1DD: How to make an idea come true
DAVIS: “Question everything. Break all the rules. Go rogue.”
"The ancient skeptic Sextus Empiricus posited that by suspending all judgment we achieve a state of ataraxia - peace of mind. This pure state of openmindedness, what Zen Buddhists refer to as Shoshin (beginners mind) - a curiosity, inquisitiveness, openness and lack of preconception wherein we question everything, take nothing for granted, and simply ask: Why? Why are things this way? Why must they be? Every parent faces this epistemological regress argument when a child continues to ask why ad infinitum.
Like children, designers begin as novices. Shunryu Suzuki said it well in Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind: “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, in the expert’s mind there are few.” Only when questioning assumptions can we imagine and envision new possibilities. Why not?"
Lee Davis | Co-Director, Center for Social Design at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA)
Lee Davis is an author, designer and social entrepreneur. He is Co-Director of the Center for Social Design at MICA, focused on demonstrating the value of design in addressing complex social problems and preparing the next generation of creative changemakers. He is also a Trustee of the Winterhouse Institute, dedicated to advancing design education for social impact. Lee is co-founder of NESsT, an incubator of social enterprises across Central Europe and Latin America.