We all have great ideas… a faster way to get to work, the perfect sandwich combination, a way to make everyone in our family happy during the holidays. But why is it that we love our ideas and think they are great, but not everyone agrees? In every idea generation session I’m in, I can’t help but think there’s a bit of genius in at least one of my ideas that is just too far ahead of the curve for people to get. Sound familiar?
It’s no surprise we love our own ideas. They are typically ideas that work for us. They are things WE want.
Ideas have no inherent value. What makes an idea valuable is its relevance. An anchovy avocado sandwich on rye may be the perfect lunch for you when you are trying to increase your healthy fat intake, but your co-worker is looking for comfort food and has a fish allergy, and she’s going to gag at the idea. She wants peanut butter and marshmallow on white bread.
Now you’re thinking, “Anchovy avocado is the perfect sandwich! Is this lady nuts? How could she want peanut butter and marshmallow?!”) Or worse yet, you unknowingly offer her anchovy avocado sandwiches every day until she quits her job, running from the building screaming “you just don’t understand!”.
The point is, we don’t all want the same thing. Ideas that are brilliant to us may not be relevant to others.
To be effective and relevant, we have to get to know the people we serve. This is the fundamental starting point for great design. No matter if we sell sandwiches, teach children, or run a hospital. We have to learn to make great things for people besides ourselves.
This requires humility, an open mind, and an eagerness to listen and learn. Tactically this is called design research, the nuts and bolts of which is best saved for another blog. What is important is to know that some sort of understanding, user research, ethnography, or whatever you want to call it is crucial for making our ideas relevant to more than just ourselves.
Try this: I have no doubt there is an ounce of brilliance in your ideas. Next time you are teeming with excitement from your brilliance, ask someone you don’t’ know how they would build on your idea to make it relevant for them. Chances are you will end up with something that is better for both of you.