Design Thinking

I Just got back from meeting my new work team! Everyone was so welcoming and the training planned for the team was stellar. It was on design thinking. The tone was set for an engaging 2 day session when we got to choose our superpowers and the name tag that best describes us…I’m not sure if I should be concerned that two people (one that I have known for several years) and one that I have known for like 5 minutes pointed out how well suited I was to the tag that I eventually picked.

So my new name was “hot mess” which probably isn’t a surprise to anyone (even apparently people are who are still mostly strangers) and my superpower was transparency. I don’t hide being a hot mess in other words.

I loved using people’s new ‘names’ during the training and it really allowed me to get to know people on a much more personal level fairy quickly. For instance, I would have never guessed that the IT guy at table two once set his uncle’s deck on fire during a 4th of July celebration (his name tag was firecracker). There was also a dragon slayer, wild child, and Einstein 5 rounding out the group.

This was my second exposure to design thinking; I attended a session last year as part of a leadership group I was nominated for at my last institution. Both trainings were super interactive and well designed.

Design thinking walks you through several stages to solve problems.

What I most appreciated about the training was that nothing was off the table in terms of ideating creative solutions. No idea was too big, or too expensive, or too impractical for this stage of the process. Outrageousness was valued and encouraged!

It was amazing that we designed, built, and garnered feedback for an actual product all in only a few hours.

We laughed….a lot! I was really inspired at all the varied ways individuals approached/solved the same problem. The collaboration, the support, and the reflection made for a great day (one that I, at first, wondered how I would possibly get through without my phone! We were asked to surrender them for some 8 hrs. That task alone proved illuminating!)

I encourage people to ponder how Design Thinking can serve them in both their professional and personal lives. I only wish I had our "Welcome to CTM Airlines" skit recorded to post, and that I had grabbed a picture of Christine Scott and her amazing team who facilitated the training.

Thank you CS and team! Bravo!