“The Artist is he who detects and applies the law from observation of the works of Genius, whether of man or Nature. The Artisan is he who merely applies the rules which others have detected.” — Henry David Thoreau

Designers today are tasked with making everything better. This means noticing what is and isn’t working and noticing what does and doesn’t exist. For many projects, the prerequisite to developing novel solutions to problems is observation of existing users, products, and systems. It is the job of the designer to improve the things of life, and so it is also the job of the designer to notice opportunities for improvement.

“As a product designer, it’s my job to see those everyday things, to feel them, and try to improve upon them.” — Tony Fadell

Tony Fadell is the co-founder of Nest Labs, which was acquired by Google in 2014. He was also an early designer of the iPod and later served as Senior Vice President of the iPod division at Apple. In 2015, he delivered a TED Talk that is still very relevant to design today. He discussed the importance of noticing and observing. He compared this action to the way comedians notice every day things and illuminate them for us.

Tony Fadell | The First Secret of Design is Noticing | TED2015

“Comedians know all about this. Jerry Seinfeld’s entire career was built on noticing those little details, those idiotic things we do every day that we don’t even remember. He tells us about the time he visited his friends and he just wanted to take a comfortable shower. He’d reach out and grab the handle and turn it slightly one way, and it was 100 degrees too hot. And then he’d turn it the other way, and it was 100 degrees too cold. He just wanted a comfortable shower. Now, we’ve all been there, we just don’t remember it. But Jerry did, and that’s a comedian’s job. But designers, innovators and entrepreneurs, it’s our job to not just notice those things, but to go one step further and try to fix them.” — Tony Fadell

In his Talk, Tony Fadell also highlights how every day things and process become habit. Unless we are intentional as designers about how we move through our days and observe the world, we won’t see the sometimes very useful frustrations of everyday life that we are uniquely empowered to improve. We sometimes talk about looking at something with “fresh eyes” or having a “child-like sense of wonder”. These are useful frames of mind, but it is also important to develop methods of noticing and observation. The same way scientists in research fields have their own methods and processes for conducting experiments, it also makes sense for designers to have tailored methods of experimentation, user research, and observation that illuminate opportunities for improvement. If designers develop their noticing skills, it is more likely that they will be able to continue to develop effective and pleasant solutions that improve everyday life.