Zen and the Art of Design Research

Loophole is in Portland conducting group research, interviews, and demonstrations for a new product prototype. Our intent was to have an audience that experiences clouds or rain more than half the year. For three days the skies were endless blue.

Since I cannot discuss the project, I’ll share applying design thinking to everyday adventures.

With a free morning in Portland, I finally had the opportunity to make the solo walk from downtown to the Japanese Garden.

I completed an uphill trek passing clusters abandoned e-scooters that could not make the climb to experience the garden in three ways: I freely meandered to discover alone; I joined an amazing guided tour; And I re-explored with an informed perspective.

It was serendipitous that my day followed a rewarding design thinking trajectory — discover, research, and analyze.