Day 7: Designing for Simplicity

Today in class we split up into groups & discussed our answers for the previous day's questions. To be honest, I don't think I really got much out of this because what most people shared wasn't really how they felt. It was easy to tell, not everyone was completely open or perhaps didn't dig deep enough to give a sufficient answer. Yet, what can I expect? Most people don't like to be put into a vulnerable situation such as that. I know this, because there were quite a few that wanted to be skipped. It's apparent that not a lot of people like to talk about themselves, unless you're a narcissist like myself lol.

Why did we do this? Hmm... Perhaps it was to gain insight on how others communicate within group settings. At least that's a little of what I took from it. Or it could also be a sense of relief because a lot of us are experiencing some of the same thoughts/feelings. Maybe this was supposed to be like group therapy.

Any who, I'd rather discuss my more enjoyable part of the class which was the TED video w/John Maeda. He was quite entertaining. I watched the video over again to refresh my memory on certain segments. There are a ton of things I could expand on in his speech, but I did note that his technique is to use several comparisons. My favorite comparison was the cookie & laundry one. Never would I ever pair the two, but both so symbolic in meaning & all too true. I loved it. I think the take away from watching this is to keep things light or simple as John might say. Also, he did mention vacationing as a beneficial entity. This seems to be a recurring theme within the videos we're shown. Are you trying to tell us something, Jimmy?

I think we were shown this video because as designers, sometimes we so often overlook things and may over design. Sometimes things can be, if not more, beautiful in its simplest form.

Thanks for listening,
Ruby