Introduction
Design thinking is one of the critical skills for students, which is to be developed. Weekly blogs are better to track all activities, which are associated with design thinking. In this unit, I have conducted or participated in many design thinking activities, which help to enhance my learning. In the contemporary business and academic era, it seems imperative to understand the importance of activities and associated blogs. It can help to keep everything which has been recognized or learned in a loop. In this reflection report, I will come up with my learning experience. Self-analysis and reflection of learning are vital to identify strengths and weaknesses, and accordingly, make effective learning strategies for the future.
Personal Development
Each week, I participated in a group to conduct a design thinking activity. For Instance, remembering the activity of streamlining innovation in the trolley, I learned different techniques to learn differently. It seemed unusual to me how people with different skills, backgrounds, and cultures can brainstorm ideas and come up with some incredible innovative outcomes. Thinking activity is a key for me, as it was the relevant source for me to change my thinking. For Instance, by using top company examples such as Pepsi, Coca-Cola, and Apple Inc, I was in a better position to understand the different phases of innovation. Visualizing innovation by illustrating examples was a fundamental approach, which increased my assertiveness to learn and involve. Similarly, activities regarding persona, journey mapping, value chain, interviewing, prototyping, learning lunch, and presenting were crucial activities, which were tracked through blogs. Now, these blogs can help me to illustrate personal development, knowledge of design thinking, the action plan of key events and activities, and activities to acquire knowledge, skills, and behaviors (Sayers, 2005).
In this unit, participating in critical thinking activities was sufficient for me to enhance my personal development. For Instance, I developed myself by identifying my strengths and weakness, especially in different situations. The ability to increase my intent in a complicated case was established successfully. Now, in every position, I am quite able to find different ways to solve a problem. Personal development can also be justified by analyzing my behavior. As mentioned in a blog, I am finishing my career and entering the corporate sector in the future. Thus, I have developed a behavior or attitude which is suitable in different situations. I can address issues, streamline solutions, and categorize things effectively through appropriate behavior, and it is just through participating in critical designing activities. The most important thing is how an individual predicts or anticipates issues or problems and accordingly categorized them. I am looking forward to facing challenges or issues and work on the solution through appropriate or positive behavior. Journey mapping is also a crucial ability, which has been developed in this unit. I realized that nothing is useless. Currently, by adopting a critical or design thinking approach, I can put things in the right order. The art of using ideas is a significant outcome for me, which also justified personal development. Also, journey mapping assisted me to reflect my emotions and behavior. Be it traveling or studying, I shape a journey and reflect on my feelings and behavior. Also, value chain analysis, which is a critical strategic management tool, was used in this process. For Instance, different organizational functions such as human resource management, supply chain, infrastructure, technology, and operations are navigated. Interestingly, it was also a personal development activity, as it helped me to understand how information or sources can be gathered to present final results. For Instance, navigating Virgin Australia was a good experience, as based on historical factors and current trends, outcomes were presented. Thus, from data collection to presentation, I streamline my role in the activities. The learning and development process was in the limelight, as I participated in multiple events. I also wrote a blog about the interview process. Pretending an interviewer or an interviewee seemed interesting. Here, I learned how to conduct an interview and how to respond to a particular environment. For Instance, if I am an interviewer, I have to eliminate or remove biased questions. On the other hand, if I am a candidate, I have to adopt skills or traits to maintain behavior and reasonably portray myself. In the future, I will be giving interviews in different organizations, and this experience will facilitate me to exit from complex situations. Increasing the personal ability to identify problems in an organization can make me different from other people or stakeholders. For Instance, I learned how to shape a prototype as a key “Job Finding Technique.” The ability to test and improve the prototype is critical in an organization regarding personal development. It is an incredible improvement, and the addition in my skillet, which can lead me to another level. The ability to interact with people of different groups was also developed effectively. For Instance, during the launch of my prototype, I can interact with different people and share ideas, thoughts, concerns, and reservations. Critically, I was a little weak in this activity despite the learning interaction and collaboration. I had to bear the criticism of people. Feedback is always valuable to contain some improvements. Instead of arguing with people after criticism, it seems imperative to work on the feedback and make the outcome better. It was a significant learning experience for me, and it helped me to be prepared for the professional journey. Finally, the presentation was conducted, which was also a source of personal development. Interestingly, in the presentation process, I intended to develop communication skills. However, due to the many weaknesses in the presentation, the teacher advised being confident and content oriented. Critically, I was low in confidence, and it was an alarming situation for me, as far as my professional career was concerned. However, with time, I was able to find a way to boost my confidence and come up with some useful presentation skills (Skok, 2010).
