Below are some of the top items on my go-to list of the tools of design.
I share a new one every week in my newsletter, ‘Whitepapers | Tools of Design.’
Tools of Design
Divergent thinking mindset. Be ready to go wide, go far, and long-distance for ideating and brainstorming until you have way more ideas on the page than you ever thought you could. And all of them are different.
Convergent thinking mindset. Know when to focus on one key idea to develop deeply.
Concept. Creating a concept for a design that’s unique, authentic, and works well.
Process-awareness. Knowing through and through step by step what’s going on, so as to focus on the goal of the action step at hand.
Skilled execution of a design concept. Be able to deliver on the deliverables.
Other-aware. Be aware of where clients are, and know when to check in or give space.
Rapport. This takes time. It matters to do this table-setting work.
Trust-building. To become trustworthy, be trustworthy. Reliable, consistent, and accountable.
Conversational framework. Informal, light, and ready to get better acquainted.
Readiness. To change gears when new input informs.
… And many more.