Designers - a hungry mind is a thinking one

Start being passionately curious. It’s advice I have been giving designers, regardless of their disciplines or depth of their experience – be curious. As Einstein famously said: “I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.”

It is not because you have done a particular project or challenge multiple times, that there is nothing left to uncover. Nor does it represent the boundaries of your talent or abilities. And by extension, it’s not because you do not have the experience of a certain design challenge that you are excluded or an inappropriate talent to partake in the project. Quite the opposite, as new eyes see things in different lights. Just as experienced ones can help preempt uncertainties and tackle complexities that could overwhelm others.

Curiosity and Creativity are cousins

If you accept that designing equals problem solving, you will embrace that a hungry mind is a thinking mind. Curiosity thrives on this; on being more inquisitive and open to new experiences. To question and inquire even that which could be presented to you as self-evident or obvious. Because you view things without bias or first-pass assumptions.

It is not the one-all of design thinking, because a flip side of always having a hungry mind is that novelty is exciting, but routine is boring. Highly curious people tend to be counter-conformists, but deliver a high volume of ideas as return of that. Of course, a high volume of ideas is just that. Constructing solutions out of that is a task best done in collaboration, using the required filters to sense-make.

But because this hungry mindset is in general a lot more tolerant of ambiguity, it needs careful guidance. Curious minds tend to go on instinct and gut, and - with a bit of practice - will become able to quickly filter out original ideas that are founded on empathy and a gut feel. “There is something there” you often hear. This nuanced and very sophisticated thinking style can handle complexities very well, but it takes skillful practice to filter out what makes sense, or better put, what makes sense for the challenge on hand.

The directive here is to help this curious mind into verbalizing the observed essences of whatever complexity with clarity and relevance. In other words, supplement the expertise of curious thinking with intellectual horsepower, to quickly absorb large amounts of information, and represent or translate it in a story that anyone can gravitate towards. This is in fact the essence of a Strategy phase.

The vision quest that inspires designers and clients, however, seems to be the grey, foggy zone between Strategy and Design. The abyss between two disciplines that, in theory, are complementing each other. Strategy has its theoretical methodology to structure a solution. Design is to make that come alive and evident in whatever expression is asked for; visual, verbal, motion, or all of the above.

But in practice, the majority of agencies are still treating both disciplines as silos. For Designers, Strategy work can be a frustrating, stressful process that doesn't always lead to actionable results. For Strategists, Designers are often only invested in the styling process, bypassing the focus of an outcome. It's the elephant in many project rooms; one discipline not following the thoughts of the other, while being steadfast in their own.

This old way of doing design is fast becoming out of date. We are in a time where companies can have access to all the information and techniques they need to make things happen for themselves. I’ve witnessed clients use their phones in creative reviews to research and inform themselves, as to better understand the consult, and to better construct their decisions. A curious mind at work. Meanwhile agencies fear being commoditized and struggle to differentiate themselves from competing consultancies. When clients start reading up on brand equity pyramids or color semiotics as you are presenting these to them, the trap door towards commodity is being sprung.

The opportunities for those that can embrace curiosity as a means to unify and cut across the traditional discipline silos are exciting; new relevant solutions that were designed much deeper than a superficial touch. In recent weeks I have heard the term ‘Hybrid’ designer many times. It is buzzing within the agency trenches, and the C-suites there are looking into how these curious minds that do not just think in silos, can do things radically different for them. But so are the companies that have the brand portfolios; for them it becomes increasingly more interesting to strengthen their ranks with multidisciplinary, curious minded Design Thinkers.

For agencies the old ways are now threats to their own relevance. It is becoming that existential, that survivalist. If Designers are brought into the Strategy process at the very beginning, they can test the frameworks and methodologies just by being curious. And share their responses even as the business case is being developed. It urges them to become business minded, but champion the experience. At the same time it confronts the linear rational of a strategy with a very discerning “So What?”. Reducing the chances of a seeing a project fall short of its potential, when 'in theory' it had everything going for it.

Whether at an agency or at a brand, this new Hybrid Designer, armed with an insatiable curiosity, will soon lead the creation of new experiences that are anchored in real meaning and real value, for both brand and end user. Because curiosity is a design model that will stand the test of time.