Zooming equals Innovation

I am sure that after reading the title to this post you are wondering what Zooming is.

I wish that I could take credit for the term, however the term “Zooming” and “Zoomer” was first coined by the very brilliant Seth Godin on his blog sethgodin.typepad.com. I first came across it in his book Small Is the New Big: and 183 Other Riffs, Rants, and Remarkable Business Ideas.

“Zooming” refers to ones ability to be able to stretch their limits without threatening their foundation. Thus a Zoomer is a person who is good at Zooming. So what does this mean? On the whole people are afraid of change, they struggle with it and in many cases when it gets to much, their change avoidance reflex kicks in.

I am not exactly sure where the fear of change stems from, but I do know that when confronted with something new, something with the potential to change someone’s life, all the way down to the potential to change their daily routine, then many people choose the tried and tested option and avoid the change. The fear of change is what causes businesses so much heart ache when they are attempting to introduce a new product into the market place and why designers more often than not have trouble getting companies to take on a their newest creation.

As I mentioned earlier, zooming refers to ones ability to be able to stretch their limits without threatening their foundation. So why would you want to do this? The answer is pretty straight forward – So that you avoid the change reflex kicking in. Which means you can avoid the fear of change, and therefore explore the many new opportunities that are presented to you everyday. By zooming, something which you already do on an everyday basis with out realizing (when you choose to check out a new CD or restaurant), you can explore new things, while still feeling like you are inside the comfort zone.

Some of the worlds most effective designers and design studios are already zoomers. IDEO is an excellent example, they actively seek out the new and innovative. They employ people who already do this. This then gives IDEO the ability to harness hundreds of new experiences everyday, without the organisation itself falling apart from fear paralysis.

Designers need to become exceptional zoomers and expand their “same thing as usual” area, so they can experience as many new things as possible and pursue the bigger opportunities that they are presented with. Especially in Industrial design and product design, as you are constantly trying to come up with products that dislodge the status quo. If Apple’s designers hadn’t been excellent zoomers then do you think we would have the iPod?

While many designers do zoom more effectively than most people, you need to make sure you move beyond the new restaurant or CD. To do this you need to work on expanding your “zooming scope”. Zooming scope is the lens through which you define your “zoom width” or the breadth of your capability to cope with exploring the new. The further you expand Zoom Width the more opportunities and new things you will discover, which will inevitably lead to you becoming a better designer.

Seth Godin’s very handy five step zoom starter check list is below for those who want to start small. For those who feel like they are ready to move beyond that, I would suggest building your own Zoom list. One that pushes you comfort zone. That each time you re-write it, you build on so that you push your ability to cope with change further and further until you have a huge Zoom Width.

Seth Godin’s five-step Zoomer starter checklist.

1. For dinner tonight, try a food that you’ve never tasted. Then try another one tomorrow night.

2. On your way to work, listen to a CD or MP3 from a musical genre that you hate or that’s new to you.

3. Every week, read a magazine that you’ve never read before.

4. Once a week, meet with someone from outside your area of expertise. Go to a trade show on a topic in which you have no interest whatsoever.

5. Change the layout of your office.

So get out there and Zoom so that you can do great design. If you are interested, Seth Godin’s book is Small Is the New Big: and 183 Other Riffs, Rants, and Remarkable Business Ideas. You can get a copy from Amazonor you nearest book store.