A Whole New Mind: Design

Design. “Design is a classic whole-minded aptitude. It is, to borrow from John Heskett (a scholar of design), a ‘combination of utility and significance (p.70)’” In essence, design is a vehicle toward creative differentiation—especially in a world of replicated knock-offs and commoditized goods and services. The way to stay ahead is to attack the world like a designer. Pink tells the story of a Charter High School focused on design in Philadelphia, where the kids engage and the effect it has on graduation rates, college entrants and much more. He quotes Richard Koshalek, president of the Art Center College of Design, “’I think designers are the alchemists of the future (p.70).’” His analysis of the bad design of the “chad” that lost his old boss, Al Gore, the election is fascinating and a bit scary. Finally, he argues that such creativity is hard to outsource and thus, competitive advantage.

Post #2 From A Whole New Mind by Dan Pink