Take a thought, then develop it into an idea.

Take the idea, then mold it and refine it.

Now show your idea to others.

Loop and repeat.

Ideas

Thoughts, where do they come from. Ya I don’t know, but the better question is what do you do with them?

We all have ideas, but guess what: “Ideas are cheap, execution is king”- my design thinking professor, Melissa Feldman.

Unless your going to do something with your idea then its worthless. Just something that your holding onto like this pipe dream…

I’ve about gotten to the point where I understand the process of developing an idea into a product or service. By learning both the business perspective and design perspective I see how they compliment each other. One is only as strong as the other.

So knowing why the design is a good or bad business investment helps direct the design, as knowing design and its limits helps with the business model and plan.

Speed is the name of the game. How fast can you take an idea and design it, then prototype it for critique / user feed back. By knowing the design process you can build then judge.

Refine and repeat. Allow your perspective and stances to change. Adapt and go down different approaches. Think about the problem and solution. Work through it from different angles. Be receptive to feed back, then make design choices with confidence as you move through iterations.

Designs

Investigate the crap out of the idea. Ask ALL the questions, like you’re the most suspect person in the world. Play all sides. Try to convince and sell the idea / design. Then scrutinize it.

Live it. Research and understand the industry. Know all the existing similar projects. Have comments of pros and cons. Think back to your idea / design. How can it be differentiated.

Think about the user and how they will interact with it. What impressions does the form give off? How and where does the function and the user meet? What is the experience like? What kind of emotions should it provoke? What is it saying?

Prototyping

Make it from whatever best represents the product or service. Show it in action. Show all buttons and features.

Get it into the hands of others. Watch them interact with the object. Take notes on what you observe. Ask questions.

Take the feedback and go back to designing. Keep in mind what worked and what didn’t. Continue to push the project forward while making committed decisions, and then build another prototype. Repeat until satisfied.

Conclusion

Share your ideas with the world. Enjoy the process, and believe in yourself.

As always,

Peace and love my friends – Keep a cool warmth out there, cheers!