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Teaching Design Thinking via Workshops: Four Lessons from the Road

February 4, 2017 by Nabil Leave a Comment

A couple of years ago, if you had told me I would be down on all fours in front of a room, letting one of my workshop participants lead us through a series of cat-cow stretches, I would have laughed in disbelief. And yet here I was last December in Singapore, joining my participants in doing just that.

In 2015 I set an intention to travel more, and to move from consulting in design thinking to enabling others to use the tools of design thinking for themselves (“teaching how to fish”). Some 65+ flights later, with opportunities to coach workshops across the US, Kuwait, India and Singapore, the universe said yes.

One byproduct of this experience is that – with that much floor time – I had the opportunity to make a lot of mistakes as a facilitator. And learn from a number of talented colleagues and participants along the way. Thinking back on what I’ve learned in this last year about teaching (or coaching) design thinking in a workshop format, here are four of my most favorite take-aways:

Lesson 1: It’s all about managing energy
No matter how brilliant the material is – or how mellifluous I think the sound of my voice may be – keep it a one way conversation (i.e. me standing and talking) and before long I lose the room. Eyes glaze over. Cell phones magically make their way into hands. Content starts to get lost in the ether. Solution? Get the participants more involved. For example, rather than asking a question to the room, have participants ask it of each other. In pairs. Or in groups. If it’s a deeper dive into a topic, have participants do some research and present their findings to the room. At times, a front-of-the-room style presentation makes sense. And most times there are other – more engaging – options to draw upon. Other tactics to keep participants engaged (without wearing them out): think of the days’ activities as sprints; keep work focused and tight, then work in ample breaks. Play music during breaks (and some longer activities) to lighten the mood. Beverages are great! And yes, when necessary, do a round of stretches (or other warm-up or improv exercises) to shake things up. My goal for the day: a room of participants who feel like they’ve just played a great game of (insert your favorite sport here): energized, spent, and feeling that the day has flown by.

Lesson 2: Want participants to take risks? Go first.
When leading workshops I often ask participants to present out a concept poster. And I used to push them to go big. Sell it with conviction! Pretend your life depends on it! Every once in a while I’d get a brave volunteer or two who’d be willing to go big – and get a little silly – in front of their colleagues. Inevitably, though, we’d fall into the (understandable) pattern of a typical boardroom presentation — polite, buttoned up, “acceptable” for the workplace. No matter how hard I pushed participants up front, the end result was often the same. One day I coached with an instructor who did something different. He had made his own (fake) concept poster – and he went first. Eyes blazing, mouth foaming, he gesticulated and stomped while selling the heck out of a totally nonsensical product. I was entranced. Stunned. Laughing out loud. With that much energy injected into the room, the next team couldn’t help but hit it out of the park. And the next teams followed suit. My take-away? If I’m asking participants to do something out of their comfort zone, start by modeling it myself. Hear me roar!

Lesson 3: Being lazy can be good
When setting up for a session, I like to hang up the set of templates we’ll be using and pre-label them, as a way of creating a visual reference of our work that day. I once supported a coach who had a different idea: have the participants do it. The scandal! Here I was, being paid to co-run a design session, and I’m having participants do the dirty-work? Here’s why he was right. First: if my intention is to teach participants how to facilitate others, what better time for them to take their first steps in that role than when I’m there to provide feedback? Second: giving these tasks to participants frees me up to do other – more valuable – things, such as connecting individually with folks in the room. Or noticing the patterns that are emerging (Are people engaged or distracted? Are teams collaborating or is one person running the show?). Being “lazy” can extend to bigger tasks as well, such as asking participants to present out a design method they’ve researched — as they say, “the best way to learn something is to teach it.”

