How to Solve Almost Any Problem

Chapter 8

Design thinking: planning the way forward

Here’s an exercise for you.

You’ll need a blank piece of paper – at least A4 size would be good – and your wallet or purse. Put the blank piece of paper on the table and look at it. Go ahead: look at the paper for at least 15 seconds. It’s blank. Let it be blank. There’s nothing wrong with a blank piece of paper.

Now take everything out of your wallet or purse. Credit cards, photographs, old tickets or cash machine printouts, paper money and coins. You’ll need at least 10 objects.

You’re going to make a design on the blank piece of paper, using the objects from your wallet or purse. You can use only the objects you have, but you don’t have to use all of them. You have three minutes. ...