Development of knowledge of Design Thinking Topics
In this unit, I was interested in enhancing my knowledge regarding design thinking. It is a fact that design thinking is a broad concept, which contains many areas. First, I learned how the design thinking process could be maintained. Different design thinking phases such as emphasize, design, ideate, prototype, and test are in the limelight. For Instance, in all activities, I tried to identify progress. Nevertheless, critically, I failed to empathize. Without an empathic understanding of knowledge, I was unable to sustain the design thinking process. It was critical for me, as I had to learn how to relate problems with empathic understanding. In the second phase, which is aligned with design thinking is defining (Martin, 2010). When working with different stakeholders, it seemed essential for me to describe the problem adequately. The problem must be specified along with a pertinent rationale, as it can also help others to work on alternatives and ideas. In the problem definition process, I was okay. However, little improvement was needed to gain excellence (Wang & Wang, 2008). In the third stage of the design thinking process, all key stakeholders need to generate ideas or alternatives. It is one of the most critical stages of the process, and I aimed to take benefits. For example, when I was working on the prototype, many people, including group mates, came to me and presented some ideas and alternatives. As mentioned, I was weak at that moment, which restrained me from understanding the importance of this stage. Brainstorming can be observed in this process. People from different backgrounds came up to give their input. I had to improve at that time, as I cannot do things alone. I needed partners and supporters to enhance the visibility of design thinking. In the end, prototyping and testing take place. These two activities have been illustrated in the personal development segment. In developing prototyping, I was strong enough to make a difference. However, in the testing or launching phase, I was backward (Cousins, 2018).
These are some aspects or elements, which are associated with the design thinking process. Now, apart from personal development and knowing about related topics, it seems vital to present some examples of my persona behaviors to identify strengths and weaknesses.
Examples of own behavior to identify personal strengths and weaknesses
My behavior in all design thinking activities was quite visible. It is a fact that my behavior helped me to contain personal development. However, I identified several strengths and weaknesses in this whole journey. Based on my strengths, I learned beyond my expectations. Conversely, due to emerging vulnerabilities, I was unable to gain excellence. For Instance, my behavioral strength was assertiveness. When working with a group, I was collaborative. This behavioral approach was sufficient for me because I built a long-term relationship with my mates. The collaborative approach seems the best way to make different contributions visible. I was open-minded, and this was also a prominent strength. I always tried to work on broad ideas and concepts, which guided me to be creative and innovative group activities. It also created some pace for me to gather many ideas and approaches. Carrying out all activities seemed a significant challenge. It looked tough for me to accept many ideas and concepts. Hence, I was open-minded and collaborative and was able to face some resistance from other people in group activities. As mentioned in blogs, I worked with people, listened to them, and executed plans. All key stakeholders generally accepted outcomes. One of the top behavioral or professional skills was emotional intelligence. I controlled my emotions to understand the feelings of other people (Lee, Baskerville, & Pries-Heje, 2015). Due to incredible emotional control, I emerged one of the most competent individuals in this unit. Now, apart from these strengths, the biggest weakness was patience. For Instance, according to feedback from stakeholders, I have been always impatience when conducting or participating in design thinking activities. In weekly blogs, this weakness is not visible. However, it was a hidden insists, and I had to control it. I wanted to complete the task or activities before time, and therefore, I missed some essential steps. Being a student or professional, I must be patient and wait for the best input. For example, in the value chain activity, I was in a hurry to gather data through conventional sources. Of course, I wanted to complete the task before time. Apart from the learning aspect, the value chain analysis could have been elaborated more precisely. Consequently, I have to eliminate this weakness and improve with time (Stander & Mostert, 2013). Elimination of my weakness will lead to the evolvement, which is imperative for an individual at the academic and professional level. I was critical of others, and it has not been mentioned in weekly blogs. Being the opponent to others led to selfishness sometimes. Working with other people to facilitate design thinking is a big challenge, as an individual has to respect for all other people. I rarely faced criticism in these activities. Nevertheless, I emerged as a critical person. Therefore, I experienced various group shuffling. With rationale thinking, I could accept some ideas, which were valid and feasible. Being a professional is a significant weakness for me, and I have to eliminate to become a good group player (Brewerton, 2011).
