Step Three - Idea Generation

I now have the guidelines for the project. The theme is Experience Design and the project must make a difference and encourage exploration of life - in some way or another. For the next step I used Affinity Diagramming on the Post It's I already had on my wall. So I:

1) Took them all down

2) Reorganized the Post It's in associating groups

3) Added more ideas, thoughts and questions

Since Aalborg University encourage a problem solving approach to projects it is necessary for me to formulate a core problem that the project is either solving, trying to solve, questioning or in other ways commenting on. After having brainstormed the morning away on why people do not explore their surroundings I read an article from the Washington Post [click here to read it] about Joshua Bell (one of the world's best violinists) playing the violin in the Metro. Only a few people stopped to appreciate the world class music and only one actually recognized him. It might be that violin music is a genre less favoured by people today(?) but that does not change the fact that it is thought-provoking that a lot of people seemingly don't see or notice the little things that's going on around them. But how come?

Is it because... we are not used to look for "beauty" around us  - are we too hard to impress - scared - have grown up - don't think it is socially acceptable to question our experiences, thoughts and everyday lives - are we too goal oriented - inattentive - off guard - is it simply too silly to explore and question - is it out of our personal comfort zone - doesn't it feel safe - are we afraid of finding something we don't like - or that it's too expensive - don't we have time - or are we just thinking that it doesn't fit in "right now" - but will it then ever fit - are we too busy with something else - on the way from A to B - and are we so oblivious that we think we won't get anything out of it? [Samples from my brainstorm]

Later I stumbled upon something else - a note originally posted on Pinterest and then posted by a friend of a friend on Facebook:

This opened my eyes to the fact that we all have the choice to notice the small things around us - all we have to do is make the choice or become aware that we can make it. But how?

/Anne Sofie

P.S. My Mac just died and is taken to the doctor. So now my desk looks like this: