As an Architect, I’m always amazed at people’s reactions when I tell them what I do. The idea of a career in Architecture or Design sounds incredibly impressive to those who have never worked in the field. Most of what we do as ‘Design Professionals” is far from the stereotype of big drafting rooms and rolls of drawings everywhere. Most of what we do is administrative and repetitive, just like other professions.
In the end, I concluded that what people are impressed with is not the process, but the result. The idea that we can take something ordinary and turn it into something amazing with a few strokes of a pencil (or mouse). And although most think that they understand the process, great designers possess something that most people do not: the Design Mindset.
The Design Mindset is something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. My belief is that you can apply it to your whole life and not just a building in need of renovation. The Design Mindset is about starting with intent and having a goal that is not tied to superficial thinking. For example, we Designers don’t start out by thinking that a dining room should be red. Instead, we think about making it feel intimate. Once we understand our intent, then decisions become easier to make. For example, we would choose light fixtures that provide warm incandescent light, seating that is soft instead of hard and colors that would be soothing to the occupant. Compare that to fast food restaurants that want to get you in and out as quickly as possible. Their seats are hard, the colors are bold, and the light is bright. They would prefer if you just ate and ran so they can cycle through as many people as possible.
When you start thinking about intent in everything you do, your life starts to change dramatically. For example, many people start the year with all sorts of resolutions and then break them after a short time. Maybe it’s not about the resolution but the overall intent of the resolution.
There’s a difference between saying you want to lose 20 pounds and saying that you want to have a healthy lifestyle. If the latter is your goal, you won’t necessarily focus on weight but overall wellness. Everything you eat and drink would be tied to that goal, and you be more proactive in planning your meals as opposed to starving yourself till you reach a prescribed weight.
Assigning intent is a critical part of the Design Mindset. You have to ask yourself ‘What Am I Trying to Do?’ and then come up with a plan on how to achieve that. In many cases, old habits are going to have to go. In the world of Construction, this is known as renovation: you remove the things you don’t want and replace them with the new things that you do. It’s no different in Life.
Another part of the Design Mindset involves cohesion: the idea that everything works together as a whole. Once you know what you are trying to do, you have to find a way to balance new things with old things. Some Designers go for ‘an eclectic mix’ where different things work together to create a unique aesthetic. Other approaches are curated around things that are all similar. Both can work well, however the final product should match the personality you’re designing for. If the decisions are not cohesive then it will be confusing to other people.
Intent and Cohesion are essential for making decisions about what stays and what goes. Once you understand how to use them, you can design an outcome for any situation.
Here are a few examples of how you can apply the Design Mindset to everyday life:
First ask yourself, “What Am I Trying to Do?”
Some sample answers might be:
Make More Money
Have More Friends
Live in a comfortable home
Get an Education
Let’s imagine you want to make more money. The first thing you have to do is remove some of the things from your life that are taking your money so that you can have some more. Designing a new life might involve looking at your expenses and seeing which things need to stay, and which can be eliminated. Once the unnecessary things are gone they can be replaced with new investments that could produce a better return. Once you see your money actually earning you more money, you will likely be less inclined to spend it foolishly.
Many people try and solve the problem by changing jobs (a superficial response) or getting a second job. However if you don’t have a plan in place, more earnings usually just equate to more spending. Once you understand that your goal is tied to retaining money and building net worth, you will make different choices about where you spend. It’s no secret that Warren Buffet drives an old Ford pickup truck around his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska. He’s designed himself a life that is focused around retaining and earning money as opposed to spending it.
The same mindset would also apply if we chose to tackle your environment or education. If you want to be smarter, swap an hour of TV a day for an hour of reading. If you want more friends, then start prioritizing social activities over playing video games by yourself. I know these all sound like obvious choices but they’re all about defining your intent and then integrating them into your life with other similar decisions that work to support the intent.
Although many people aim to accomplish things by setting finite goals, the Design Mindset involves a change of lifestyle around an intended result. If you can adopt this way of thinking then you won’t be troubled by the random bump in the road or setback. Your decisions will be tied to much bigger picture objectives that will create larger changes in your life. And the best part is that you can start right now. There’s no advanced degree or work experience required.
Let the demolition begin.