This week in class we focused on the topic of ideation. Ideation is the third step in the design thinking process and involves the brainstorming of ideas. The Creative Spirit article talks about how daydreaming can help lead to ideation. If we all took moments out of our day to let our minds go blank and run off in free thought, millions more possible ideas could be made. Daydreaming is a way to take time off from our busy schedules and allow our minds to be lifted of distractors. Many good ideation ideas come from taking this space out of a hectic schedule. This article also talks about our unconscious and how rich it is in information. Our conscious mind only contains certain information whereas the rest goes into the unconscious. Having this moment of daydreaming and meditation can allow others to tap into their unconscious minds and discover ideas they didn’t think possible.
In class, we were given the task to brainstorm ideas for a dog house. We were given no rules, no budget, just a concept. We came up with a list of extravagant ideas we wanted for our dog house while still making them useful to the user, the dog. Our list included a private chef, a pool, and a huge couch for the dog to lounge on. Even though all these things aren’t necessarily necessary for a doghouse, they allowed us to ideate and come up with crazy ideas that could possibly work for the user.
Next, in class, we were asked to ideate and come up with a list of wacky app ideas. Our group created a web of ideas, each topic branching out from one another. This process allowed our minds to be stimulated for the real task of coming up with an actual app. The picture above shows our list of wacky app ideas we came up with after discovering ideas about what makes apps not useful. By ideating, we were able to come up with a long list to narrow down into the best idea to prototype.
This process of ideation was difficult at first because we didn’t know where to begin. There were no rules, no guidelines, just thoughts. Coming up with the perfect thought to get our unconscious minds working was tough, but eventually, we began brainstorming. All these ideas we came up with were creative. I think collaborating with a group allows designers to bounce ideas off one another and continue having more thoughts. In a group setting, there is room to build and construct the perfect idea. I also think that having time on our own to ideate for this project would’ve been beneficial because we would’ve been free of distractions and able to tap into our unconscious minds further.
Ideation is a crucial step in the design thinking process because, without it, ideas couldn’t be formed. Choosing one idea and going onto prototyping is a risky decision that could possibly end in failure. Using this step to take the time to come up with well thought out ideas can allow for great success.
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