This Monday, In our Foundations class, we held an exciting whiteboard challenge. We were split into groups of three, and we had to act as designer, host, and observer alternatively to practice solving a design problem on a whiteboard within 20 minutes. It was an intense and fast 20 minutes, but very exciting.
Our prompts were designed by our instructor Kate, who connected them with our professional explorations which made it even more exciting. because each of us had some background information and new what kind of questions we can ask our clients.
to start with I want to give you all some background information about what whiteboard challenge is.
The process starts with breaking into pairs, picking a “challenge” and heading to a whiteboard.
One person is the designer and the other acts as host. For 20 minutes, the designer works through the design challenge on the whiteboard, asking questions of the host as needed. They think out loud while writing to demonstrate how they are exploring and solving the challenge. Common elements that are covered include: personas, design stories, metrics, task flows, conceptual models and UI sketches. It’s kind of terrifying. And exhilarating.
When the 20 minutes is up, the host gives 10 min of feedback, then they swap roles and do it again with a different challenge.
My first Ever challenge was: A mood app for apple watch which has weekly trend views and it is specifically for People with bipolar disorder.
Asking question was the easiest part for me because I read a lot about Bi-polar disorder and what they routines are. But as I got to design stories and coming up with the wireflows I had to keep reminding myself what I am designing and what the main need is.
By the end of the challenge my heart was beating fast and I was really excited about my design.
This is the view of my board when I finished the 20 minute challenge.
Resources
Whiteboard 101
If you have no idea what a white board is, this article can give you a quick start:The Ninja Skill for UX Designers by Molly Inglish (Highly recommend!)The Beginner’s Guide to the Whiteboard Challenge by Tea Chang