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A bad design is a result of a vague problem
Last Christmas, a friend asked me what I wanted for a gift. The conversation went something like this:
…What do you want for Christmas?
I don’t know, just get me anything you think I might like.
Are you sure?
Hmm, maybe something practical.
That doesn’t tell me what you want or need. I don’t know what to get you…
As you can tell, I had a hard time describing something I wanted. If I had thought more about it, I would have told him what I really wanted was a wallet. Because I wasn’t clear in describing what I wanted in the beginning, It might have been too late and he could have gotten something I wouldn’t need or use. Since it’s Christmas, this wouldn’t matter because I love all gifts people give me and it’s really the thought that counts. The actual point is that it is important to define things because if you aren’t clear with what you want, you won’t get it.
The basic concept of specificity and getting what you want is extremely relevant in design where having a clear, defined problem in design is what results in an outcome that users will be happy with. When framing the problem, you want to really specific because it will help you get to a relevant solution that is focused on the core of what your users need and want. It will also make your job easier in that there will be less room to assume what you think your users will need.
An example is my thesis. I am designing for families living long distance from each other to improve/maintain their relationships and ultimately ease any tension of physical interactions because we all know the feeling of spending time with family during a holiday, especially for families who have unresolved issues. My original question was:
How might we help families reconcile their differences to develop meaningful long distance relationships and improve family dynamics?
The problem with this question was that it wasn’t clear as to what the solution would look like as well as what exactly was I trying to help families do. The scope of my problem seemed huge and it would be hard to design for because I wasn’t alluding to a specific enough user pain. from my research to provide actionable steps…
