Reflecting my Design Thinking Journey and Development
My reasons for choosing the class
As I had a look at the course offerings for my second semester at NOVA SBE, the mention of “Design Thinking” immediately got my attention and my curiosity. Many people have this skill on their CV, it sounds trendy, and I have often heard people talk about it, but I asked myself what does that mean in practise?
The name sounded intriguing and like something really practical. Perhaps influenced by being part of the Gen Z, I turned to YouTube for a crash course on the topic before reading the syllabus for the course. I would recap the video like this this:
“Design thinking involves identifying problems, conducting thorough research, building prototypes, and engaging in iterative testing.”
I was excited when I got chosen for the class and for the start in February. Moreover, I was curious if I might already be a design thinker or if I could become one.
“Design is basic to all human activities — the placing and patterning of any act towards a desired goal constitutes a design process.”
- V. Papanek
Key Insights from the Course
Our world is changing constantly. We are facing challenges regarding climate change, a rising population, world hunger, inequality, crossing planetary boundaries, and much more. All those challenges are interconnected, but so it’s possible solutions.
Design thinking emerges as a tool for addressing complex issues because it considers a lot of perspectives. The course focused on design thinking as a human-centred approach to social innovation and we learned diverse toolkits e.g., building prototypes, interviewing people, writing down observations, which offer opportunities for creative problem-solving.
I have learned that design thinking extends beyond conventional boundaries. Throughout the course, I discovered the transformative power of multidisciplinary collaboration and stakeholder engagement. Though collaboration and working as a team with a design thinking approach, humans have the power to address the worlds complex and systematic social and environmental issues.
Moreover, another learning of mine is that it is ok to feel lost sometimes. It is only an enrichment to test new methods, which you might don’t want to test. Personally, I was skeptical building prototypes with Lego or modelling clay because I never really liked playing with it as a child. However, those classes ended up as classes in which I laugh the most and which sticked to my mind. Embracing experimentation and stepping out of my comfort zone was a positive experience for me.
In general, I have learned the value of doing things, learning from it, reflecting on it and start the process again. From my point of view this is the only way to achieve long-term benefits to societal challenges.
Working in a company and having the time to apply design thinking concepts can also provide a competitive advantage because it focuses on multiply facts, stakeholders, and various contexts related with a certain issue that shapes peoples live. For me design thinking is a process which fosters a deeper understanding of the way how we see the world.
In my opinion the factors creativity, collaboration, respectful teamwork, and trying out as many methods as possible leads to solution improvement, growth, and real innovation.
Personal Highlights
My interactions with fellow classmates and project partners stand out as highlights. Engaging with individuals like Jodeé from Lisbon Project and Sabina inspired me. In our first meeting with Sabina, we all felt a bit strange, and she did not share her private experiences with us in the beginning. However, at our final presentation she talked openly about our collaboration with the visitors. She became one of our most valuable teammates, seeing her growth, and building up our connection with her throughout our collaboration was truly remarkable. I deeply appreciate the trust she placed in us by openly discussing the challenges she encountered. From my point of view our Buddy Programme is a scalable solution where we created a community and connections to build on.
Our visit to Talude in March provided an eye-opening experience for me to see another side of Portugal and the reality its habitants are facing. All the participants in that visit really met the people where they are — geographically, socially, and culturally.
I enjoyed seeing, how some people build up small businesses e.g., the sugar cane alcohol and how creative people can get e.g., traditional scarf production with prints of Portuguese football clubs. Being on the field, sharing meals e.g., the cinnamon couscous, and exchanging stories enriched my understanding of cultures. It is an experience I don’t want to miss.
Reflections on Collaboration and Personal Growth
Design thinking not only taught context but also improved my teamwork and project management skills. I prefer primary research and I often end up in organizational roles. For instance, I spent a lot of time contacting Portuguese people for our Buddy Programme, breaking down tasks for our teamwork and chatting with multiply people to target migrants. Asking for help was also crucial for our Buddy Programme. At this point another thank you to Celine, Jasper, Alina, and Jana for sharing the mobile number of your consultants or inviting them to our workshop. It shows that teamwork goes beyond the allocated team.
I think working in a diverse and international team enriches groupwork only if all team members have a similar interest for the project. However, the more different people from diverse backgrounds e.g., country, study fields, ages are active involved in the design thinking process, the better results we can achieve. We build up on ideas and inspire others.
Moreover, I got better at being an active listener. I liked that we switched the in-class groups due to ALs group selection based on her 1,2,3,4,5 counting. This gave us the opportunity to getting to know fellow students more intensely and their way of thinking.
In general, I developed a greater creative confidence in presenting things than I have had before. For me being in the right organizational culture and having a growth mindset are crucial for successful collaboration. Regarding methods I also enjoying creating journey maps which allowed us to focus on the whole experience across different “touch points” and the drawing sessions, since I am a visual thinker.
Personal Learnings
The speeches of the guest lectures inspired me to also consider a job in which I do something meaningful for the world which creates a positive social impact. The personal refection’s in this class also helped me to reflect on my private life in Lisbon. I recognize the value of constant reflection and adaptation.
I enjoyed exploring the other teams solutions to the same issue, because through applying design thinking people find different solutions. Discovering problems, defining areas to focus on, developing potential solutions and deliver the solutions are steps which will always continue since the world is constantly changing. Everything is connected and in the end everything will make sense.
As I look back on this transformative journey, I am grateful for the lessons learned and connections we made, which will continue to shape my academic and personal future.
Thanks to everyone, especially AL and Beatriz, who was involved in this special experience!
