How to Use Design Thinking

Written by Coursera Staff • Updated on

Design thinking takes an innovative approach to finding creative solutions by addressing problems with the user in mind. Read on to explore what design thinking is and how you might use it in your career.

[Featured Image] Several start-up software company employees sitting at their desks after a group session applying design thinking to a challenge with the latest iteration of their application.

Key takeaways

  • To use design thinking, consider developing your skills in areas such as human behavior, challenging assumptions, and user research.

  • The design thinking process consists of five stages, including building empathy, identifying the problem, brainstorming solutions, prototyping and testing ideas, and implementing your final solution, with empathy building sometimes rolled into the problem identification stage.

  • Design thinking is a solution-oriented approach to problem-solving that centers on your users’ needs.

A design thinking definition may include characteristics such as divergent and convergent thinking, collaboration, human-centeredness, and empathy. Keep reading to discover how to use the divergent thinking process to transform your professional problem-solving skills.

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What is design thinking?

Design thinking is an approach to generating ideas that puts humans first. Rather than focusing on the problem, this solution-oriented method considers the user. Basing the solution on an empathetic understanding of the user’s needs and how the proposed solution might impact them shifts how you think about addressing the situation.

Design thinking requires a willingness to explore creative ideas. You move past what you think you know and brainstorm all the possible ways to get something done or make it work.

Design thinking proves particularly useful in tackling ill-defined problems, sometimes referred to as wicked problems, since it encourages out-of-the-box innovation. Focusing on the user's priorities opens up new avenues for product development, business planning, user experience (UX) journeys, software development, and much more.

Read more: A Guide to the UX Design Process

Divergent vs. convergent thinking

Design thinking invites both divergent thinking, which asks you to brainstorm expansively, and convergent thinking, which is more focused. A divergent thinker views all ideas as equal, pushes beyond the obvious, and generates and collects ideas outside the conventional. Divergent thinking is broad and explores spontaneous connections.

Convergent thinking often follows divergent thinking. It narrows the options by taking all the ideas generated during a divergent brainstorming session. This type of thinking is evaluative, considers constraints and feasibility, and determines the most effective solution to the problem.

Is design thinking still relevant?

Design thinking is still relevant; however, it is evolving. You’ll likely still find hallmarks of the design thinking process, such as whiteboards, Post-its, and a human-centered approach, but design thinking methodology is moving away from focusing solely on humans to considering which humans it centers, such as current and future generations, and the impacts of design thinking solutions on unrelated areas.

Why does design thinking matter?

Design thinking matters because it can lead to innovations that fulfill customers’ demands. It helps you and your organization shift your mindset and tackle problems differently by centering on your customers’ and users’ needs. At the same time, it encourages collaboration and taps into everyone’s creative potential. This way of thinking asks you to learn and iterate faster. Plus, it embraces revolutionary ideas and lowers the risk of launching new products and services. Big businesses like Apple, Google, and Airbnb have all credited some of their successes to design thinking.

What are the 4 stages of the design thinking process?

When learning to use the design thinking process, you’ll typically encounter a four- or five-stage model which includes identifying the problem, brainstorming solutions, prototyping and testing ideas, and implementing your final solution. The five-stage option introduces an earlier stage, “empathize,” encouraging you to get to know the user and their wants and objectives. Some, though, simply merge this into what is presented as the first stage, defining the problem.

1. Define the problem.

Identify the question or define the problem that needs a creative solution. You might also see this labeled “clarify” or “clarification” because what you’re doing right now is making sense of the situation and determining the various aspects of the problem you are trying to solve.

Framing and identifying the right problem can make all the difference in developing the right solution. For example, you may think the issue is that your users have difficulty following the instructions for installing your product. In reality, users can follow the instructions but find them too lengthy.

2. Ideate possible solutions.

Shelve your preconceptions and work to move past the obvious answers to find breakthrough solutions. Use divergent thinking to push your mind and uncover unexpected solutions to the problem. Working with others, you can harness the power of collaboration and generate a variety of ideas to work with. Open your mind and avoid criticizing others’ ideas; even the most infeasible idea could lead in another great direction.

3. Prototype and test ideas.

Build rough prototypes to make ideas tangible so that you can test them and gather feedback. Keep experimenting to move the solution forward. Try to avoid spending too long prototyping a single design so you don't get too attached to a particular idea. You always want to do this with the user in mind. In testing, seek feedback rather than giving directions and telling people how to use your solution.

4. Implement your solution.

The previous steps lead to the point where you put your idea into practice. With design thinking, you can invest significant time, effort, and funds during this step. It tends to be a rigorous stage because, based on the effectiveness of each iteration, you continue refining your solution until you identify the best one.

Your ultimate objective is to fully comprehend the product and the customer's needs.

How to incorporate design thinking into your career

To incorporate design thinking into your career, you can sharpen various skills, such as observing human behavior, challenging assumptions, and conducting user research. The following strategies can help you cultivate the right mindset to incorporate design thinking into your career:

Observe human behavior.

Human users sit at the center of design thinking. Observing how people act, think, work, and talk can help you develop empathy for their emotional needs. To innovate with the end user in mind, you need to understand their struggles and connect with them to provide a truly valuable solution.

Challenge assumptions.

Questioning expert opinions and reimagining how things happen are critical to design thinking. Taking a fresh look at a conventional approach can lead to something entirely new and groundbreaking.

Conduct user research.

Identify new possibilities and needs by observing users, interviewing potential customers or end users, and exploring their responses to learn how they use the product or service (or what holds them back). Interacting with the user can provide you with a nuanced version of the problem, leading you to a more effective solution.

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