10 things that make me smile:
- When there is a radio with an iPod docking station in a hotel room, so that I can listen to my own music.
- When I use the new Gillette Fusion with battery power.
- When my Roomba plays a happy tune after it accomplishes its task.
- When I use my MacBook Pro.
- When I eat well-presented Japanese food.
- When I touch the cover of my small Bible that is made with high quality Italian leather.
- When I jot down some thoughts and ideas on my small Moleskine notebook.
- When I listen to my favorite podcast using my iPod.
- When I use my navigation system from Garmin.
- When I was eating Bento on Shinkansen in Japan.
10 things that make me frustrated:
- When Home Depot tells me that their delivery truck will be at our home between 8AM and 5PM.
- When I try to clean up my razor blade after shaving with running water.
- When my laptop and a projector cannot synchronize without any reason.
- When I see an ugly 20% discount sticker on a beautifully designed book cover.
- When I need to use paper towel in the men’s room in my building, as I must walk back toward the inside, not toward the exit.
- When I was told that they cannot do it because of a rule, even though they agree that it may be a totally unnecessary rule.
- When I am put on hold on the phone by a customer service representative immediately after I start explaining what went wrong with their service.
- When a hotel front desk person ignores me who is right in front of her in order to talk to a customer who is NOT there.
- When I cannot find a working marker in my classroom.
- When the printer is jammed but I cannot find what’s wrong with it.
These are experiences that are result of good and careful design or no design. I had much easier time to come up with 10 things that make frustrated (and I could have made the list much longer) than 10 things that make smile. The world will be a much better place to live, if organizations begin designing and stop accepting mediocrity that is a direct result of having no design attitude. So, design no longer is simply a luxurious afterthought for a small number of premium companies, but should be the basic fundamental way of thinking that is permeated in all organizations.