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03 · Insight stage

Find the insight

Go beyond the obvious. Find something meaningful, then make sure it is true enough to design from.

Go deeper → Find the tension → Validate

Go deeper · Find the tension · Validate

01

Go deeper

Look beneath the first observation.

Do this

Write one thing you have noticed.

Then complete:

This suggests that…

This matters because…

If the second sentence changes how you see the project, you may have found an insight.

WHY IT HELPS

An observation tells you what is happening.

An insight helps explain why it matters.

That extra layer can give the project more depth and a stronger reason for the design direction.

Do not stop at the first thing you notice.

Ask:

Why is this happening?

Why does it matter?

What is underneath it?

What is missing or being overlooked?

Does this change what I should design?

The goal is not to sound clever.

The goal is to find something that helps you see the project differently.

Draw what you noticed on the surface.

Then draw what might be happening underneath.

The first observation is usually the obvious one. Keep asking why it matters.

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02

Find the tension

Look for the gap.

Do this

Complete:

People want ______, but ______.

Or:

We say ______, but we do ______.

Then ask:

What does this tension reveal?

WHY IT HELPS

Tension gives a project something to say.

It can reveal a contradiction, conflict or gap that makes the message more interesting and gives the design a stronger direction.

Tension does not have to mean conflict.

It might be the gap between:

want / reality

say / do

expectation / experience

old / new

convenience / consequence

For example:

We want convenience, but convenience creates waste.

That tension is much richer than simply saying:

"This project is about sustainability."

Draw the two sides of the tension.

Show the gap, contradiction or pull between them.

Strong ideas often live between two competing truths.

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03

Validate the insight

Check that your thinking holds up.

Do this

Find something that supports your insight:

research · observation · behaviour · real example

Then ask:

What evidence might challenge it?

WHY IT HELPS

An opinion is not automatically an insight.

Checking your thinking helps you avoid repeating assumptions, trends or ideas simply because everyone else is saying them.

A stronger design comes from a position you can actually support.

Ask:

What makes me think this is true?

Look for evidence outside your own opinion.

Then deliberately look for something that disagrees with you.

If the idea still holds up, it is stronger.

If it changes, that is useful too.

Research is not there to prove you were right.

It is there to help you think better.

Draw your insight in the centre.

Add what supports it and what challenges it around the outside.

Do not believe an idea just because it sounds right.

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