Idea Flow

My first idea was to do a tangible to-do list. I wanted to make visible how many tasks you have already accomplished and how much you still have to do. I thought about making a table, with many, many legs. the four legs on the corner would be stable all the time, but the rest could be pushed up and down. In the beginning of the working day, all the legs would be sticking up. Everytime you finished one task you "add" another leg to the table by pushing one of the legs down. 

I didn't take this project further as the adding of text (written activities) would be written verticall which makes it difficult to read. Also adding extra legs in case you have more tasks would become difficult. Furthermore it would take aways quite some space from the working surface.

After some other ideas like a pen you could record your things "to-do" verbally and a chair that would remind you everytime you get up and sit down again what the things are you still have to do (kind of stress full if you ask me) I came up with an idea to help you reflect on what you were doing.

Sometimes you need some time to step back from your work in order to see it more clearly. Many people  do this by going for a walk. I therefore created a "notepad on a string" leaning on a a product I know from my childhood. In order not to lose gloves a string was attached to them and put inside the sleeves of your jacket. The good thing about this is that you don't have to carry anything, you will not lose it and the best is that once you need them they are right by your hand.

Just what you need when an idea comes to your mind while going for a walk. Write it down quickly before you forget it.

Although people found this idea funny, they also would feel a bit weird "wearing" it. I am nevertheless incredibly happy I had this idea, as it helped me with my next tools. It was good to make a funny, playful tool, as this was one of the things I wanted to achieve...and it got perceived as such.

My next experiment should enhance creativity during a break (in a playful way of course). So many people (especially in England) drink tea during their working day. How about using this time to have some fun and get inspired?

Here is how it works: instead of throwing the used tea bag right into the bin, but it on a piece of paper beforehand. When it is try have a look at the stain and imagine (just like looking into the clouds) what it could be? What does it remind you of? Take a pen to finish the started picture.

What also supported my idea flow was the collaboration with Arianna De Luca. We decided to collaborate on a project, as her master project is related to mine. We also decided to focus on the tea-break. On the one hand we wanted to motivate creatives to use the time wisely while they are waiting for the kettle to boil and the tea to brew and on the other hand we wanted them to relax and not think about work.

We therefore made two different tea-projects:

tea tray project:

The tea has stickers in different shapes as labels. You can use the labels to write the thoughts that come to your mind while you are waiting down and stick them to the tea-tray. The labels have different shapes and colours, it can help you making a to do list more fun.

The second project was completely focusing on fun and relaxation, in other words, enjoying the break.

We therefore designed a wheel of fortune that would let destiny decide which one of the many different tea-bags you will get. One of them tells you to listen to a certain song, the other one tells you to get some fresh air, the other one suggests you to close your eyes,... and so on.

A by-product of this project was the "playful" bin. Once you're done with using the tea-bag you can throw it onto the target-lid. Maybe it will help you focus and hit the target in your work as well?

according to some interviews I did, people sometimes have difficulties staying focused during work, however, when they have a limited amount of time to finish a certain task they can concentrate much quicker and stay more focused in general. If they have too much time to their hands they get distracted by other things, some not work related.

I therefore decided to create a tool that should help support them stay focused, that suggests short slots of focused working time and breaks - that are necessary - in between, in form of a dice. Every side of the dice suggests a different amount of time you should stay focused.