Lesson 4: Less tree, more forest
Dawn was just beginning to break and I was (literally) screaming into a pillow. Here I was, a couple hours away from leading a two day workshop for a client, and I had two competing agendas – neither of which I had led before, and neither of which I totally understood. Panic had struck. Not sure what to do next, I stepped away from my laptop and made a couple choices. First: I decided I needed a pep talk. Second: I admitted to myself that there was no way I was able to follow either agenda, as they each had a lot of intricacies that I didn’t have time to understand. My final option? I’d have to throw away the script, and use my gut. To prepare, I laid out a high-level structure for two days that I could make sense of and that I thought would offer value to the participants. I dressed down (long t-shirt and sneaks) so that I would be comfortable, and I kicked off our session with our chairs in a circle. Conversational. Making eye contact. Feeling out where the interest was in the room. The session ended up going great. In fact, one participant even requested I come back to help run another session at their company. Would I use this preparation style for every session? Not unless I want an aneurysm! When running workshops I’m often stressed because we’re a few minutes behind schedule: I’m caught up in making the day go as originally planned, rather than focusing on the needs of the room. This episode was an unexpected gift – a stark reminder of the value of being present, having fun, and not letting the details get in the way of delivering the big picture.

In closing..
If I’ve learned one additional lesson from this last year it’s that failure is my own best coach. I’ve bored, confused and frustrated more than my fair share of participants and co-instructors. It’s wanting to avoid these moments – and experimenting with new solutions – that has kept me engaged in this practice, and allowed me to be less fearful and more present in the workshops that followed. When things do come together – a workshop can be as energizing to me as (I hope) it is to the participants. And, after all, isn’t that the goal?

If you’re about to set off on coaching your first design thinking workshop — (try and) have fun! If you’re an old hand at this, I hope some of these tips are a helpful reminder of the options at your disposal.

// As published on LinkedIn.

Primary Season in New Hampshire

February 17, 2016 by Nabil Leave a Comment

A couple of weeks ago I drove up to New Hampshire in the thick of its presidential primary. I traveled there to volunteer for the “We The People” convention – focused on throwing a spotlight on the role of money in our political system – and to generally take in the this special moment in our democratic process.

As I reflect on my time on the ground, a few thoughts come to mind:

Presidential primaries are fun. They’re literally a roving popularity contest. It’s this intoxicating blend of media, celebrity, status (who gets access to what event), and regional culture. It was hard not to get caught up in the hoopla.
The butterfly effect exists. Thinking to America’s impact on the world, it was surreal to think of how a gaffe by a candidate during an event at a local diner could impact the trajectory of their campaign – and in turn the outcome of the presidential election – and in turn the fate of so many people impacted one way or the other by our actions as a country.
New Hampshire takes its role seriously. I assumed that folks in New Hampshire would be turned off by the primary circus rolling in to town — the bus-loads of out-of-staters and political tourists such as myself, incessant political advertisements. I’m sure there are those feel that way, and at least one local I spoke to seemed to welcome it: enjoying the access to the candidates, checking out the media set-ups. Between all of the hotel rentals and media buys, I bet it makes for a nice local stimulus package too.
Systemic bias at play? With all of our talk these days of systemic bias, I couldn’t help but wonder: how different would our presidential election look if the first primaries were in other states such as, say, Mississippi or California? Ted Cruz stumping in LA. Bernie Sanders at a high school football stadium in Dallas. Does the socio-economic makeup of Iowa and New Hampshire have an undue influence over who we elect to represent us? What would a more representative system look like?

On the topic of “money in politics”:

It’s curious why the role of special interests – and their financial influence – is bigger now than years past. Voters have rated “money in politics” as an important issue for some time. We’ve experienced a disconnect between what we want – and what our politicians legislate – for years. Why now? Maybe our weak economy has voters grasping for something to fix – and this seems like an obvious target. Maybe the Citizens United ruling was the tipping point. I heard one person explain how this is the first presidential election where Citizens United has been on the books for some time, and the population at large knows about it.
It’s neat to see the various organizations who are playing a role in helping our democracy be more responsive to the will of the people. Including starting at the state-level, holding candidates accountable by winning one fight at at time. It reminds me of other slow-burn efforts to effect change, from LGBT rights to marijuana legalization.

