# Four designers in a room 💡 By [rdot](https://paragraph.com/@rdot) · 2021-10-09 --- Here’s what they did -------------------- On a fine Wednesday evening, four designers found themselves in a room. They had nothing to say or do. One of the managed to break the silence. One thing led to another and then this happened! ![](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/3ca00dfcf43c2eb5ad739c51dd0132a1cc710285e3f81822a9da775b008f8aa4.png) ### What did the designer say? One of the designers shared an observation about our nearest and dearest chai vendor. Each morning, he would painstakingly broom away cigarette butts off the pavement. All because people wouldn’t use a bin to dispose of their cigarettes. Looked like the designers had found themselves a problem to solve—one that wasn’t commissioned by a client. _Oh, sweet creative freedom!_ The Stakeout! 👀 👀 ------------------- The designers planted themselves into the scene. They observed how customers interacted with the space. Here’s what they saw: * Customers usually bought _chai & sutta_ (cigarette) together * They would finish the chai and throw the cups into the bin * They would throw the cigarettes butts on the ground and put them out with their feet * **_They would leave the butts behind on the ground_** Once a butt was on the ground, nobody made an effort to pick it back up. But the very same customers dumped the chai cups into the bin. So this wasn’t due to ignorance. There had to be some other reason! ![](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/12cfafd3eeb35e6777fdb094012b19b089132a60ddbd8cc596519ff9036f96ed.png) > The designers _hypothesised_ that customers were merely avoiding a fire hazard Throwing lit cigarettes into a bin full of paper cups isn’t a bright idea, after all. The designers decided to take it up as a design challenge to help avoid throwing cigarettes onto the ground in the first place. The Problem Statement --------------------- > How might we provide customers a better way to put out cigarettes? In an indoor setting, one might use an ashtray. Could the designers make a public ashtray? One that customers can use to put out cigarettes and then safely dispose of the butts into bins? **_They had an idea! 💡_️** They ran around the office looking for raw materials and tools to create a prototype. The best they could manage was a wooden plank. ![Notice how pink Einstein’s tongue is](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/596fc7ec0f246edad6edbf6cb6cce1c5bf84407c9be794809f2f30c1249430a8.png) Notice how pink Einstein’s tongue is The designers hoped a giant ashtray with Einstein’s face on it would grab customers’ attention and appeal to their scientific sensibilities. Installing the prototype ------------------------ \*Einstein \*was ready. They found some light rope to tie the plank to a nearby lamp post. It turned out to be a tricky task. They struggled to mount _Einstein_ — it kept sliding off. The customers looked in wonder and confusion as the designers hung their heads low. ### Deus ex machina! 👼 Two carpenters working in the basement of an adjacent building noticed the struggle. They volunteered to help. They took _Einstein_ into their workspace and drilled holes. This helped balance the plank as they tied it to a lamp post. ![Humans ❤](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/587d0a08ae9b208029a13217f3ef0cf33714cb85009577b62b735496d5830591.png) Humans ❤ The Results ----------- The designers installed the prototype and simply waited. They hoped people would 1. Notice the plank 2. Understand what its purpose is ![](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/494e31f2ddabed6371d8d7138fb743c96f200aa50c09769ca6f11b685405d0c5.png) _Einstein’s_ tongue got darker with each passing day. The rest of his face was quite intact. There was no vandalism of any kind, nor did anybody steal the plank — this was a huge win! It didn’t end there ------------------- Positive results inspired the designers to come back and improve the design. They started working on 2 new prototypes. They also identified another chai vendor in the vicinity to recreate the experiment. ![“What client call?”](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/72740a70e2e280f650f51ce24ec2cf984fb62549803b557104154d1d4d956cca.png) “What client call?” ### Prototype 1: Improvements They first sought to improve the original design. The new prototype was * more compact in form, * sturdier as it was made of metal, and * more noticeable and more readable due to the contrast between the bright orange and pitch black colours ![](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/71bff74510fa3f3c50711375ad54690011c0857aa657472a8959dbc6a57fb9ab.png) The plank now supports the improved prototype! The result with this prototype were consistent with that of Einstein’s. The metal mesh got darker and darker with each passing day — a sign of its increasing usage. ### Prototype 2: New form factor The biggest drawback with the Einstein was that it had to be hung. They explored a new form factor that stood on its own. Say hello to _Smoky!_ ![Smoky was modelled after a cigarette 🚬](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/5e52bd59f5aa6ebdb5a5351ac8a85dad62beed9ea8963cf265be546f124b1730.png) Smoky was modelled after a cigarette 🚬 **Both prototypes were successful** and remained in their original locations for months. The designers have since then parted ways and have not been able to check in on _Einstein & Smoky_. But they like to think all is well! * * * Thank you for reading this far. There is no larger message to this story other than what you will make of it. Take a moment. ❤ ![](https://storage.googleapis.com/papyrus_images/f54bfc89279dec516e4c50af6c3b1270dae1bbd9694c6bed2d17c55c6a5e6cc3.png) --- *Originally published on [rdot](https://paragraph.com/@rdot/four-designers-in-a-room)*