Starting university a masters degree in design thinking for startups

My First Baby Steps

Wow…I’m here! I am settling in at university and getting to know the other students, as well as finding my way around the campus. I was both anxious and excited to return to university for my master degree programme.

My course is The Design Thinking for Startups, which has lots of hands-on activities and encourages students to bring out their inner creative- thinking.

During the first week of #MACE16, we were encouraged to engage and take part in group activities and social media, such as opening a blog, joining a Facebook group #MACE16, twitter and LinkedIn, as well as social networking.

Here is the group at work and presenting to the rest of the class..

In class, we discussed our definition of “HOME”! From my own perspective it is a place where traditional home cooking takes place, family and friends gather, and where there is laughter, music, and even tears. It’s the primary learning environment. Home is also what the individual makes of it.

Here is a report that we discussed in class, conducted by IKEA: “Exploring Life at home” by http://lifeathome.ikea.com/home/ for third year running. The survey was collected from IKEA’s customers, from 12 cities around the world. For many people, their perception of home is having a complete sanctuary.

As part of our class activity, we were sent out of the class to ask various students what “HOME” means to them. The students, we interviewed described their definition of home. We then returned to the class to build a prototype (app). As a team we all collaborated to create the John Jacob App, which we presented to the rest of the class. The App was created to connect international students, who wanted to produce a substitute family base in the UK.

This week was fast-paced, exhilarating and very fulfilling and I can’t wait for the months to come…

The root of creativity is “curiosity”

Ok! Now, here is the thing, until tell someone asks you the question! Are you a creative? and you sit there thinking to yourself. But before replying back, thinking about all things you’ve done or where have travelled to and remember how you overcome your greatest obstacles.

how you overcome your greatest obstacles. Well! I realise, actual I am creative because I am very curious individual (lol) and believe in MY crazy ideas. I like to discover new thing, and expend my horizon, as one will say.

After watching and reading about creativity, now I have a better understanding. As Mike Dillon once said at “TEDxEastsidePrep”, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jR4jbI3Ds9A to understand the secret to creativity is to be CURISOITY and which I believe. Be a nosey parker!. As well as following your inner intuition, be more aware of your surroundings. Let the unexpected happen to create something out of anything and also believing in your idea, it is your wild idea take ownership. Curiosity should be encouraged at all times, to go out there and learn new things from your unusually and to get out of your comforted zone. It is about failure and learning from your mistake, is to about having passion and ambition to carry on the journey.

Creativity is about exploring a new alternative and create an option of non-existing and focusing on the end user needs by understand the context and culture, in order to gain story to reframe the problem and find a solution by designing a prototype to speed the process.

“Creative leadership isn’t about leaders simply becoming more creative. It’s about individuals leading for creativity. That means you, as a leader, must unlock the creative potential of your organization, no matter the industry. It’s your job to set the conditions for your organization to generate, embrace, and execute on new ideas. It’s a competitive imperative that will keep you ahead in the marketplace.” https://designthinking.ideo.com/?p=1474 a thought by Tim Brown..

London Undergrounds

As ‘Sir Ken Robinson’ highlighted, School kills creativity and have design system where it does not encourage individual or gives them the opportunity to express their true potential. Children have a great imagination and they are not fear to express their idea on a piece of paper by using a crayon. but as they get older the creativity goes, because it is not encouraged. Here is video where Sir Ken Robinson explains creativity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

Creativity is a natural state mind, coming out with a new ideas and better ideas for imperfect. Seeing objects for more than just label, imagination and passions is what drives creativity. it is being weird, different and most importantly having FUN long the process.

Analytical thinking vs Designing thinking

Analytical thinking is a visual thinking which gives individual the ability to solve a problem promptly and very well and taking one problem singly, framework and assembly them back together. understanding the theory to predict the outcome mode. Whereas design thinking is also understanding the fundamental principal of analytical thinking and design thinking.

The task today, was to get into groups, we were sent out of the to do a survey towards University student about their “shoes”. We have approach two international student and asked what their story was. I mean a shoe says a lot about a person, but what we notice is that these two student were wearing the same shoes. Understanding the story behind and what drive the two of them to purchase the same pair and wearing it on the same day is remarkable. The girls kindly explain and told the story behind their matching shoes. We than return back and do what we do best. We created a character based on the girl’s story, (Sally and Lulu), sally was the first friend who like the shoe on Pinterest because it was a big trend in Thailand and other friend was recommend to buy a pair because it was cheaper in the UK than in Thailand plus it was her first time to buy Adidas brand. I believe she wont have any regert by Adidas.

As a group we design a shoe based on the data we collected, the end user needs. Based on funk, but yet unique, reasonable price and trend. Which also says a lot about their personality and that they are able to customise to get a matching pair as well as being comfortable to walk around, since in London there is a lot of walking around to do.

Tim Brown explained “Anything tangible that lets us explore an idea, evaluate it, and push it forward is a prototype.”.

Design thinking is like password.

The are several thinking style and purpose of this moduel, we are learning about the comprose of creativity and Thinking styles and is this fundamental how you approach the world and how you forma problem, there are several think style to analytics them. There are several thinking style but this module it is more focus on Creativity and Business style. Typical business people have analytical thinking style and on other hand there is design thinking. to analysis both of them both. The questioned in mind that I was more Curiosity about is how they both differ, how they are similar and how they are related to each other. Here are an example;

For some people think design thinking is more about using fancy colours but that is not the case. In order to understand Design thinking one must look at designers and try to understands how they think and how they come up with the ideas and implementing as well. Designing thinking is more consider of creating a value rather than a result. Whereas analytical thinking is more focus on predicting result. Therefore, it is different mindset, in terms of the outcome.

Deduction

WHAT + HOW leads to ???

Induction

WHAT + ??? leads to Result

For example, is an analytical thinking is more interested in the predict, for a business person is more consider what outcome of the sales for next year would be, what the result is. A designer is not interested in result but by making sure what the designer is creating delivers value to the end user than focusing on the result. Analytical thinking has different way of proceeding, one is called induction and the other one is deduction.

In deduction the result is unknown, for example you know how the sales went last year, and know how to calculated the forecast sales for next year based on this year and calculate the formula.

Problem- Formula - Result

Induction is when you don’t know the formula, but will have to do research and come up with formula, that would enable you to predict for next year. There is creativity involved in induction because you will have to come with a new formula understand the ‘HOW’, and formality the ‘HOW’ for result to be reliable, and this is where analytical thinking and design thinking interlinked. Here is a video of design thinking process;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNkjDr4dwsg

5)Business Model Canvas is structure plan for your business, a short version of traditionl business model. Canvas is a once page and very easy to readjust. It is a clear plan that has the essential important subject, for example key partners, key activities, key resource, value proposition, customers segment, customer relationship, channels, cost structure and revenue.

As a group our we a prepared a business model canvas on Netflixs,

6)As a human we sometime take graditate for somethings in life, I, for one did. I remember when I was a teenager central is was the place to be, trafalgar square,you would see people dancing, rapping, singing ( im sure I walked passed ed Sheeran in those days).

Stranger used to have the odd conversation on bus, people only use to greet each other by a simple smile, its not like they can hear each other. London It is city that diversity, amazing artcure, and a vibrate city. There is also something to do for everyone. I enjoyed working in the Royal Alberta hall and Royal Opera House.

Well I wont bored with it too much, I’m sure you’ve see it for yourself.

So, the other day as I was in central London, having a brunch with a friend we decided to go and visit the amazing free!! Museums. The world’s leading museum of art and design Victoria and Alberta museum, it is full of innovative design to art from all around the world and natural history museum and how the world has change to due to climate change.

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