Observation is a tricky subject for writing and teaching. It’s one of those core human functions that everyone does, and has done, for all of their lives. Observation helps us model our behavior, adapt to our environments, and notice key facets of the world.  It can be like telling someone we’re going to have a walking or sleeping workshop.

Observation at the Grand Canyon

That being said, all of us walk differently, and I bet most of us could find a way to do it better. Observational skills are so key to our work, design work, and most work in general, that putting some time into improving them is always worthwhile. This workshop focused on the basics of observation and inquiry – how to take in new environments and situations, how to separate your observations from your interpretations, how to conduct solo interviews, and how to listen to what people are telling you. It owes a great deal to IDEO’s Human-Centered Design Toolkit, the methodologies of Jump Associates, and more generally, the fields of anthropology and cultural/social psychology.

One of my favorite things about observation is that everyone, by virtue of training and interests and mental scaffolding, notices different things. Lauren, our marketing expert, caught every novel use of typeface on the road. The engineers in the car noticed infrastructure patterns, while the business-minded [often the same people!] ran numbers on the cost of living and the social scientists [ditto] remembered how people gestured and greeted.  Regardless of our backgrounds, and this is true for everyone, we all found we had the capability to notice a lot. And this ability is foundational for understanding – the key to creating positive experiences and outcomes for the people we serve.

[Download the workshop here]