Mindfulness in Human-Centred Design: How Effective Is It?

Embrace the winds of uncertainty with mindfulness.

This year, I explored deeply into mindfulness practices. I’ve been implementing them in my daily life and have recently started applying them in my professional setting. I’m amazed at how much more effective my work has become by incorporating mindfulness practices, and I’d love to share some of my experiences and research with you.

I work as a customer experience (CX) consultant at an agency in Jakarta and am currently involved in a challenging project — one unlike anything I’ve handled before. At the start of the project, I found myself easily overwhelmed and stressed, which harmed my productivity. However, applying mindfulness practices in my work as a CX consultant has significantly improved my work effectiveness and well-being.

I did some independent research to understand how mindfulness has helped me throughout my human-centred design project, and it turns out that there are scientific connections between mindfulness and the human-centred design (HCD) approach.

What is human-centred design?

In the mid-1960s, design theorist Horst Rittel introduced the term “wicked problems” to describe issues that are difficult to solve. Wicked problems require a problem-solving approach that’s adaptable and centred on human behaviour. HCD isn’t just a method — it’s a mindset, with people at its core.

Let me briefly explain the six phases of human-centred design, as outlined by the design firm IDEO:

1. Observation: The goal here is to understand the people you’re designing for by observing and learning from them.
2. Ideation: You and your team brainstorm ideas based on your findings from the observation phase. The key is to generate as many ideas as possible.
3. Rapid prototyping: This phase involves creating simple prototypes that you can test with users.
4. User feedback: Share your prototypes with users and gather as much feedback as possible.
5. Iteration: Use the insights from user feedback to improve your design. This phase is about testing, iterating, and refining until you arrive at the best solution.
6. Implementation: Although your design is put into practice, the process doesn’t end there. Keep learning, iterating, and testing whenever possible to continuously improve.

Where does mindfulness come in handy?

Observation: Mindfulness teaches us to observe without judgment and build empathy. It helps us see things as they are, which is a great foundation for any design process.

Often, I would get “trapped” in the complexity of a project and lose sight of the main objective. The project seemed overwhelming, making it hard to focus on the real problem. By practising mindfulness — seeing things as they are and setting aside unnecessary emotions — I was able to identify the core issue more clearly.

Ideation: This phase calls for great creativity. Neuroscientist Crystal Goh identified four stages of the creative brain:

1. Preparation: Mindfulness meditation enhances divergent thinking (the process of generating multiple ideas). By meditating before brainstorming sessions, I stay focused, less distracted, and can produce higher-quality initial ideas.
2. Incubation: This often-overlooked phase benefits greatly from mindfulness. With tight deadlines, it can be hard to unplug and relax. Even a short mindfulness session helps me calm my thoughts, reduce anxiety, and shift into a more relaxed state. I sometimes stare out of my office window to clear my mind, which has led to some teasing from my colleagues (they think I’m depressed or something, haha!). But letting your mind unwind naturally often leads to great ideas. The point is, don’t force to make it happen — it will occur naturally.
3. Illumination: Mindfulness increases awareness, allowing you to notice insights more easily. A cluttered mind might miss a moment of brilliance, so it’s important to be mindful and stay open to those “aha!” moments.
4. Verification: In this phase, where your ideas are put to the test, mindfulness helps you stay positive and motivated, even if the first attempt doesn’t yield perfect results. Exercise and meditation during this stage help me stay focused and persistent in refining my ideas.

Iteration: In this phase of the HCD approach, change is constant. You test your design → gather insights → iterate → repeat. Instead of resisting changes, mindfulness has taught me to accept them with an open heart. I’ve become more open to making necessary adjustments throughout my design process.

I often stare outside of my office window to re-centre my mind.

After all…

Being mindful of overwhelming situations and taking a moment to clear my thoughts has helped me create a more productive work environment. By recognising when I’m feeling overwhelmed, I’ve been able to reach out to my project lead and the project overseer for support. This has improved communication, allowing us to collaborate and solve problems together.

I hope sharing my experience helps inspire you to explore how mindfulness can enhance your own design process! :)

~N

References:
https://www.uxdesigninstitute.com/blog/what-is-human-centered-design/#What_is_human-centered_design_A_definition https://www.mindful.org/apply-mindfulness-creative-process/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7395604/