If I were giving myself a grade for the work done so far, it’d be an A as I have worked hard to get that on this project! I may add to this post after Thursday night to give further perspective on how it goes.

This week’s lesson has been… interesting. I said this on week one and want to go back to it for a revision on my feelings regarding the creative struggle:

• Lehrer suggests that the creative journey begins with a moment of frustration. Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not?

I do not think it always begins with this. He implies that the frustration is negative and that “you must wrestle with the problem, and lose” (Lehrer). Rather than always feeling anxious or annoyed, I think that the beginning of the creative journey is like the ignition of a fire – the spark that gives life to the preexisting forms and transforms it into something entirely new. The journey of creativity does include blocks along the way, but I also disagree with Lehrer’s argument that sometimes you find the answer when you stop searching. I believe that as a Graphic Designer, I owe it to the creative solution to search aggressively – to not just give in to some whim. It is a fine mix of intuition and precision and the more generic form of creativity that Lehrer is describing may accurately define the epiphany of a painting’s subject or even some greater discovery, but it is not the best way to go about doing your creative work when we are not graced with the luxury of awaiting the aha moment. Chuck Close puts the idea bluntly, “Inspiration is for amateurs – the rest of us just show up and get to work” (Brainpickings.org). I do believe in Lehrer’s insistence on further researching the creative cogs of of mind. 

I now think I am suffering under the dark cloud with a frustration that has lasted longer than a moment. For most of this week, i’ve felt anxious about Exploration A Part 6 upset that I haven’t reached a point of satisfaction or at least relaxation for myself. I have stretched myself as far as I can with my concept map and exploring ideas with the mirror (and beyond) but still feel like i’m scared it isn’t good enough. It could be that I didn’t do as well as I thought I was going to for the first two parts of this project and am now having performance anxiety, but I am standing before a fog in regard to how I am going to pull out of a hat some incredible design solution within a week when I am still struggling with the concept. I really like my ideas as purely creative explorations, but I am afraid of them when I try to apply them into very complex implications (such as trying to imply famine, constraint, sexuality (any of my mind map words). I want my project to be as good as the ones that have been shown as the examples… and I’m ranting about this because I think the raw nature of doing a little whining will at least help me feel like I have gotten it out and I can move on. I’m trying to be patient until the elusive genius shows up. I’m thinking this daemon of mine has been in absentia for the duration of the project. I’ve spent an entire day plowing through a 13 page annotated bibliography, concept map expansion and outline for my other class so I can at least lose myself into this project tomorrow. I hope tonight is one of those nights where I wake up at 3:30 am with the answer before me. I’ve been working like a mule this week and there haven’t been any epiphanies so far. Can someone please give me an ole?

*10 minutes later* 

I’m feeling much better. I looked at some ridiculous memes and read The Onion.

The Bootcamp Bootleg materials are like designer flash cards for working to solve problems if you are really in a pinch. They provide wonderful, even unconventional approaches to exploring an issue thoroughly. What is really the kicker though is that this rich deck of ideas only skims the surface of ways to approach a design problem and think through it!

Three design-thinking methods from the Bootcamp Bootleg collection that struck me as particularly interesting are cards 6) Assume a Beginner’s Mindset, 13) Story Share-and-Capture directly accompanied by 14) Saturate and Group.

Assume a Beginner’s Mindset nearly parallels the Socratic Method of inquiry. If everything becomes questionable, elements that may not otherwise be considered for design solutions are fair game. Silly questions come to mind, such as “Why is the sky blue?” when thinking of how a child may view the world, but when trying to solve problems that need every stone turned, the simplest elements are often the most important to question. True curiosity about the world means going out and experiencing holistically. There is an agnostic avoidance of hard and fast rules as to what is beautiful and what isn’t. The long shadows cast from a structure, the conversations of people on the bus, strange vantages (from beneath the countertop) all give back an enriched sense of the world that we haven’t really lost, but have just gotten used to. I think a beginner’s mindset means to listen more empathetically as well. Rather than closing your eyes and ears to certain people, every person has an equally valid opinion about the world and what things mean. This bleeds into the method of the extreme user, but it is true – don’t only hear what the “experts” have to say. Listen to the layman, the eccentric, the hobbyist, and the enthusiast. The way a beginner’s mindset looks visually is most likely similar to a concept or mind map. It begins with a few branches from a concept and then takes on new forms as collaborative insight pours in new directions and associations. From this visualization and entirely open mode of creating, associations begin to surprise you like a beginner, seeing something truly for the fist time. This method is important to do for every design project, especially projects that have no material end and are more conceptual solutions (the types of design problems that Tony Golsby-Smith discusses). This method was taught to me directly through Professor Montero in Integrated Design Media when we were asked to consider the Socratic Method in creating a concept from the ground up. We each came up with a sensory experience that we did often but did not think about (mine was fueling up your car at a gas station). We had to describe down to the very last detail how we did that task, and by having to reevaluate it in that way, I realized how much more difficult it sounded than it was in just doing habitually. From there I was able to consider elements of the gas satin experience that could be improved from a ground up perspective. I would have otherwise probably gathered information on elements of the experience that were with a much broader stroke of understanding.

The second and third methods from the Bootcamp Bootleg are Story Share-and-Capture and Saturate and Group. Story Share-and-Capture is a regrouping of individuals after everyone in a team has gone out and done their detective work on a project. This type of scenario reminds me of the shopping cart redesign that IDEO conducted years ago (I think I also saw this in Professor Montero’s class!) The members of the IDEO team went out and examined every element of the shopping cart experience. Some got different feedback than others, but when they came together to share their stories and capture an accurate experience, the wide scope of research had really paid off. The team members were able to get a meaningful vision of what needed to be improved most. I think people naturally will notice different details when researching too. Someone may notice the types of wheels on the cart, while others realize that it is not really a good design to have the child placed in that little metal cart right behind the bars. Someone else may notice that the aisles in one store are wider than in others, making the experience of pushing the carts easier (especially with multiple people in one aisle). All of these elements become important when a group comes back together. I think without having a regroup once a project launches, there may be neglected or over focused areas without designers having a clear path. I know that in my job we have a kickoff meeting every time a new project comes up. Beyond the kickoff meeting, I wish we had a followup meeting that brought together all of the designers to discuss what was heard since sometimes parts are forgotten. Story share-and-capture is a little different in the fact that it is a large group of people working on one project versus one person within a team working on a specific job. This type of method is good for a larger organization that has multiples working on something. Saturate and group is like story share-and-capture in that it helps to take ideas that are floating around in someone’s head and put them onto paper for consideration. Sometimes an idea sounds better in your mind than being fleshed out into a design, and then different again when placed alongside other possible approaches to solving a problem. I love the idea of taking the post-it notes and placing them on the wall. At the digital retreat, we all contributed post-it notes of descriptors to refresh the defined goals of the organization’s web strategists. Seeing all of the different ideas posted together helped the group select the most appropriate ideas into a powerful list. In brainstorming a design solution, seeing the finding’s images and words helps “edit” into a strong direction. It works in a less static way than a mind map, but similarly to where some words may end up associating when placed together in this format together on a wall. These types of saturations (whether it is actually post it notes of posting images, leaves, matchbooks, scraps of paper, etc. etc.) are a good source of visual note-taking from which you can build a good reason to move forward with a design solution.