“Great design is simple, satisfying and successful,” we are told. Sounds simple in theory, but it can be hard to achieve in practice. Let’s explore how you can follow these steps for producing great design.
Start by tackling the exercise on this theme. First, describe something you would like to design. It could be an article, garden, house, seminar, solution, meal, tool or whatever. Second, describe the results you would like to achieve with this piece of design. Try completing the following sentences.
Let's move on to how you can create this piece of design.
1) You can make it simple.
Human beings love to design things. They love to make things work, find solutions or create their version of paradise. Christopher Alexander, a pioneering architect, wrote in The Timeless Way of Building:
"Each one of us has, somewhere in his heart, the dream to make a living world, a universe … When you first see a pattern, you will be able to tell almost at once, by intuition, whether it makes you feel good or not: whether you want to live in a world which has that pattern in it, because it helps you feel more alive … The more life-giving patterns there are in a building (or organization) the more beautiful it seems."
Architects nurse this desire at the centre of their lives, says Christopher. One day, somewhere, somehow, they want to create a building that is wonderful, a place where people can walk and dream for centuries. Every person has some version of this dream. Some wish to create a house, a garden or a fountain. Others wish to create a relationship, a painting or a book.
"Simplicity is genius," we are told. Great teachers make complicated things simple. So do fine designers. Art Fry's invention of Post-It Notes, for example, demonstrate simplicity in action. So did the Sony Walkman and the Apple Macintosh.
Try tackling the exercise on this theme. Looking at the things you want to design, how can you make it simple? Try completing the following sentences.
2) You can make it satisfying.
There is an old Shaker dictum that says:
Don't make something unless it is both necessary and useful;
but if it is both necessary and useful,
don't hesitate to make it beautiful.
Great design is satisfying on a number of levels. Physically it looks and feels good. Practically it works and is user-friendly. Psychologically it is aesthetically and sensually pleasing. Herman Miller’s famous Aeron chair, for example, embodies many of these elements.
Deborah Berke, an architect, goes even further. She says:
"One of the main criteria for the design of the everyday, though, is sensuality. Something that is sensual evokes a response that's not just visual or intellectual: It’s suggestive."
Let's return to the piece of work you want to design. How can you make it satisfying on many levels? Try completing the following sentence.
3) You can make it successful.
Great design works. It does the job. The Amazon web site made it easy for customers to buy books with ‘one click’. First Direct made it easy for people to manage their banking. Terence Conran said:
“Good design is probably 98% common sense. Above all, an object must function well and efficiently – and getting that part right requires a good deal of time and attention.”
Frank Lloyd Wright's Falling Water shows how something can be simple, beautiful and effective.
Human beings are designers by nature. They love to go through the stages of design, development and deliver. But we still face many design challenges.
Perhaps the greatest is to build a 'win-win' world. It is to create and care for a sustainable planet where everybody has the opportunity to fulfil their talents. This is our duty to future generations.
Try tackling the exercise on this theme. Looking at the specific thing you want to design, describe how you can make sure it works. You will then have created something that is simple, satisfying and successful. It will embody many of the elements of great design.
Posted on Friday, February 3rd, 2012 at 4:41 am in Strengths, The Strengths Blog | RSS feed
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