For the first time since (maybe) grade school, while on this trip I skimmed through the US constitution. What a neat and thoughtful set of rules for governing ourselves. As I think about this presidential election, and the focus on the role of moneyed interest groups in particular, I wonder where this (sometimes very angry) debate ultimately will lead.

I’m hopeful in the direction of a thoughtful process that results in every American having a stronger voice, irrespective of social status or party affiliation. That this debate is merely part of a long American tradition — from abolition to women’s suffrage – of taking back the spirit of the constitution and advocating for changes in the pursuit of “a more perfect union.”

And I also remember that systems are hard to change for a reason. I remember what happened in Tunisia, when that system didn’t bend to the will of an increasingly frustrated people, and ultimately collapsed in spectacular fashion.

Here’s to our better angels succeeding. And the playing out of a process that leaves us better for it.

The Great Unlearning

March 15, 2015 by Nabil Leave a Comment

Over the last few years I’ve experienced loss in a way that’s felt different. The death of a good friend from my first job. The death of an acquaintance. The death our family dog.

One main difference between these deaths and those I experienced in the past is that these took place in my peer group. Not grandparents or distant memories. People in my circle who I knew and, I imagine, had the same big dreams, aspirations, life plans as I did. And my dog, well. Being there as we put him to sleep, feeling the weight of his body — that was a new reckoning of sorts.

These experiences got me thinking about life, and expectations. The expectations of having a career, having a family, seeing my kids grow up. What they’ve helped me remember is that all of my expectations are just that — what I expect. Me. Not what is given, or written.

Through the wisdom of others, and my own experience – life, I’ve come to learn, has very few actual rules. The communities of which I’ve been a part have done an amazing job of creating structures. Weekdays, zip codes, parking laws, dress codes, titles at work. Structures on structures on structures. And yet in their very essence — they’re just that. A set of human-created ways to tackle this hugely blank thing called existence. A large paper castle floating precariously on an ocean that’s happy to swallow it up at any minute. Or not. Having lived in these structures my entire life, I guess I forgot who put them in place.

For me this knowing is both terrifying, and liberating.

Terrifying in that if life has no rules, it can slip away at any minute, without so much as an inkling. One moment it’s here, another it’s not. No meaning to either mode. No court of law, no presiding judge to sort out the facts and provide an explanation.

Liberating in that wow — what limit is there to what’s possible? I’ve sprouted on this rock floating through a space infinitely bigger than I can imagine. Of what consequence is anything I do? What use is there in worrying about what others think, what boundaries exist, to not carve whatever path through life that I like? The options.

Of course, no matter what path I do carve, at the end of the day I do live within a social system with well-defined rules. Some of which, if broken, can lead to a pretty uncomfortable day-to-day. But within that frame, and even outside it (what if we changed the rules?) there’s that endless sea of possibility. That blank canvas to be explored. And what better tribute to those who passed too soon, than to explore it with abandon.

NYC Service Jam 2015: Coach Notes

March 9, 2015 by Nabil Leave a Comment

I recently had the good fortune of being part of the organizing team for NYC Service Jam 2015, an event run as part of the annual Global Service Jam.

One of the best parts of the experience was serving as a coach, checking in with teams as they went through the process of framing, ideating, prototyping and presenting.

As I reflect on the experience, several moments emerge for when a little coaching seemed to be useful. From what I shared with teams, to what I’ve heard from other coaches, a few coach notes:

On developing a service solution
When developing a service idea our instinct is to start with one specific point in the user journey. One really exciting opportunity to address something that people dislike, or provide an experience that delights. That’s a great starting point, and there’s a lot of richness in what happens before and after this point in the user journey. Prior to the highlighted interaction, is there scope for priming the user for the experience? Post, are there touch-points where the user can reflect/re-engage/or build upon the experience in some way? Exploring and addressing these can help us develop a more complete, integrated solution.

