Spaces, Disruption and Design Thinking

WhatsApp Image 2017-10-18 at 4.03.47 PM

How important is the space in which you conduct a design thinking workshop? Cant it happen in any room, in any building, with any set up?

When we explain to clients and people that we need to check out the venue before conducting a Design Thinking Intro workshop for them, it is usually met by a baffled response. So I will attempt to explain the relation between spaces, people and design thinking.

Do you remember the last time you went to a beach?

When you arrived there, what did you feel like doing?

Let me guess, you wanted to go on a long walk to explore the place to eventually find a quaint, indoor café where you could catch up on some reading…
…probably not!

Your first thought was actually to take a quick dip in the cool waters of the ocean, and then come back and lay on the beach chair, soaking in the sun and drinking a chilled beer.

However, if I changed this setting to a small town in Himachal Pradesh, India, you would probably want to do all the things I mentioned above – “go on a long walk to explore the place to eventually find a quaint, indoor café where you could catch up on some reading”

The point I am trying to make, in a round bout way, is that a space and its vibe influence your actions and your vibe.

As a refreshing change, we recently facilitated our nth client workshop, in a space that was really conducive to our purpose. And as we had imagined it was one of the most successful workshops we have witnessed.

WhatsApp Image 2017-10-18 at 4.03.48 PM

This is because a space and its vibe influence your actions and your vibe.

When you replace isolated desks with hexagon shaped tables and replace walls with surfaces on which you can write and paste, post and project, you disrupt the minds of your participants. You force them to discard their ways of working and explore new alternatives.

Design Thinking is usually described as a problem solving methodology. But the true value of it lies in its mindsets. It is these mindsets of design thinking that make it such a widely applicable process and it is these mindsets that help change the culture of organisations.

Hence I believe, that if Design Thinking were to be practiced in spaces that supported the mindsets it preaches, then the success of Design Thinking is sealed.

In the end, I would like to leave you with ideas you can use to disrupt the spaces in which you work, workshop, meet, brainstorm, etc.:

  • Change the way tables and chairs are arranged– let things be staggered and look chaotic, it’s better that the predictability of symmetry
  • Add some colour – Though formal corporate clothing and aesthetic says otherwise, people like colour
  • Play some music whenever you get a chance – it helps to get people out of their own heads
  • Find ways you can get people to move around 3-4 times through the day – no one likes stagnation.

If you have more ideas, add them in the comments, and we shall build this list!

Design Thinking goes to Tihar Jail… creating theatre workshops for female inmates

While we all somewhat enjoy learning, being tested on what we’ve learnt is not always fun. But the cool thing is when we start doing, the theory starts being tested, not us!

And this process is so satisfying. Through it I’m gaining the maximum insights. With the guidance of Ideafarms, and in collaboration with Lady Shri Ram College (LSR), I am in the process of designing a month-long theatre workshop for female inmates at the Tihar Jail, using DESIGN THINKING!

After rigorous on-the-job training at Ideafarms and focused self-study of Design Thinking, I have come to believe in its immense scope and power. Now, I eagerly go out into a different field of play and test the reach of its scope.

It is a journey filled with uncertainty and anticipation, and I am loving every minute of it – from training LSR volunteers to going into the field and testing our prototypes.

We had our first session one week back and have used all the responses and feedback we got to sketch out the next 12 sessions. We plan to treat every session as a prototype and iterate on the process as we go along. While this approach can be challenging and may not result in a concrete output at the end of the month – like a play or skit, we are confident that, through our journey with the participants, we will leave them with an understanding of theatre and an ability to use it as they deem fit – whether for expressing, story-telling or performing.

With eagerness to see the workshops unfold, I go in today for our second session. Let’s see how the ball rolls!

 

Design Thinking with Women Entrepreneurs "Why should boys have all the fun?"

Less than 10% of startups have women as a co-founder. It is stated that about 73% women entrepreneurs failed to get funding from Venture Capitalists.” – WEEfoundation.org

The statistics about Women Entrepreneurs shock me. Not because I have lost touch with reality, but because I am slightly optimistic about change and the speed at which it occurs.

Women Entrepreneurship and Empowerment (WEE) Foundation, IIT Delhi wants to help change these statistics. They have developed a curriculum for the 30 selected participants that is designed to target the specific needs and challenges faced by women in India. I am proud that we contributed our bit to the movement. Last Sunday, we conducted a Design Thinking Primer with them.

In order to practice Design Thinking it becomes necessary to adopt certain mind-sets – being empathetic, being open to failure, being sensitive to feedback and more. This is what makes the methodology so valuable to me and gives me the confidence that if adopted, it can accelerate change.

I also believe that our ultimate goal for Design Thinking must be to use it to create accurate and sustained Social Impact. Being able to share it with the WEE entrepreneurs has taken us one step closer to this goal and I’m excited to see what’s next.

It was refreshing to deliver a Design Thinking primer, alongside Mr. Sunil Malhotra to the group of inquisitive and energetic women with ideas they want to share with the world. Though it was a post lunch session – and we’ve all attended one of those – the interactive nature of the primer kept energy levels high!

In the two hour session we presented and discussed design and it’s distinction from art, craft and Design Thinking, as well as the ‘What’, ‘Why’ and ‘How’ of the much discussed methodology. My favourite part, was sharing exemplifying stories – it always drives the point home!

The session in action...
The session in action…

It was definitely a Sunday well spent for us and I hope that the participants of the session gained equal or more value than we gained conducting it!