DESIGN THINKING

A process used for creative problem solving, Design thinking utilises elements from the designer's toolkit in the following steps:

1. Empathy: The first stage of the Design Thinking process is to gain an empathic understanding of the problem you are trying to solve. It is the first and foremost step to designing. We can also say that Design and Empathy are two sides of a coin. 

2. Defining the problem: Upon successfully creating an empathetic response, a designer should now define the problem he/she is trying to solve. Eg: You want to design a logo for an XYZ brand; The empathetic response would involve an in depth understanding of the subject matter along with establishing an understanding with the outlook of the same. The second stage (defining) would then mean putting out details for the same (whether it'll be geometric/soft/feminine/masculine, etc). In this stage , a designer establishes features, functions, and any other elements that foster problem-solving. 

3. Ideation: Brainstorm, Think out of the box, get those ideas coming!

Although, this is the most beautiful stage for any designer, it is also very important to follow the first two steps in order to have the best outcome from this. Pick from a lot of ideation techniques (We shall discuss some of them later on our page as well) and just go for it! Fill your pages, your digital art boards with as many ideas as you want and let the magic happen. 

4. Prototype/Mock-ups : It is very important to now put your concept to execution. This is a stage to check whether the design is executable. This is an experimental phase, and the aim is to identify the best possible solution for each of the problems identified during the first three stages. If a physical design execution is required, a designer can opt for a scaled down version of the concept to check the functionality of the concept. We must remember that the ideas in this stage actually turn into Design Concepts. and until the last stage, they remain a concept.

5. Test your Concept: This is the final stage to call your concept a design now. The ideation, the brain storming, the prototyping and all those experiments have finally turned into a design. This is the most satisfying stage for any designer. This is a stage where a sense of innovation is felt. This is the beginning of something new, something that you have created! This is the final stage of the 5 stage-model.

Always remember: When it comes to creativity, there is absolutely no concept of 'right and wrong'. Its entirely about acceptability. Yes, It's certainly important to always remember the importance of copyrights, Intellectual Property rights and ethics; but if that is taken care of, each concept is a mere step towards the final design. 

The 5 stage-model from Empathy to experimentation helps arrive at Innovative Solutions.