On receiving feedback
One of the scariest moments in the service design process can be putting our initial/draft prototype in an end user’s hands. Are they going to get it? Misuse it? Drop it? Our instinct is to want to step in. To give the user a gentle guiding hand throughout the process. Or to provide context up front to ensure they don’t make mistakes in the first place. Beware the sneaky helper! Each of these actions comes with a risk. A risk that by stepping in we miss observing the user being confused, fumbling, or using our prototype in a novel and unexpected way. Exactly the kind of things we’d like to be aware of before launching our service into the world. So what to do? As much as possible, stay silent. Save the discussion for clarifying questions, e.g. “How would you describe this service? What did you find challenging? Interesting? What was going through your mind at so-and-so point?” Recording the session can be an added way to take some of the pressure off the user-feedback session, and create a richer team debrief.

On presenting out
Finally, when presenting out, showing (rather than telling) is a compelling way to showcase a service design, and a powerful way to quickly capture the audience’s attention. For example assign (or recruit) one team member to play the part of an end-user, another to narrate the scene, and a pair to help simulate the service in action. This is especially powerful when followed by a brief explanation that shows a clear thread between the research findings and the prototype presented. Key points: What was the initial point of inquiry? What did the primary research reveal? How did that translate into the design? What has yet to be resolved? What are some potential ways to build upon this service? Including direct quotes and media from the research + design process also helps bring this section to life.

Whether you’re preparing to participate in a service workshop, or are taking on a design project at work, I hope you’ll find these notes helpful. Alternatives/other pointers welcome! For a peek at the silliness, creativity and ambition of this year’s global service jam, check out these tweets. And requisite Taylor Swift tribute video:

// As published on LinkedIn.

The “Occupy” Movement: Insights from Tunisia

November 18, 2011 by Nabil Leave a Comment

Like many Tunisians I’ve watched with amazement as the poignant act of Mohamed Bouazizi, a fruit vendor who set himself on fire in protest against unemployment and corruption, lit a flame that devoured the Tunisian dictatorship and spread through Egypt, Libya, Spain, Chile and beyond. And like many Americans I’ve watched with intrigue as this energy appears to have arrived on America’s shores, springing up in cities across the country as the 99% or “Occupy” movement. So what, if anything, do all of these movements have in common? And what, if anything, can America learn from the movements that preceded ours?

This summer I spent a few months in Tunisia to better understand its revolution. A few weeks ago I had a chance to sit with Occupy protestors in Boston’s Dewey Square. And as I hold these two movements in my mind the similarities are striking. They are both driven by a shared feeling of injustice rather than one specific ideology or goal. They both lack a figurehead and actively reject them. They both speak out against a small group they believe are hoarding economic gains. They both despair at the lack of career prospects, especially for educated college graduates. And they both demonstrate impressive ad-hoc organization, facilitated by social networking tools.

While the movement in America is just taking off, Tunisia’s is eleven months old. And so as America grapples with this new phenomenon, how did things go in Tunisia? On the one hand there were surprising benefits. In Tunisia the revolution restored a sense of national pride: today Tunisians feel a sense of ownership over their country, proudly displaying the national flag, singing the country’s anthem, and launching civil society organizations to address social issues. In Tunisia the revolution helped to recalibrate social values: a security vacuum and a garbage collectors strike gave Tunisians a renewed sense of appreciation for policemen and sanitation workers, despised and ignored, respectively, by society.

But Tunisia’s revolution also came with unexpected challenges. The judgment that fueled the revolution also worked to undermine it: in Sidi Bouzid, the birthplace of its movement, the very people who rose up against an authoritarian dictatorship months later prevented certain political parties from campaigning in their city. Removing the country’s leadership did not remove its imprint on society: through years of conspicuous consumption and thuggery the deposed regime modeled behaviors which have influenced norms around achievement and leadership.

