Understanding Design Thinking

This assignment delves into the concept of design thinking by examining provided references. Students are tasked with understanding the evolution of design thinking, its applications in various fields like innovation, policy making, and education, and its potential impact on 21st-century skills development.

Running head: SELF REFLECTIVE REPORT
Self Reflective Report
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Blog Link: https://designitnabeelvasee.wordpress.com/
Author’s Note:

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SELF REFLECTIVE REPORT
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Knowledge Gained..........................................................................................................................3
Analysis and Evaluation..................................................................................................................5
Area of Development.......................................................................................................................6
Civic Values.....................................................................................................................................6
1.1 Strengths................................................................................................................................6
1.2 Weakness...............................................................................................................................7
Action Plan......................................................................................................................................8
Expected Outcome...........................................................................................................................9
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................9
References......................................................................................................................................11

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SELF REFLECTIVE REPORT
Introduction
The following report is a self-reflective report. The word self-reflection means self-
scrutiny or my knowledge gained from a particular activity or situation. This particular report is
the self-reflective analysis of the twelve activities or twelve workshops, which I have attended on
design thinking (Birkeland, 2012). I have written twelve blogs. Each blog is based on one
particular class. I have written my personal experiences on my blogs. The blogs contain all the
activities and what thoughts I had while doing those activities. The blogs also contain the details
of what thoughts I had after each of the activities and the context of those activities. I have
uploaded all of my blogs on Word Press and the link, where the blogs are uploaded is provided
in the title or cover page. The particular link will direct anybody to my provided blogs. The
following report gives a detailed description of the evaluation of my knowledge and learning that
I have gathered and obtained from the classes of design thinking (Carlgren, 2013). My lecturer
has helped me in understanding the basic concept of design thinking with the activities he had
made me involved in the class. I have self reflected myself with the help of these activities and
my strengths and weaknesses are easily identified by these activities.
The following self-reflective report is segmented into various parts. The first part
describes about the knowledge I have obtained from these activities. This knowledge would be
extremely helpful for me in future life. The second part describes about the analysis and
evaluation of the problems that are faced and how they are evaluated and analyzed (Johansson‐
Sköldberg, Woodilla & Çetinkaya, 2013). The third part of report, my area of development is
mentioned with details. The report also contains the strengths and weaknesses that I have
identified after doing the activities. Moreover, the self-reflective report describes about my

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SELF REFLECTIVE REPORT
action plan that I have decided to do for the next six months. The probable outcomes of my
action plan are also mentioned here.
Knowledge Gained
Design thinking is the method that helps a designer to solve all types of complex
problems by innovative solutions. It reduces the complexities of any problem (Melles, Howard &
Thompson-Whiteside, 2012). I have obtained innovative knowledge from the activities in the
classes of design thinking. My lecturer helped me to know about the various aspects of design
thinking and how design thinking can be helpful in solving and overcoming real life problems
and complex situations. Design thinking completely changes the ideas and thinking capability of
an individual. Since the first class, I have understood the entire concept of design thinking easily.
The knowledge that I have gained from the first class of design thinking is the concept of
entrepreneurship and small and medium sized enterprises (Razzouk & Shute, 2012). My lecturer
helped me to understand the roles of entrepreneurs and the meaning of entrepreneurship from
this particular class (See blog 1). The factors of innovation and entrepreneurship are closely
linked with each other and innovation leads to the increment in profit and productivity in any
organization. The second class or workshop of design thinking taught me understanding the
problem statement plays a critical role in design thinking. I got a complete idea regarding
collective working, constructive bargaining and other important concepts that play a major role
in design thinking (See blog 2). The next lesson that I got was to discover a design mindset. This
feature taught me the process of self-rating and self-reflection. Moreover, it helped to understand
my strengths and weaknesses (See blog 3). It also helped me to understand that I should
maximize my strengths and minimize my weaknesses (Vianna, 2012). The fourth class taught me
to think innovatively. We had to participate in three activities (See blog 4). The first activity was

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about making anything with 30 circles. This was the most interesting activity from my
perspective. With the innovative activities, I understood the meaning of innovation. The fifth
class taught me mind mapping. Mind mapping is the most important aspect for any human being.
I was facing difficulties at first, however soon I recovered (See blog 5). The next knowledge I
gained from the classes is to interview various design projects and dealing with several data
collection methods (Viswanathan & Linsey, 2012). In the seventh week, I got the knowledge of
concept development. We had to participate in an activity for developing concepts by preparing a
dessert where we had to understand the concept of mixing ingredients in such a manner so that it
has a perfect taste and appearance (See blog 7). The next activity was to find a real life problem
and solve it. I can develop myself by understanding the major conceptualization areas and the
tools of design thinking. The design thinking tools and technologies help a designer to do design
thinking perfectly. The eight week lecture taught me to understand about the product, it strengths
and weaknesses (Johansson‐Sköldberg, Woodilla & Çetinkaya, 2013). I was finding it difficult at
first, however as time passed, I understood the concept perfectly and smoothly (See Blog 8). The
interaction among several groups helped to find out the strengths and weakness of our product. It
was a great experience. The other knowledge that I gained is the entrepreneurial marketing. The
activity of this week was to identify target for a product and about entrepreneurial marketing.
The tenth workshop taught me the concept of entrepreneurial fundraising. We were almost
towards the end of the course and I have seriously enjoyed being a part of all the group activities
that have been conducted during the previous weeks (Lammi & Becker, 2013). My lecturer
helped me to know about the various aspects of design thinking and how design thinking can be
helpful in solving and overcoming real life problems and complex situations. Design thinking
completely changes the ideas and thinking capability of an individual. Since the first class, I have

