Design By Any Other Name

I’ve recently finished reading Chip and Dan Heath’s new book, Made to Stick. As the book’s subtitle, Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, suggests the concepts in the book could be a powerful tool for anyone in the business of communicating ideas.

One section of the book that I found particularly thought provoking was on Generative Analogies, i.e analogies that generate a desired behavior. The brothers Heath use the example of Disney, and their use of a theater metaphor in hiring employees for their theme parks.

…Disney call its employees “cast members.” This metaphor of employees as cast members in a theatrical production is communicated consistently throughout the organization: Cast members don’t interview for a job, the audition for a role. When they are walking around the park they are, on stage…jobs are performances and uniforms are costumes.

Overcoming Stagnation

All design processes reach a point of stagnation when you seem to be trying to solve the same problem continually with no noticeable progress. This happens for a number of reasons, but there are two that stand out in my head.

The first is a lack of new information. Just as our bodies need food and nutrients to continually sustain ourselves, design concepts need a steady flow of new information to move forward. I see a common misconception that design concepts exist autonomously from the day to day practical hurdles of a project. These things are seen as obstacles, something to over come or possibly hide. However, spending a day or two digging up answers to the unresolved practical questions can be critical in pushing a big idea forward. How much does this material cost? What are the code requirements? Where will the mechanical systems be placed? The answers to these question usually make key decisions for you, either by confirming an unknown or by ruling out an unrealistic possibility.