Blog 1

Solving Human Problems. Enhancing Human Lives.

Our college’s mission statement has been proven in my opinion to be an important perspective to take. A major takeaway, for me, in this course has been that solving a problem isn’t necessarily as simple as overcoming an obstacle; there is an entire mindset behind it that is just as important, if not more, than the generation of a solution to a problem. This framework of thought really directs the way we think about problems and solutions. If solving a problem were as simple as finding a solution that works as a bare minimum, then our world would be full of patchwork solutions that generate increasingly complex issues to, then, solve with another band-aid. In some ways we see this is true; take any shoddy road in Oklahoma and you see the potholes and the patchwork repairs that just create bumps. From the standpoint of enhancing lives through problem solving, however, the types of solutions you care about change. It introduces this complex matrix of achieving an optimal solution while not causing further complications and within a reasonable framework. We move from patching potholes with asphalt spots to removing a section of road and re-paving it because that will create a smoother, seamless fix. Moreover, that solution won’t degrade as quickly or create further potholes.

Going into this class, I already considered myself sort of a natural problem-solver. In many ways that’s the only way to make it through the apparel design program. Students who don’t solve problems efficiently and well don’t make for good designers. While I was good at generating solutions, however, the way I thought about problems was off. I viewed a problem as something you encountered if you were unfortunate and, if you had to, you fixed it. What this class taught me was to seek out problems to solve and situations to improve.

This mindset colored my expectations of what I would learn in this class; to be perfectly honest, I expected not to learn much, because I thought of myself as already a well-rounded problem solver, while in reality there was still one important dimension missing. More than just an attitude adjustment, however, this class also taught me that even good solutions can still benefit from focusing and editing, and I learned how to do that. Towards that end, there were a couple of CPS tools that stood out to me. The first is the morphological matrix. I think what makes this tool so useful is that it allows you to, instead of generating sets of fully-finished ideas, to generate ideas on the specific components of something and then to combine those components into an optimized whole.

The second tool that I found beneficial was the GANTT chart. The chart works extremely well with how I think naturally; I immediately think of the end goal and work backwards in steps to determine what must be done, and the GANTT chart takes that thinking and pairs it with a timeline. This is useful because, when developing a timeline and starting from the beginning, it’s difficult to keep the deadline in mind and portion time accordingly. Thirdly, I couldn’t personally go without mentioning the Business Canvas Model, with which I became quite familiar both in and out of class. The beauty of the BCM is that you look at your product not only holistically in terms of what benefits it provides, but from the multiple perspectives that are required to make a product work such as channels, partnerships, cost structures, etc.

One of my favorite components of this class is the TED talks. I enjoyed watching TED talks even before coming to college; while I was in high school my friends and I actually would watch them together (yes, if you were wondering, we were the nerds). One of my friends actually has given a TED talk before! While there were a lot of ideas expressed in talks that I really resonated with, I’ve narrowed it down to a list of three. My favorite talk that we watched was about bionics because it represents what I already love about the marriage of design and cutting-edge technology. It’s the kind of thing I hope to achieve with my personal research into an electroactive textile. Beyond the subject matter itself, it was a very successfully executed talk; Hugh Herr was organized, thoughtful, and spoke very eloquently. He managed to combine the technical side of his presentation with stories, which helped the delivery immensely. Most of all, though, the performance of the dancer with the bionic leg was particularly moving. This is why it was my favorite: not only was it an interesting topic, it was presented well and in both intellectually and emotionally moving ways.

My next pick for favorite TED talks would have to be Simon Sinek’s talk about the golden circle and inspiration. I liked it for many of the same reasons; Sinek was exceedingly articulate, he made excellent points and his talk was well structured. I also enjoy when someone is able to address something seemingly complex with a simple perspective or logic, and then can convey that logic clearly. It’s extremely tempting to move in the WHAT, HOW, WHY direction, but seeing that flipped on its head and used to create much more motivating products was very interesting.

I also very much enjoyed the story presented by Richard Turere. It’s truly inspiring to see innovation come from unexpected places, and even more so to see young people making efforts to solve their community’s problems. The best thing about Turere’s story is his motivation. Most young people, particularly in my experience, aren’t moved by what happens around them enough to take action; not only did Turere take interest in what was going on around him, I studied and taught himself enough rudimentary engineering to create a solution. Creating the kind of device he did doesn’t just happen; understanding the parts he was using, how they were attached and how to repurpose them must have taken quite a bit of effort, which is why I love this story.

CPS is a structured approach to creative problem solving; like any methodology, it requires a degree of familiarity and practice to use it comfortably. CPS activities, in my opinion, best serve the role of practice in order to transform the initially clumsy use of the CPS tools and guidelines into a more streamlined effort. This was, for me, the primary benefit of our activities. The thorough movement through the framework, focusing on one aspect or activity and then exploring it through activities and utilizing specific tools, was helpful for me in attaining that degree of familiarity. As I noted previously, I consider myself to naturally have a degree of skill in creative and thinking. However, the tools are useful for structuring an approach to a problem, and the activities helped me to develop that mindset. For example, through the activities I was able to establish an initial set of actions to take that helped me orient myself to the problem and generate rough ideas; once I learned this, I applied it to multiple activities and achieved consistent results.

In terms of moving forward in other classes, I think that the most applicable tool for my field is the morphological matrix. It lends itself to an analytical view of a garment and all its components. I think using the morphological matrix would be helpful in the design stage of a garment, and to be honest I think my internal process mirrors that somewhat already. For example, when designing a blouse there is a mental checklist of things to examine. Neckline, hem, sleeves, edge finishes, fitting, closures, etc. A morphological matrix takes these things and formats them in a way that presents a variety of options for each.

I don’t think my ability to identify a problem has changed; identifying a problem tends to be pretty simple, at least in my opinion. The tricky part is what you do with a problem you identify, and that’s where I think my most valuable takeaway was. There has been a shift in attitude towards problems that I have that definitely promotes seeking them out and fixing them, as opposed to waiting for them to become obstacles. This shift is partly due to a variety of things I’m doing in my life right now, but I would say that what we’ve learned is at least partially responsible.

I believe I already embrace both L- and R-directed thinking both in and out of classes. My design classes rely heavily on both, because there has to be a balance of creative impulse, design and aesthetic value with an analytical approach to structure, fit, materials and description. Outside of class I have my personal research project as well as outside designs in our fashion show. In these ways I believe I already embrace creative and critical thinking strategies, but I feel motivated to continue that trend even further.

For my sketch, I decided to include a sketch of the garments for my flat pattern project; a bomber jacket, blouse and culottes inspired by Egyptian pleats