Way of thinking

Berlin is really a lively city that full of emotions, which I do think this is part of the reason behind Berlin is a great design city. Emotions do help us to work on design, meanwhile, I will think what is the nature of design? Is there anything else leading me to study design and become a designer in the near future? Is it because I got talent? Is it because I got certain design skills? I got so-called ‘creative mind’? I don’t know, these questions are what I keep thinking and would also like to find out, perhaps someday I will get the answer, but I am pretty sure that the answer is definitely not what I mentioned above. Right this moment, I think the answer is just because I am an emotional boy. To me, design is kind of an emotional stuff, we are all human beings, we got certain emotions and sensations, and we design for all human beings, so it is about emotions and ourselves, in the way. Sometimes, we will talk and think about so-called ‘creative thinking’ or ‘innovative design’? But then, can anyone tell me what is ‘creative’ or ‘innovative’? I still cannot figure out what is the meaning of these two ‘powerful’ words till today, can you imagine that someone said ‘I got a creative idea’, ‘I made an innovative website, it’s super’, however, when we work on a design project, how much do we need to concern the ‘creative’ part? Who knows? Why don’t we just think about the nature of the design project? Why don’t we just back to the basic? The thing is that we always need a focus question, what is the need and the value behind? Make it beautiful and attractive? Or make it more easily to understand and well communicate? although the aesthetic part are taking on an important role, we must always ensure that the content is well organized and easy to understand, therefore, users are mainly our great concern, as I mentioned before, we are human beings, then it is about ‘what they think?’ It is like their mental model, their cognitive response, ‘how they feel?’ for example, happy, confuse, complain, etc. then ‘how they act?’, like their behavioral response, don’t you think that is all exactly what we do everyday life?

Let’s say for an example, designing a website, to me, does not mean designing a button, icon or a decent interface, instead, it is making an experience, and creating a relationship with users, so it is about kind of emotions and behaviors we act everyday, for instance, browse a website, play a game and even read a book as well, so, how to get closer with the users in the virtual world is like how to make friends in the reality, when we design the web interface, which is like the bridge between the users and us, the most important thing we have to do is how to keep users engaged, so delivering enough relevant content to the right audience is a must and then it should be what you want to see at the very beginning as a users’ point of view. From welcoming users visit, initiating clicks to users engagements that is a basic idea for me to make a website, thus, in the reality, it is more like, from your friends visit your sweet home, to how you welcome them, make them happy, on the other hand, back to the virtual world, it is about the tone, look and feel, the way, the first impression, and the copywriting, which I think it is somehow related to usability, that is what we have to concern when we work on an interaction design project instead of just focusing on designing such a neat, attractive and colorful interface, thus and so, communication is somehow more important than the design part.

Especially, to me, as a visual communication design student, I am always of conscious of helping our readers, users’ experience enhance like reading or surfing a website. Therefore, to understand what users’ need is the essential of doing design, of course, we should be have a deep consideration for the contextual part for every project And I do believe all great things in this world come from attentive mind, in a way, to make different and do something new and ‘creative’ or ‘innovative’ that I will treat it as a surprised.

As a result, how to overcome a design project and face different challenges, to me, is just going back to basic, think deeper and deeper for the nature of its, and consider for the contextual part, plus observe our everyday life, which i think life and all objects surround us do influence the ways we think and the was we design.