Comments on: What’s Your Suggestion?

By: David Boroditsky

David Boroditsky — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:38:09 +0000

There’s a similar phenomenon that takes effect whenever you show your newly acquired house to a friend: they assume that what they’re asking you to do is to point out all the cracks and problems to you.

By: xian

xian — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 06:48:04 +0000

I wish you had won that particular argument. My technorati brain implant has been malfunctioning almost from day one.

By: duncan

duncan — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 23:57:25 +0000

i have to agree with others here and disagree with your assessment of design critiques being a “rip the living shit” out of your work session.

it was drilled in to us by our professors critiques must always comment about objective elements. the critique should always start and end commenting on the elements of the work that were positive/working. comments about the elements that didn’t work couldn’t be based on some ambiguous nonsense like “this doesn’t work for me” – you’d damn well better have something more concrete than that and expect to pass.

in fact many of my classes up to 25% of your grade was based on your ability to effectively critique other’s work. in one class the final you had to critique your own and it counted for 50%.

but then i noticed when i went back to teach for a semester the overall level of student was far, far different. there were a bunch of fantastic stylists, much better than when i was there, but there was a dearth of actual designers. everyone wanted to be a dot-com, rock-star (screw you carson).

By: Mike Cane

Mike Cane — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 20:40:14 +0000

But then there are those Suits who really push it. If you’re silent in a meeting and know *something* is wrong but don’t yet an alternative and so decide to shut up, that’s when they *insist* you tell them what you’re thinking.

“Oh, you see? He just thinks *everything* is shit.”

They won’t take “Let me think about it and get back to you” as a “viable response.”

By: Patrick Corcoran

Patrick Corcoran — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:58:32 +0000

A designer’s role is first and foremost to be a problem-solver.

Problem: the coffee mug falls over too easily in the car. Solution: fashion the base of the mug as a broad, pliable bean-bag. Etc.

Bad designers don’t know this. Bad designers think their role is to make things look good.

Good designers know that making things look good is just one of the more reliable means for solving problems; it is not an end unto itself.

The road to hell is paved with good-looking products designed by “skin-deep” designers.

By: Jason Robb

Jason Robb — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 18:20:10 +0000

Derek, great post, and a great series, too!

“Vetting competing proposals is always easier than fighting just to prove something’s bad.”

Awesome. And this:

“Sometimes the best way to learn a lesson is to do the wrong thing long enough to figure out why it doesn’t work.”

Rock on, love it!

By: Dan Shafer

Dan Shafer — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 07:48:03 +0000

One of the “Things I Learned the Hard Way” is that if you are about to criticize someone’s work or idea, it’s always best to start with a positive comment. “I can see you’ve given this a lot of thought and I really like that aspect of your plan. But I’m not sure that other phase is as workable a solution as you think. Have you thought about blah-blah-blah?”

The brainstorming model of problem-solving has, in my experience, always produced the best results. No criticism allowed, just alternative idea presentation.

Nice series.

By: Tobias

Tobias — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 20:33:52 +0000

Thank you so much for this post, I can really relate with it, I am definitley a negative blocker, this will hopefully help me out. Thanks again.

By: Amie

Amie — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 03:08:45 +0000

I have known for a while that I am often the “negative blocker” in the group, plus I’ve been guilty of not throwing an alternative solution into the ring more than a time or two. But it never occurred to me *why* before this post. Yup, I come from the art school crit mindset. And I am, surprise surprise, the designer in the group.

This makes 100% total and absolute sense to me now. And in fact, this actually feels like an epiphany moment for me. Wow. Thank you for a timely post, Derek!

By: Pau Sanchez

Pau Sanchez — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:04:49 +0000

I think you got it right, but I also think pointing out a problem is always good, even if you don’t know a solution (which is always harder to do). If you are part of a team, then other people could have the answer (that’s why a team is a team).

Maybe the point is to say (being as polite as possible) what is wrong, why you think it is wrong, and ask if any other member of the team agrees with you, and then if the other people see that problem you pointed out, try as a team (or group of people, as you prefer) to solve that problem (only, of course, if it’s important enough).

BTW, Great Post ;)