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understood the entire concept of design thinking easily. The knowledge that I have gained from
the first class of design thinking is the concept of entrepreneurship and small and medium sized
enterprises (Vianna, 2012). The most important knowledge that I have gained from the activities
and the classes is the management of time. I had to complete each activity within time and this
taught the value of time in any task.
Analysis and Evaluation
From the knowledge I have gained from the activities and the classes I am able to
evaluate and analyze real time situations easily. For example, recently I visited the doctor’s
chamber for my regular checkups. I was waiting for my turn (Plattner, Meinel & Leifer, 2014).
The first negative feature I noticed in this clinic was that the management of time. Almost
everybody was running out of time and nobody was bothered about this. A patient came to the
clinic after his scheduled time. He was almost two hours late and he did not seem to be bothered
about it. Rather he was fighting with the receptionist about his changed schedule of time. The
receptionist did not understand what should be done and I felt extremely bad for her. The patient
was claiming his appointment time when I had my appointment. As per my analysis and
evaluation, the patient was not at all good in time management and should learn how to manage
time (Lammi & Becker, 2013). For this person, I was forty-five minutes late and he did not even
apologize to anyone. If I had faced this situation before my design thinking classes, it would not
had been affected me much. However, after these classes, when I have gained the knowledge, I
understood that how much wrong he was in his deeds. Moreover, that person was not at all
serious about his life and this is extremely dangerous for him.

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Area of Development
From my above-mentioned experience, there is a scope of development. The main
problem that is to be developed is the management of time. The patient as well as the clinic was
not at all good in managing time. I lost my precious forty-five minutes due to this problem
occurred in the clinic. This represents that the clinic needs or requires a good management team,
who can check all the management related tasks and jobs and most importantly can manage time
for all patients (Viswanathan & Linsey, 2012). This area of development mainly focuses on the
time management. Another development sector is the management of a special team who can
remind the patients about their appointments and thus they do not forget about their
appointments and arrive on time. Moreover, the staffs of the clinic should be polite enough with
the patients and should not behave rudely with them.
Civic Values
1.1 Strengths
After the classes of design thinking, I understood my strengths in design thinking. My
main strength is the innovative thinking. I have an innovative mind that I understood when I
attended the classes (Noweski et al., 2012). At every class, when the activities took place, I came
up with various innovative ideas. These were highly appreciated by my group members, my
lecturer and the members from other groups. I got to know that I can perform well and come up
with various innovative ideas even if I am in worse situations. My second strength that I
recognized after attending the design thinking classes is that I understand any problem or any
situation in an utmost relaxed mind. It means I do not lose temper and I never get tensed in
tensed situations (Pourdehnad, Wexler & Wilson, 2012). The third strength that I recognized is

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that I have a quick decision making skills. When my group members were coming up with
various ideas, I selected the best alternative in an extremely less period. My group members used
to struggle while selecting the options, but I came up with the alternative very quickly. The
fourth strength that I recognized after the classes is a good leadership skill. We worked in groups
in the activities and I understood that I have all qualities of a good leader. This would be a great
help for me in my future life (Purdy, 2014). The fifth strength that I recognized after attending
the design thinking classes is that I can analyze any situation easily and come up with best
possible outcomes. My strengths that I have identified from the workshops of design thinking,
would be a great help and changing points for me and also for the society. Every society requires
a good leader, who can lead the future generation. I have that capability and I have recognized
this capability.
1.2 Weakness
Every human being has few weaknesses within themselves. These weaknesses should be
evaluated or analyzed and at least tried to be reduced or eradicated. Like everybody, I do have
few weaknesses that I recognized from the design thinking classes (Howlett, 2014). These
weaknesses can create major problems for me in my life. The main weakness that I recognized
after the classes is that I always want to complete my work in sheer urgency. Often this becomes
a problem and I cannot come up with best results. Moreover, this urgency often stops me to look
into the best alternatives. For example, when there are many alter natives present in a particular
situation, I try to choose the best alternative, however in urgency. Due to quick decision making
skills, I often make mistakes in selecting the best alternative. These can create major problems in
my future life and for the society; I am residing at (Plattner, Meinel & Leifer, 2012). The second
weakness that I recognized from the workshops is that I have a dominating nature. I want to be a