While there are many commonalities between America’s movement and Tunisia’s, it’s also true that the factors that motivate each one are ingrained in the unique histories and circumstances of each country. From the suburban Boston baby boomer I met who keeps pushing back her retirement because her savings can’t sustain her, to the South Carolina-raised student whose single-parent mother sacrificed for him to get his Master’s degree only for him to be unemployed, America’s movement is very much its own. The path it takes will certainly be different. And, as America’s movement matures and takes shape, it will be interesting to see how Tunisia’s experience, and those of the countries that followed, can serve as a source of insight and learning.

// As published on the Presencing Institute.

TunisiaLive: “Snapshots of the Tunisian Revolution”

August 26, 2011 by Nabil Leave a Comment

This summer I, like many Tunisians living abroad, returned home to experience the revolution for which our fellow Tunisians fought eight months ago. In my time as a journalist, a citizen, and a tourist, here is what I observed:

Tunisians are reconnecting
The former regime forced many Tunisians into permanent exile. Today Tunisia’s cities and towns are teeming with wide-eyed returnees, many of whom haven’t seen their families (or stepped foot in their country) in a generation. Tunisians who never left the country are also reconnecting. Earlier this year residents from Tunis assembled a caravan and traveled to meet residents of historically ignored cities such as Sidi Bouzid to personally thank them for starting the revolution. Whereas previously Tunisian journalists were fearful of straying from their beat, today they travel throughout the country to speak with and publish stories on locals.

Tunisians are uncovering their divisions
With a 98% Sunni Muslim population and a large middle class, Tunisia is often described as one of the most homogeneous Arab countries. Yet with new freedoms of expression and organization Tunisians are discovering deep-seated differences. Secular Tunisians are discovering a large swath of the population that is devoutly religious. Tunisians from the country’s affluent coastal region are discovering an interior country that feels exploited and disenfranchised.

Islam is flourishing
Much like Communists were hostile to Catholicism in Poland, so was the former regime hostile to Islam in Tunisia. Men with beards were harassed, mosques were forced to closed early, Imams were monitored. Today Tunisian Muslims are embracing their faith; mosques stay open late into the evening; men grow out their beards; Imams speak freely without fear of persecution. Many more women also choose to wear the veil.

Civil society is stirring to life
As one volunteer put it, “under the previous regime the government wanted to be the master of all good and evil.” Tunisians who wanted to start civil society organizations were often prevented from doing so. As a result, today there are few organizations to mentor at-risk youth, protect the environment, or get out the vote. Public commons are abused: trash is mindlessly thrown onto the street. In some promising first displays of civic engagement, however, immediately after the former president fled, Tunisians organized to protect and clean up their neighborhoods. Today Tunisians who have registered to vote proudly affix stickers to their cars affirming that they’ve done so.

Young Tunisians are driven to inaction
For many young middle and upper-class Tunisians, working menial jobs for pocket money (e.g. waiting tables) is considered shameful. Furthermore under the previous regime those who launched new companies or organizations ran up against a system which either punished them for competing, or forced itself into a joint partnership. With high paying jobs a scarcity, what has resulted is a generation of anxious young men and women stuck between a bad job market and the fear of entrepreneurship. Cafes are packed with young Tunisians dreaming only of moving abroad. Today a few initiatives are trying to change this: Barcamp, TEDx Carthage, and the Arab Business Plan Competition are working to provide the networks, inspiration, and resources to rekindle the Tunisian imagination and enable Tunisians to invest their creativity and energy at home.

Tunisia is trading France for new partners
With its colonial past France has always been Tunisia’s primary ally, yet it was American companies such as Facebook and Twitter that helped Tunisians to capture and exchange images during the revolution, and Qatari-based Al Jazeera that beamed these images to TV audiences across the world. Today both countries are intimately involved in Tunisia’s new society: the US is spearheading support for Tunisia’s economic development (Former Presidential candidate John McCain is personally involved in encouraging US foreign direct investment); Qatar is rumored to be funding one of Tunisia’s most successful emerging political parties. France, on the other hand, is trying to save face after offering its security expertise to the ex-President while his regime was cracking down on protestors.