Action Plan of key Events and Activities
The illustration of personal development, design thinking topics, and strengths and weaknesses set the foundation to come up with an action plan. Of course, I have to learn how to conduct activities precisely and derive outcomes according to expectations. As mentioned, I am going to start my professional career, and I must be ready with new behavioral and professional skills. First, I have to learn or adopt a democratic approach, especially when working with people who come from diverse backgrounds. In an organization, diversity seems visible due to different skill sets, experiences, cultures, and norms. I can present myself as a team leader, and through a democratic approach, I can build consensus and brainstorm ideas. The collaborative approach is the first step for me, as it may make me able to work with anyone in the group. The second phase of the plan is to develop time management skills. Completion of the task before time shows excellence. But I have to understand the meaning of completion. By adopting adequate time management skills, I can keep the balance between activities and time limitations. Accordingly, I can guide other people regarding time management and the precise execution of activities. The third phase of the plan to conduct events and activities is to improve the problem-solving process. Every action or event may suffer from uncertainties. Being a professional, I have to learn how to get rid of the situation, which is not favorable for the group of the organization. At the academic level, I can execute the problem-solving skill lightly. However, at the corporate level, I have to anticipate the need for problem-solving skills and prepare accordingly. In consequence, these three areas or phases are part of my plan. Now, I can relate it to my next six months. I can apply this plan for the next six months, and it will be a great learning experience for me(Quek, 2005).
Next 6 Months to Acquire any Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviors
I shaped the plan for the next six months to acquire knowledge, skills, and behavior. Behaviors and skills, which have been elaborated in the strength and weakness section, are to be sustained in the next six months. These behaviors and skills are better for both the academic and professional levels. The most important thing for me to acquire knowledge, and these behaviors and skills can set the foundation. For Instance, I have to enter an organization in the next few months. I need to gain knowledge of the related industry. Behaviors and skills are to be executed in different events and activities. Initially, I have to contain a learning approach to get knowledge and identify the need for new behaviors or skills. Anticipating required action or skill for the next six months seems too early. I believe in evolvement wit the time, as skills and practices will be adapted according to need. It seems a short plan, as it can also be changed with time. Initially, it is enough to start a new journey and face new challenges. With an open mind, I have to move forward with my experiences and anticipation (Broscio & Scherer, 2003).
Conclusion
In the end, it is to conclude that design thinking activities have contributed to personal development. The whole unit was remarkable, as it changed my thinking style. Now, I can see things strategically and solve problems effectively. In this self-reflection, insights regarding personal development have been presented. Weekly blogs set the foundation for me to elaborate in design thinking insights as well. Based on my strengths and weaknesses, I managed to come up with a plan, which can be executed in the next six months. Initially, a short plan is suitable, as many changes will be made according to need and situation.
References
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Cousins, B. (2018). Validating a Design Thinking Strategy: Merging Design Thinking and Absorptive Capacity to Build a Dynamic Capability and Competitive Advantage. Journal of Innovation Management, 6(2), 102-120.
Lee, J. S., Baskerville, R., & Pries-Heje, J. (2015). The creativity passdown effect: applying design theory in creating instance design. Information Technology & People, 28(3), 529-543.
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Skok, M. M. (2010). Motivation For Personal Development And Life Long Learning. Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management in Opatija. Biennial International Congress. Tourism & Hospitality Industry, 486-497.
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Wang, S., & Wang, H. (2008). A Design Thinking Approach to Teaching Knowledge Management. Journal of Information Systems Education, 19(2), 137-139.
