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Don’t skip over the “rough work”

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Summary

This article discusses the importance of including exploration and rough work in the design process. It explains how constraints such as business requirements, research and data insights, stakeholder input, and timelines can stifle creativity and lead to missed opportunities. The article shares tips for making time for exploration, such as dedicating a “explore phase” in the project timeline, sketching ideas, and focusing on quantity over quality. It concludes with advice for staying up-to-date on the latest design dispatches from the Faire Design Team and exploring open roles on the team.

Q&As

What is the purpose of exploration in the design process?
The purpose of exploration in the design process is to ideate and chase different ideas to see where they lead, what they may uncover, and how they may shape the design of a particular solution.

What are the two challenges a product designer often faces when dealing with inputs on a project?
The two challenges a product designer often faces when dealing with inputs on a project are trying to factor in too many inputs, which can lead to feeling stuck in a project, and narrowing in on a specific solution too early by jumping far ahead in the creative process and making too many unproven assumptions.

What is a story that illustrates the importance of doing lots of exploratory work?
The story that illustrates the importance of doing lots of exploratory work is about a ceramics teacher who divided the class into two groups. The group graded on quantity produced the works of highest quality, while the group graded on quality produced only one pot.

How do you make time and space for exploration?
To make time and space for exploration, prioritize exploration early in the creative process and carve out dedicated time in the project timeline to go broad and evaluate as many possible solutions to a problem.

What are some tips for unlocking creativity when sketching ideas?
Tips for unlocking creativity when sketching ideas include putting on background music to shift your mood, focusing away from the computer and towards a notebook or sheet of paper, using a pen to ignore mistakes, focusing on the main problem to be solved, and spending about 30 minutes generating and iterating on ideas.

AI Comments

👍 This article provides a great look into the power of exploration in the design process and offers helpful tips on adding it into our regular process.

👎 This article fails to provide any practical examples of exploration in the design process that readers can use.

AI Discussion

Me: It talks about why exploration should always be a part of the design process, and how to make the time for it. It also discusses why aiming for quantity in work is more effective than aiming for quality.

Friend: Interesting. What are the implications of this article?

Me: The article suggests that creative exploration is a powerful way to unlock your creativity and design better products. It explains that it's important to prioritize exploration early in the creative process and to give yourself time to explore without constraints. It also discusses how producing a lot of work helps you become an expert in your craft and leads to better solutions. Additionally, it suggests sketching as a great way to generate lots of ideas quickly and encourages focusing on quantity over quality.

Action items

Take 30 minutes to sketch out ideas related to a project you are working on without worrying about constraints.
Listen to background music while sketching to help shift your mood and unlock creativity.
Subscribe to the Faire Design Team newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest dispatches.

Technical terms

Rough Work: Refers to the early stages of a project, such as wireframes, sketches, and other exploratory work.
Ideation: The process of generating ideas and concepts.
Constraints: Limitations or restrictions that shape and impact a project.
Exploration: Ideating and chasing different ideas to see where they lead, what they may uncover, and how they may shape the design of a particular solution.
Lo-fi: Low-fidelity, meaning not highly detailed or complex.
Fidelity: The level of detail or complexity of a design.