Why Prototypes are Central to my Design Practice

A short story on testing new ideas or solutions. fast

A prototype of something I created just for fun.

This is part 2 of a mini-series on my 3 most important design tools. You can read the first entry in the series here.

I’ll begin with what my definition of a prototype is since there are a lot of valid ways you can view, define and create one. Should it be high fidelity? Low fidelity? Should it be static? Coded? These are all good questions and they can all be answered with a yes in one way or another.

To me a prototype is an artifact that is built in the quickest way possible that is convincing to a user in order to test a new idea or validate/invalidate a solution.

This helps me define the difference between mockups and protoypes. Prototypes are meant to be shared, changed, and in my mind they’re meant to be created early and often.

The frequency and early introduction of the prototype in my practice is why prototypes are central to my process. Of course they’re a vital component to the design sprint process but overall I try to find ways to “get my brain on paper” as soon as possible. Here are a few reasons why:

1. Quick feedback - I love getting feedback from users, colleagues, and stakeholders on something I am working on as soon as possible and the prototype mindset is the way I am able to do this.
   

2. Low risk - A good prototype provides a tool to try something out without a huge amount of risk. The way I prototype involves no code, implementation, or prematurely releasing something into the market. All it involves is a little bit of time, ideation, and testing.
   

3. Iteration - Because I’m creating something quickly and with little risk I can make any changes I need to make to a design early and often compared to something that has been more finalized or is closer to launch.

Prototyping is not a new concept but hopefully I have convinced a few of you to embrace it even more so than you are doing now. Happy prototyping!

Some of my favorite things of the week

1. Alex Bilstein on Linkedin posted a ton of great resources for healthcare design. Check out the post here.
   

2. Book of the week - The Designer by Manuel Lima.
   The opening sentences within the book sleeve says it all: The choices made by designers have a significant effect on the world. Yet so much of the discourse on design focuses on aesthetics rather than ethics.
   

3. Community I’m checking out - Los Angeles Design & Dev
   I live a little farther away from DTLA than I used to a few years ago but I’m still looking forward to getting back to connecting with folks “IRL” and this community looks like it could be a good start.
   

4. Here’s Chris Do of the Futur providing a few good thoughts on value:
   

   

   
   5. Cool gaming thing I am late to the party to - Super Nintendo on Switch
   The Super Nintendo was one of my favorite gaming experiences when I was growing up and seeing it come back to life on the Switch is just simply super awesome! I am currently playing Zelda a Link to the Past and all of the nostalgic feels are surfacing for me each time I play it.