Business & Entrepeneurship

I see business and entrepreneurship as the way to create real-world impact with good design. This means a unique value proposition is needed, but separation also needs to be made in terms of form. You need to let consumers know your design is different.

For creating a valid business plan, I have used many different methods to create, analyze, and validate. I know when and how to use: A value curve, SWOT analyses, Pestle analysis, customer journey maps, problem-solution fit canvas, business model canvas, and a value proposition canvas. These are tools to create a business that can keep doing business, improving lives.

Widening reach here is essential to create improvement on a bigger scale, although one needs to look out that they won't go beyond their initial goal and start chasing growth.

Creativity & Aesthetics

Form influences thought. Hard lines can make a product cool or scare the user. Form is used to catch attention, to create market differentiation. Sketching gives me the freedom to explore form quickly, while foam models can bring them to life. I tend to prefer faster sketches, exploring more ideas. The value of communicative sketching is not lost early in the process, but due to my well-rounded technical skills, it is easy to create something closer to the eventual design quickly.

I have always been good at throwing out ideas, where mind mapping is my most trusted tool. Mindmaps allow me to create connections, and with that, new fields of ideas to explore.

I can catch attention with skill in photography, Lightroom, Photoshop, and Illustrator. Good visuals engage people, enticing their innate curiosity. Although I realise the subjectivity here, I have come a long way to create better and bolder designs.

Math, Data & Computing

I can gather data, large and small, while knowing how to analyse this properly. Should I remove outliers? Is this an accuracy and/or precision problem? I know what type of graph I can use for different types of data. I can see and analyse trends, but do these give a valid conclusion?

All this data is essential in steering a business or a product to create something people want. Furthermore, it gives the ability to validate findings and hypotheses about the design.

Data can even be used to create new interactions. For example, I used machine learning to create a fake drumming machine. People learn more from data if it is visualised clearly, as it can help them make better decisions. I can steer this by creating novel ways of showing data. An example would be the hands showing the likelihood of injury during my FBP.

To create, I will almost always need a form of computing. As mentioned in T&R, I know many languages. They are there to communicate interaction. Because of the understanding I have with code, I can explain it to others & annotate it properly.

Technology & Realization

During my bachelor's, I've accumulated many technical skills. This helped me make prototypes, which can be tested, used, and experienced.

I can code websites with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. I can create interactive prototypes with complex electronics and Arduino C++ code. I can create digital games in Unity, coding in C#.

I can make complex models in CAD, soft and solid body modeling, as well as parametric design. Furthermore, I have a lot of knowledge on optimizing these models for 3D printing or other manufacturing methods, keeping in mind tolerances and method limitations. I know the strengths and weaknesses of most materials used in prototyping, and thus when to use them.

I can test designs with simulations where necessary, or do calculations, for example cost of production.

When an app needs to be made, I can create a mockup in Figma as well as Adobe XD. When soft materials need to be used, I am able to create patterns and sew complex shapes.

I love making and thus keep improving at it.

User & Society

I tried to gain a wide range of perspectives on society during my bachelor's. I designed to change minds and activate during the design for debate. Designing for more-than-human creatures, as well as a more classical human-centered design. These all affect people and society in different ways.

I learned a lot about deeper psychology with two psychology courses. These give clearer evidence for impactful design.

I have made empathy maps, personas, and storyboards to find out more about users. These are used to understand the created user better. This can be built upon to create something for the user.

I take to take their perspective, even in more-than-human design, where a river can be a subject.

By observing, user testing, and getting interviews afterwards, I gain new insights for design to improve the connection.

I can analyse data to look for trends or outliers that may need to be investigated. When observing, I tend to notice problems users themselves do not mention.

These skills, in general, allow me to design for humans and non-humans. They give a basis for aesthetic choices, market positioning, and inform materials and cost for realisation.

Design Research Process

During my time at ID, I have explored different design processes. I used the classical design processes of a double diamond, user-centered design, and design thinking. I have also used more specialized processes. A waterfall for developing, design sprints, and the agile process for very fast iterations.

I tend to stick with more flexible processes, which gives me the ability to adapt when necessary. This is partly learned from boulder routesetting, where a concept is often thrown out to create something new.

During my psychology courses, I’ve learned a lot more about proper research and noticed the friction of minimizing compounding variables in psychology compared to the often hard-to-control environments in ID.

I’ve started using Zotero to keep track of sources, making writing easier and more efficient.

Professional skills

During my time at ID, I became a better learner. I learned to make notes and summaries during lectures and meetings.

I have become a leader in groups and often create agendas. I lead meetings to efficiency, noticing when a group gets stuck. I then tend to summarize the conversation, making room for the group's conclusion.

I turn the notes into action points, give them deadlines, and foster clear tasks for smooth teamwork. .

I learned how to create productive days by managing emotions and getting rest when I need it. I make semi-loose planning to give me room, while having guidance when I need it.

I learned how to work hard after never needing this ability before university. Meditation has led me to believe in my ability to work, as well as create a belief in what I’m doing. This, for me, is the source of motivation, striving to be the best self while being content with the current self.

A small part of the planning made for my FBP

Reflecting on my FBP

During this FBP, I broadened my skills, as well as enhanced them. I never did a coding project as complex as my FBP. I learned JavaScript, which communicated with my front-end of HTML and CSS, but also communicated with an Arduino over BLE.

For my Arduino, I learned a lot of new tricks. Furthermore, I learned about optimization, how to make it still work properly, with all the things it was doing. It was doing a lot of data processing in the microcontroller itself, which was very new to me. I designed and did my first user tests. I was very happy that I was able to do a couple. I learned about them along the way, steering people and creating an ERB that works well for the project.

I should have created clearer personas earlier in the process. Having them in my head might not have been as effective. Furthermore, testing could’ve been done earlier, where my ego wanting to show a complete product got in the way.

The early business plan caused me to make decisions I normally would not have, and made the connection the business has with people very clear.

Data was gathered from a physical product to later analyse. This was very cool to do. This should, in hindsight, have been more in-depth analysed, maybe revealing more hidden insights. Recording information about the user would have also been useful here. I learned how to do woodworking more precisely.

I learned so much about building things that work. Creating something strong enough was a real challenge. Materials, infill, and temperatures were researched. I realised that all these factors don't translate that well to simulations.

A lot of code was documented by me. This made the process of iterating upon it later a lot easier. This might help others as well, who want to build upon the code in the future. I arguably did implement proven methods to change behaviour. Although more research into methods could always be done, I was happy with the chosen framework and research behind it.

Overall, I am content with what I’ve learned and achieved during this FBP.