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SELF REFLECTIVE REPORT
good leader and often this leadership skill turns out to be dominating for others. These
weaknesses need to be eradicated for the betterment of my life and the society I am residing in.
Action Plan
A document, which lists all the phases or the steps for achieving a distinct objective or
goal, is known as an action plan (Kolko, 2015). The main objective of an action plan is to
clearly state that what tasks are to be done for the achievement of the goals and objectives and
within what time the goals can be achieved. I have made my own action plan after the
recognition of strengths and weaknesses and how can I use my knowledge in my future or in
other words, for the betterment of my future. I have made the action plan for my activities and
tasks in the next six months (Mootee, 2013). I have planned everything for the next six months
and I am expecting a good result from these tasks.
Sr.
No
Objectives to be
Achieved
Time Frame Status Expected
Outcome
1. Thinking Innovatively 1/10/2017 –
31/10/2017
Successfully started Working
innovatively
2. Be patient 1/10/2017 –
31/11/2017
Successfully started Relaxed mind and
better results
3. Tasks to be done out
of expertise
1/11/2017 –
31/1/2018
Successfully
planned
Innovative and
creative thinking
4. Less Dominating 20/1/2018 –
1/3/2018
Successfully
planned
Good leadership
skills

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SELF REFLECTIVE REPORT
Expected Outcome
i) Thinking Innovatively: The expected outcome from this particular task is work and
thinks innovatively and creatively (Bjögvinsson, Ehn & Hillgren, 2012). This will increase my
knowledge and thinking power.
ii) Be Patient: The expected outcome from this particular task is a relaxed mind and
better results.
iii) Tasks to be done out of expertise: The expected outcome from this particular task is
innovative and creative thinking in every task (Lammi & Becker, 2013). This will increase my
knowledge and thinking power.
iv) Less Dominating: The expected outcome from this particular task is good leadership
skills and people would understand me better.
Conclusion
Therefore, from the above self-reflective report, I can conclude that self-reflective report
means self-scrutiny or my knowledge gained from a particular activity or situation. This typical
report is the self-reflective analysis of the twelve workshops or twelve activities that I have
attended on the subject of design thinking. Twelve blogs are written by me. Every blog is written
on the basis of one specific class. I have shared incidents that I have experienced in my life on
these blogs. These particular blogs comprise of all the actions and what were the thoughts that I
had while executing these actions. The above report also provides a detailed description on the
evaluation of my learning and knowledge that I have acquired and obtained from those classes
on the subject of design thinking. My lecturer has helped me to understand the basic concept of
design thinking. The above report also discusses about the information acquired during those

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SELF REFLECTIVE REPORT
activities in the workshops of design thinking. I have also provided the analysis and the
evaluation of the knowledge gained by me. My area of development is also provided here. The
above report also describes about my civic values, that is about my strengths and weaknesses that
I have evaluated after the activities. The report also provides a brief description of action plan
that I have decided to do during the next six months. My expected outcome from that outcome is
also provided here.

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References
Birkeland, J. (2012). Design blindness in sustainable development: from closed to open systems
design thinking. Journal of Urban Design, 17(2), 163-187.
Bjögvinsson, E., Ehn, P., & Hillgren, P. A. (2012). Design things and design thinking:
Contemporary participatory design challenges. Design Issues, 28(3), 101-116.
Carlgren, L. (2013). Design thinking as an enabler of innovation: Exploring the concept and its
relation to building innovation capabilities. Chalmers University of Technology.
Howlett, M. (2014). From the ‘old’to the ‘new’policy design: design thinking beyond markets
and collaborative governance. Policy Sciences, 47(3), 187-207.
Johansson‐Sköldberg, U., Woodilla, J., & Çetinkaya, M. (2013). Design thinking: past, present
and possible futures. Creativity and Innovation Management, 22(2), 121-146.
Kolko, J. (2015). Design thinking comes of age. Harvard Business Review, 93(9), 66-71.
Lammi, M., & Becker, K. (2013). Engineering design thinking.
Melles, G., Howard, Z., & Thompson-Whiteside, S. (2012). Teaching design thinking:
Expanding horizons in design education. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 31,
162-166.
Mootee, I. (2013). Design thinking for strategic innovation: What they can't teach you at
business or design school. John Wiley & Sons.

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Noweski, C., Scheer, A., Büttner, N., von Thienen, J., Erdmann, J., & Meinel, C. (2012).
Towards a paradigm shift in education practice: Developing twenty-first century skills
with design thinking. In Design thinking research (pp. 71-94). Springer Berlin
Heidelberg.
Plattner, H., Meinel, C., & Leifer, L. (2012). Design thinking research. Springer.
Plattner, H., Meinel, C., & Leifer, L. (Eds.). (2014). Design Thinking Research: Building
Innovators. Springer.
Pourdehnad, J., Wexler, E. R., & Wilson, D. V. (2012). Systems & design thinking: A
conceptual framework for their integration. Проблемы управления в социальных
системах, 4(6).
Purdy, J. P. (2014). What can design thinking offer writing studies?. College composition and
communication, 65(4), 612.
Razzouk, R., & Shute, V. (2012). What is design thinking and why is it important?. Review of
Educational Research, 82(3), 330-348.
Vianna, M. (2012). Design Thinking: inovação em negócios. Design Thinking.
Viswanathan, V. K., & Linsey, J. S. (2012). Physical models and design thinking: A study of
functionality, novelty and variety of ideas. Journal of Mechanical Design, 134(9),
091004.