Design 101: How Designing is like making the perfect Biriyani

Learning to make the perfect Biriyani needs a lot of research. We need to eat different kinds of Biriyanis (both good and bad) to try and figure out what are the ingredients that made it taste good . We try searching in possibly every corner of the internet and also try digging out the secrets of a perfect Biriyani from our chef friends. Every time you think that you've got the perfect recipe from the above "resources" you try cooking it - but somehow the result does not meet your expectations. So, you keep iterating till a point where you learn how each ingredient and the way it's used impacts the taste of the Biriyani. After a lot of research and experimentation, one day (it could've been by accident too! 😋) you make the perfect Biriyani that satisfies all your senses 🍲 👌

But we don't to stop there, cause there's always room for improvement (read more Biriyani!) 😋

Coming up with a good design is kind of like finding your perfect Biriyani recipe. The more we understand every aspect of our project, the better we design our solutions, just like how understanding the flavours of the ingredients helps us cook.

The most important ingredient that you'll need to cook the perfect Biriyani is patience. We need to be patient with our design process - we need to give it some time for it to grow and explore the different possibilities. Just like Biriyani, we need to cook it slowly on a low flame to bring out the maximum flavor but be careful not to overcook it and get lost in the process 😉

Just like how each ingredient needs to be used in different ways, each step of the design process needs to be treated differently. The more the chef understands each ingredient, the more better the chef cooks with that ingredient. There needs to be a clear understanding on why you as a designer are doing the various processes involved in design. This understanding helps you achieve the purpose of each design process.

Not every design process is going to be the same. There is no set formula for the vast kinds of things that can be designed or redesigned out there. Just like how there are countless kinds of Biriyanis that have different recipes which cannot be mastered in one try, finding the design process that fits for you or for your project needs a ton of experimentation and practice.

Finally, following a design process that worked previously is not going to guarantee success the next time. There is a huge possibility that your Biriyani can turn into a disaster even you if follow the recipe to the t. So, while designing understand your project, understand the problem you are trying to solve and the causes of that problem. Understanding the problem completely and the need for each process you're going through to come up with your final design improves the quality of the solutions we design.

From the careful analysis of our design process we have put together a design kit (Coming Soon!). Our design kit is a set of tools that is going to help and guide you to analyse your project and organize your research. This is going to help you find, filter and then connect the dots. So, if you had any ideas in your head for a while that's waiting to come out you could use our design kit to design it to life!