Read Online What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20 by Tina Seelig - Free Book Online Page A

those with a growth mind-set are typically open to taking risks and tend to work harder to reach their objectives. They’re willing to try new things that push their abilities, opening up entirely new arenas along the way.
     

    So how do you find holes that need to be filled? It’s actually quite simple. The first step is learning how to pay attention. My colleagues at the d.school developed the following exercise, which gets at the heart of identifying opportunities. Participants are asked to take out their wallets. They then break up into pairs and interview one another about their wallets. They discuss what they love and hate about their wallets, paying particular attention to how they use them for purchasing and storage.
    One of the most interesting insights comes from watching each person pull out his or her wallet at the beginning. Some of the wallets are trim and neat, some are practically exploding with papers, some are fashion statements, some carry the individual’s entire library of photos and receipts, and some consist of little more than a paper clip. Clearly, a wallet plays a different role for each of us. The interview process exposes how each person uses his or her wallet, what it represents, and the strange behaviors each has developed to get around the wallet’s limitations. I’ve never seen a person who is completely satisfied with his or her wallet: there is always something that can be fixed. In fact, most people are walking around with wallets that drive them crazy in some way. They discuss their frustrations with the size of their wallets, their inability to find things easily, or their desire to have different types of wallets for different occasions.
    After the interview process, each person designs and builds a new wallet for the other person—his or her “customer.” The design materials include nothing more than paper, tape, markers, scissors, paper clips, and the like. They can also use whatever else they find in the room. This takes about thirty minutes. After they’ve completed the prototype, they “sell” it to their customer. Almost universally, the new wallet solves the biggest problems with which the customer was struggling. They’re thrilled with the concept and say that if that wallet were available, they would buy it. Some of the features are based on science fiction, such as a wallet that prints money on demand, but some require little more than a good designer to make them feasible right away.
    Many lessons fall out of this exercise. First, the wallet is symbolic of the fact that problems are everywhere, even in your back pocket. Second, it doesn’t take much effort to uncover these problems. In fact, people are generally happy to tell you about their problems. Third, by experimenting, you get quick and dirty feedback on the solutions you propose. It doesn’t take much work, many resources, or much time. And, finally, if you aren’t on the right track with a solution, the sunk cost is really low. All you have to do is start over. 2
    I’ve run this exercise with small groups, with large groups, with kids, with doctors, and with business executives. In all cases they’re surprised by the simplicity of realizing that there are always things that can be improved—from wallets and shoelaces to backpacks, software, restaurants, gas stations, cars, clothes, coffee shops…the list is endless. You don’t need someone else to give you this assignment. In fact, all successful entrepreneurs do this naturally. They pay attention at home, at work, at the grocery store, in airplanes, at the beach, at the doctor’s office, or on the baseball field, and find an array of opportunities to fix things that are broken.
    The wallet design exercise focuses on product design. But you can use the same approach to rethink services, experiences, and organization structures. At the d.school, the teaching team crafts projects that charge the students with completely rethinking an amazingly wide