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Design Thinking: Creating A Better Understanding Of Today To Get To A Better Tomorrow

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Guest Post by Kevin Bennett, co-author of "Solving Problems with Design Thinking: 10 Stories of What Works," co-authored by U.Va. Darden Professor Jeanne Liedtka.

Life is often viewed as an "A to B" problem. We see ourselves at point A and see the goal as getting to point B as quickly and efficiently as possible. Whether it's creating a new product or service, or achieving personal goals, this construct frames much of our thinking.

In this picture, the lion's share of the focus is often on "B." Early in life we are taught to chase one "B" after another, whether applying to college or jobs or getting to retirement, we are constantly chasing the "B" just over the horizon. The same applies to business. We periodically set goals and then set out chasing them, trying to stay just ahead of the market.

The value of design thinking is in allowing us to see "A" more clearly. For it is in focusing on "A" that we truly understand ourselves, each other and our world.

Design thinking guides us through an archeological dig to better understand "A" with a sense of openness to exploration and discovery. In this archeological dig, design thinking takes up ethnographic research tools to help us truly understand customers and other stakeholders. "Journey mapping" enables us to map other people's personal experiences by walking in their shoes. "Mind mapping" allows us to understand the values, assumptions, beliefs and expectations of individuals, to see the world through their eyes as they walk through their journeys.

In our book, "Solving Problems with Design Thinking: Ten Stories of What Works," we take our readers on several of these archeological digs. For example, MeYouHealth, a company that works with employers to improve employee health and lower health care costs, worked with consumers to better understand why they valued their health. This company then leveraged social networks to help employees make better lifestyle choices,  improve health outcomes and lower costs. Based on a clearer understanding of human motivations, such as being active with grandchildren, riding horses or playing golf, MeYouHealth was able to focus on triggers and activities that are most influential to behavior. To reduce health care costs, they had to change employee behavior, and to change employee behavior, they had to get to know their employees better.

Design thinking also helps us to see the world differently by looking to areas and organizations with seemingly nothing in common with our own. Throwing ourselves into another culture, industry or company can often shake up our own thinking. For example, in France, a group of banks and insurance companies said that design thinking "equipped us bankers and insurers with a new pair of glasses through which to see the world, our society, our clients and our jobs differently."

In exploring "A" we open ourselves up to thinking differently, to innovations and solutions not previously contemplated. Many of the resulting insights and ideas will appear rough and not fully formed, but our research shows that there will be diamonds among them. And in finding these gems, we can not only better achieve our goals, we can test the very goals we set out to achieve.

Thus in focusing on "A" we can not only better achieve our goals in our businesses, organizations and lives, we can also better ensure we are picking the right ones in the first place.