Thinking in parallel universes
Recently I’ve been spending a bit more time contemplating about workshops and tools for thinking. Under the umbrella term of “Design Thinking” we find a bunch of useful methodologies, frameworks and approaches to considering our options in new situations, when desiging products, or trying to make services more relevant.
What’s different about design thinking than just… thinking? The tools and methods are designed to deliberately get us out of our regular context and into a mode where we put ourselves into divergent situtions to the ones we are usually in. This helps us get over our contious and unconcious biases, and increase the number and quality of our creative ideas as they are not tied to our existing frame of reference.
Although sometimes on they can be quite simple, design thinking tools are often quite structured. It’s the existence of this structure that lets us be more creative in the solutions we come up with. As much as many creatives like to work in completely freedom, the presence of a certain rigidity and structure can foster the most innovative solutions.
Thinking in Parallel Universes
When thinking about the validity of an idea, a product, a business model it can help to take things to the extreme. Parallel Universe thinking encourages you to put your fiction hats on and imagine two separate universes. One in which your idea must be valid, true, indispensible… and one in which the opposite is true.
By imaging a “parallel universe” we give ourselves permission to let go of the “truths” we currently take for granted. We are encouraged to come up with fictitious scenarios that seem unlikely to happen in the real world.
The goal of parallel universe thinking is to:
- Validate the relevance of your proposition
- Increase resilience to external factors
- Discover new market opportunities (find blue oceans)
- Come up with new product features or directions
Define your hypothesis
The first step is to define a hypothesis you want to explore. Take the time to come up with a few different hypotheses that you are interested in before deciding on the exact one. Hypotheses can be high-level or precise but it’s important to make sure they are relevant to you. Rather than “People are interested in X” try “Because people do X they will need my product Y”.
Look at all your hypotheses and decide on one you are going to engage with.
Thinking about the true world
In which parallel universe would your hypothesis be 100% accurate? In which world would your product or service be indispensible? What context needs to exist for people to use your product or service on a weekly, daily, or even hourly basis?
Thinking about the false world
In which parallel universe would your hypothesis be 100% false? In which world would nobody need your product/service or anything like it? What context exists to prevent it from being required? If your product/service is not needed, do the needs you service not matter anymore, or are they being solved by another solution?
Synthesis
Once you have come up with a number of scenarios on both sides that you are happy with try to group them into categories based on the underlying cause. If you realise many of your parallel universes come from the same root cause spend a bit more time trying come up with more scenarios that have different root causes.
Now look at all of the scenarios that you have come up with and try to connect the dots from our current world to the parallel universe. How far away from the current state is it? What might have to happen for a version of the scenario you designed to come true?
Think about your current product or service. How far away is it from that “indispensible” product. Can you somehow get it closer to that world by adapting the product somehow or looking into a new market?
Looking at the list of universes where your product/service is irrelevant, how far away are those scenarios from our current world? Is it possible that a version of those scenarios might occur? How would it affect your business?
Wrap up
What did you think about this approach? I would love to hear your thoughts or guide you through it in an online workshop. Drop me a line: hello@lucasseidenfaden.com
Image by 愚木混株 Cdd20