The regime is gone in body, but not in spirit
While former President Ben Ali and his family are no longer in power, his legacy of corruption and intimidation remains. As one Tunisian activist put it, “behind Ben Ali is a system in which half of the country was complicit. This mentality is deeply rooted in the Tunisian psyche and will take decades to change.” When looking at Tunisia’s revolution, it’s difficult to judge whether Tunisians were protesting against the Ben Ali regime’s system, or the personalities who dominated it. If the latter, Tunisia’s revolution remains susceptible to the rise of another strongman.

As I reflect on my summer in Tunisia I feel both worried and optimistic for Tunisia’s future. It’s unclear whether Tunisians have a shared vision for a society that does away with the system that gave us the former regime. That being said, with a rich history of strong institutions and an unexpected display of unity and courage in the face of a brutal regime, I wouldn’t count against Tunisia surprising the world once more.

// As published on Tunisia Live.

The Value of Loving Your Job: Finding the Right Measure

February 25, 2011 by Nabil Leave a Comment

Finding a strong correlation between “job satisfaction” and “employee performance” has been called the Holy Grail of managerial psychology. While correlation does not necessarily establish causation, it’s a strong hint thereof and would help give credence to a mantra echoed by an industry of consultancies, authors, and career coaches, namely that the more you enjoy your work, the better you’ll do for yourself and for your employer. The road to proving this phenomenon, however, has been long and trying.

In his book The Social Psychology of Everyday Life, English researcher Michael Argyle offers a historical overview of efforts to find a strong correlation between job satisfaction and various aspects of employee performance. In the first major study – an analysis of the link between job satisfaction and employee productivity – researchers Brayfield and Crockett analyzed 26 experiments only to find a weak correlation of +0.15 (1955). A later meta-analysis of 74 studies found a similar correlation of +0.15 (Iaffaldano & Muchinsky, 1985). What about other metrics of employee performance such as absenteeism? A low -0.09 in one meta-analysis (Hackett & Guion, 1985) and -0.22 in another (McShane, 1983). Turnover? -0.23 according to Carsten & Spector (1987). So where does that leave us? Do these studies undermine the notion that if you like your job, success will follow?

Historical research has relied on a flawed measure, argues Marcus Buckingham, former Senior Researcher at Gallup and best-selling author of First, Break All the Rules. Not only is “job satisfaction” too high level a measure to be useful, but to observe a strong correlation with employee performance what’s far more important is to study an employee’s level of “engagement.” To measure employee engagement Marcus created Q12, a survey of twelve questions that he believes get to the root of this phenomenon. Within the Q12, three questions have been shown to have the strongest statistical significance: 1: Do I know what’s expected of me at work?; 2: At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?; 3: Are my coworkers committed to doing quality work?

Marcus’ “employee engagement” measure has shown promising results. In a recent Gallup Study of 955,905 people working in 152 organizations across 44 industries, correlation between employee engagement and quality of work was found to be 0.6; safety on the job (say in a manufacturing environment) 0.49; and absenteeism -0.37. In short a more engaged employee produces higher quality work, is safer, and misses work less often. A smaller although statistically significant correlation is also seen with metrics such as productivity, the organization’s profitability, and employee turnover.

With Marcus’s new metric, perhaps the workplace consulting industry gains increased legitimacy or, more accurately, is refocused on the discrete and powerful levers that create better outcomes for employees and the organizations for which they work. And what does this all mean for people who are trying to find the perfect job or entrepreneurs who wish to create the optimal work environment? According to Marcus’ research, create an environment where you know what’s expected of you, do work that taps into your strengths, and surround yourself with people who are committed to the quality of their output. If you can put those in place for yourself or your employees, performance will follow. Here’s to more engaging – and inspired – careers.

// As published in the MIT Entrepreneurship Review.