DRC08 Workshop: Tapping into super-noticing power
Last weekend was my workshop (“Did you see that? Tapping into your super-noticing power”) at the Institute of Design’s Design Research Conference. Most of the folks in the workshop completed a homework assignment where they went out and took photos of something they noticed (similar to the assignment I had given to the students I taught at CCA, discussed here). During the workshop itself, people presented their photos and stories, while I asked both speakers and listeners to think about the noticing process more than the details of the specific examples (all of which were interesting and enjoyable).
We did just a first pass at synthesizing the observations, and some of the things that came out may or may not be obvious to others. Here’s a sampling:
- To notice, we filter on our previous experiences, our personal backgrounds, and our professional experiences
- We react to something that evokes an emotion in us
- Rather than noticing details, we may simply grasp the gestalt of the details in the moment
- Taking the picture helps you notice, even if you go back to the picture later and notice things in that picture
- The importance of slowing down, relaxation, being calm/still, having a time of contemplation (in contrast to “trying” to do a noticing activity…several people reported that they couldn’t do the exercise when they tried to do it, but then later on they noticed all sorts of stuff
- In contrast, for some, there is no on/off button for their design research way of thinking/being
- There’s a need to give ourselves permission to look silly by stopping to pay attention to something seemingly trivial
- Notice similarities when you expect differences
- Notice differences when you expect similarities
- Most importantly to me, was that it’s okay not to know the “why” of something; this was tough during the workshop when some people had a strong urge to try and explain what others had noticed; to rationalize, clarify, or even solve it
I look forward to the next opportunity to lead this workshop again.
See also: Ever notice? by Steve Portigal and Dan Soltzberg at AIGA Gain