Deliberate Design Thinking

Deliberate Design Thinking

Lessons from the Masters of Design

“The proper study of mankind is the science of design.”

Thomas Edison’s first invention was a voting machine.

The machine worked perfectly. It was fast and accurate.

Legislators negotiate, see lobbyists, persuade others, change votes, and filibuster.

“I don’t want to create something that people will not buy.”

“The proper study of mankind is the science of design.”

What is Deliberate Design Thinking?

Brian Sullivan. Hi, my name is

@BrianKSullivan @bigdesign

#mastersUX

Research and Testing Expert

Manager of UX Operations at Sabre, where I run three User Research labs.

UX Dallas Founder & President

Writer of Books and Articles

International Speaker

Keynote Author on SlideShare

Founder of Big Design Conferences

Let’s focus on , not how who

“The proper study of design thinking is the history of design thinkers.”

Deliberate Research

Deliberate Practice

Deliberate Networking

Deliberateness of Design Thinkers

Deliberate Research

Deliberate Practice


Deliberate Research

Sherry Turkle

• MIT Professor

• TED Speaker

• Author

• Guest appearances:

– Nightline

– NBC’s Dateline

– Colbert Report

– Today Show

– Frontline

“We even text at funerals.”

“I share, therefore, I am.”

“You are who you pretend to be.”

1980s: Studied Kids with Toys

1980s: Studied Early Hackers

Studied for the Next 30+ Years

1980 1990 2000 2010

Thomas Edison

• Incandescent bulb

• Phonograph

• Motion pictures

• Quadruplex telegraph

• Carbon microphone

• Power distribution

• Iron Ore Separator

• Cement Mixers

Assembles a Cross-functional Team

Menlo Park—First R&D Lab

Working Lunches at Night

Edison Keeps Scientific Journals

Published Frequently

Deliberate Research

Deliberate Practice


Deliberate Practice

Agatha Christie

• Short stories

• Novels

• Plays

• Screenwriter

• Famous Characters:

– Hercule Poirot

– Miss Marple

– Tommy & Tuppance

One for Novels, One for Short Stories

Bestselling Mystery of All-Time

Longest Running Play of All-Time

Best Crime Novel Ever Written

Bible, Shakespeare, & Christie

1923: Second Poirot Novel

1924: First Colonel Race Novel

Comeuppance & Twist Endings

1944-55: Writes Eight Plays

Short Stories Novels Stage Plays

Leonardo Da Vinci

• Mathematician

• Scientist

• Artist

• Civil Engineer

• Inventor

• Sculptor

• Botanist

• Sketcher

Last Supper

Mona Lisa

Only 30 Completed Works of Art

Sketching: His Greatest Legacy

13,000 Pages of Sketches 13 13,000 Pages of Sketches

13,000 Pages of Sketches 13 Focus on Human Anatomy

13,000 Pages of Sketches 13 Focus on Military Inventions

Military Human Anatomy Architecture

Deliberate Research

Deliberate Practice



Hedy Lamarr

• Actress (18 films)

• Model

• Fundraiser in WWII

• USO Tours

• Photographer

• Writer

• Inventor

Marries an Austrian Arms Dealer

Marries an Austrian Arms Dealer

Meets Louis B. Meyer in London

She Becomes a Famous Actress

Preferred Inventing Over Nightlife

U-Boats Jammed Allied Torpedoes

Frequency Hopping

Spread Spectrum

Not Technically Feasible

Bluetooth Wi-Fi GPS

Pablo Picasso

• Painter

• Sculptor

• Print designer

• Poet

• Playwright

• Set designer

• Ceramicist

Known for His Artistic Periods

• Traditional (in school)

• Blue Period

• Rose Period

• African-Influenced

• Cubism

• Neo-Classicalism

• Surrealism

10 of Top 50 Paintings Sold at Auction

Most Prolific Artist in History

147,800

Louvre Shows 35,000 Pieces of Art

Picasso once said, “Give me a museum and I will fill it up.” He could fill up The Louvre more than 4 times.

Picasso’s Network

Family Support Was Critical

Sketch of The Four Cats

• Tertulia is an informal gathering of artists and musicians.

• The Four Cats was his first network.

• They talk about art, music, current events, literature and more.

Networks with Other Artists

Part of the French Avant-Garde

Source: O’Brien, Patrick. (1994) Picasso: A Biography

• Taught him brush technique.

• Stretched Picasso’s canvases.

“Every time I draw a man, I instantly think of my father.”

Early Mentor is His Father

Later Mentor: Max Jacobs

Best Mentor: Guillaume Apollinaire

“No one has ever looked at Matisse’s paintings more carefully than I; and no one has looked at mine more carefully than Matisse.”

Epic Rivalry With Matisse

Their Friends Loved Their Rivalry

• Gertrude loved Picasso, Leo loved Matisse.

Their Friends Were Childish

• Matisse gave Picasso a portrait of his daughter.

• Picasso’s friend threw felt darts at the painting.

Matisse’s The Joy of Life

Picasso Responds to Matisse

Picasso Respected Matisse

At a group luncheon, Matisse excuses himself. Picasso says,

“He must be resting on the crown of his laurels.”

Simple, geometric

shapes are arranged on a canvas to represent an object or a person.

On the right, a guitar is

broken into geometric shapes and rearranged.

Analytic Cubism (1909-12)

Picasso introduces a

collage method, where objects are placed on the canvas to interact with painted elements.

Wallpaper, newspaper, and sheet music are on this canvas of a guitar.

Synthetic Cubism (1912-14)

No Journals, No Signatures

They Met Daily for 7 Years

World War I Ends Their Collaboration

Picasso Marries, Braque Injured

Deliberate Research

Deliberate Practice


Final Thoughts

Let’s focus on , not how who

Deliberate Research

Deliberate Practice


“The proper study of design thinking is the history of design thinkers.”

Deliberate Design Thinking:

Lessons from the Masters of Design