The Institute of Design (D.School) at Stanford has become one of the most talked about institutions recently because of the methodology they are spreading around the world to improve our lives through a collaborative approach that inspires human centered innovations. Last week I had the absolute privilege of being a part of the Design Thinking Hawaii boot camp which was focused on improving the education system in Hawai’i.

I spent an entire week submersed in this methodology but most importantly put it to practice when coaching a team of educators through a 3 day design challenge. The Design Thinking process is broken up into a 5 step ITERATIVE (not linear) process.

In this first crash course post, I will discuss the “Empathize” step.

What is empathy?

To feel what someone else feels. To walk in another’s shoes. This is the very first step in the design thinking process and ultimately…