Design ethos (refresher)
I chanced upon this conversation been two established designers chatting about design and it’s ethos. I’ve spent the last 20 odd years bringing design to software and I still think generally speaking, it still misses its ethos.
So, listening to these two designers talk about their work and their values was very refreshing. It had me nodding my head in total agreement in many instances.
Home
Home has meant a lot for most of us in 2020. (hopefully a safe place). Most of us spent a lot more time at home than planned perhaps. ‘Over utilising our homes,’ as Latika puts it.
While at home, we all found ways to entertain ourselves. Be it binging on Netflix/Amazon Prime etc or taking up baking or other hobbies. Maybe some of us unexpectedly found joy at home in something very small yet beautiful—E.g. Sonal said, “just looking at the light falling at a certain part of the day…” maybe previously, we were never at home at that time of the day to witness the beautiful moment.
I loved my home office time throughout 2020. It took a bit to get into a routine and not over work myself. Nevertheless, if I have the option, I would be happy to continue working from home going forward. I know many people like me and that means the significance of home is only going to increase.
Many of us have considered making space for the home office so we don’t continue working from our sofa or dining tables. Many of us spent hours in Pinterest/design magazines (probably) for inspirations but somehow, I felt they were all too perfect. Interior designs of homes these days look like manicured 5 star hotels. Too perfect. I wonder who cleans them :-P
As Latika says, “homes are less pretentious when there are mismatched things…Odd pieces here and there…gives a certain personality…”
I always believed that too much consistency makes things artificial. It looses it’s warmth!
Breaking rules
This is a tricky one. I have often been labeled as a ‘rebel without a cause’ by my non-designer friends. To them, my nature to question things is the reason behind this label.
Ironically, many times when I am thrown into cold water by some team that is ‘demanding innovation’ from day one, I am often the one who is slow and reluctant. Much to the disappointment to the team members. My process is, I really need to get a grip of the context. I really need to understand what’s going on, where are we, what are the existing rules and frameworks…only then can we think beyond what has already been tried — to achieve something new.
I recently had a mock interview and questions came to me:
- What will be your strategy?
- How will you motivate the team?
They were expecting answers. But I only had questions — “what are goals/challenges?” The strategy will depend on that. “Is the team not motivated right now? Why?”
So, it was refreshing and reassuring when I heard both Sonal and Latika talk about the approach to change rules.
Change after knowing the rules. Frameworks are there and it’s important to know them. After trying the rules, break and change them if required and go as far as possible.
(Much like a lot of cooking I did throughout the lockdown :P)
But how far from the norm?
Latika says, “do what is asked and then show another way to do — how far you want to fall from the norm.”
I couldn’t agree more. The ‘how far’ is something that has to be shown/demonstrated to people. Often, everyone is so comfortable and accepting of the norm that even a small variation is uncomfortable. Something far from the norm is very uncomfortable. But seeing it/feeling it/ playing with it makes a huge difference in sensing the value.
I have done this a couple of times. At work, it’s a very selfless thing to do. Mentally, I had to tell myself, “do it. Worst case, it will be discarded. At least I tried.” Created something that works, that fits the requirements, but also create a quick and dirty prototype of another way.
The power of prototyping — it’s nothing more than a discussion starter and the means to spark the imagination of stakeholders.
Openness
I loved one thing said by Sonal, “being able to make a fool about yourself comes in handy in creative pursuits.” I find this delightful because I truly believe being in an environment where one feels comfortable enough to make a fool of yourself is when creativity can thrive.
Sonal ended the conversation with a beautiful metaphor of a design pivot: A bangle that is supposed to adorn our hands. When it breaks it is discarded. But the broken pieces when put in a kaleidoscope creates magic.