Author: Vesela Dragusheva

MY CURRENT RESEARCH QUESTION:

Using gamification, how can the mentoring experience be disrupted: re-framed & re-designed to provide wider accessibility and engagement?

MY PROJECT SUMMARY:

I am researching the mentoring experience both from a mentor and mentee perspective, with the aim of redesigning the interaction via a gamified framework. This aim has developed from what I have perceived as a gap in the mentoring process indicated in my research, where those interviewed were looking for direction/ next steps in their different journeys but lacked the mechanism to facilitate this. The framework this project is looking to develop is not aiming to ascribe answers to mentees, but to help them in generating their own, with or without the support of a mentor.

MY MOST RECENT INTERVENTION

The latest intervention I did, as detailed in my blog, involved an ideation/ testing session, where I mapped the findings from the research conducted so far and tried to apply them to a more structured framework. The initial idea was to create a physical board game, however, after several iterations and experimental attempts, the concept has evolved into a digital experience. Once this shift from physical to digital had ‘materialised’, the core design began to take form and make sense.

MY KEY FEEDBACK RESPONDENTS / EXPERTS TO DATE 

Product League (mentoring programme and my mentee)University experts and academics (both within CSM and outside)I began by questioning my mentees, colleagues and friends, from a variety of backgrounds and countries. These formed the initial basis of my feedback.

I also spoke to professional life coaches, self-development experts and a trained psychologist.

MY POTENTIAL GATEKEEPERS

The gatekeepers who currently have the most influence on my project are, interestingly, the very people I wish to apply my framework to. The personal nature of the information they need to share, in order to test the framework in the most effective way, is acting as a ‘gatekeeper’.

MY KEY FINDINGS SO FAR

Perhaps the key finding of my research so far, Is that people wishing to make a change (without knowing the exact direction) often have an internal blocker preventing them from addressing it. When testing the provisional framework created in my latest intervention, I found it helped to unlock this ‘mental block’. The experience enabled people to shape their thoughts and address some of the choices and decisions they were ignoring. I could clearly see that the gamification, with its more natural and less pressurised approach (compared to a conventional mentor process) helped to open people to their inner monologue.

MY NEXT KEY ACTIONS

The next step is to create an initial digital prototype which will then be user tested and refined. In parallel, I will also continue testing and adjusting the framework concept on a targeted group (graduating and recently graduated students).

STRENGTHS/OPPORTUNITIES IN MY PROJECT

Now the project is being digitalised, this increases the reach to a potentially global audience. There appears to be an appetite amongst many respondents, particularly given the current global environment, to make change, and therefore it is a great time to introduce a tool that supports this.

GAPS OR WEAKNESSES

I need to conduct further research to fully test whether the framework can be applied in various (sometimes very personal) scenarios and to decide whether this can be universal or needs to be applied to more specific use cases.

A key aspect of the gamification of the experience is making the process ‘fun’, so, whilst the core framework has been created, making it a more entertaining tool is something I am looking to further develop.

My bibliography is:

• Donald A. Norman – Emotional Design
• Edward de Bono – Six thinking hats
• Tom Kelley & David Kelley – Creative Confidence
• Phil Knight – Shoe dog
• Barry Schwartz – The paradox of choice

Sources/references for the near future:

• Henry Petrovski – Success through failure
• John Thackara – In the Bubble, Designing in a complex world
• Nir Eyal – Indistractable
• Nick Bolstrom – Superintelligence

It was as clear as a sunny day! A board game it is!

Let’s escape that digital world, I thought, and focus on more tangible, “real” things. Sounds about right nowadays, doesn’t it? In times when people are re-evaluating the way they are living, when grounding is such a trendy word, when everyone’s coming back to basics, looking in, facing towards self, you name it.. I guessed it was time for me to do so as well..

And there it was – the first prototype of the physical board game, ready to be tested. Humble and shy, but prepared. Prepared to face its first intervention!

And so it started: slow, but steady.

an autumn rain...

A few initial obvious tweaks needed here and there, rearranging some parts, yes!

starts pouring..

Let’s change this order, ok!

a lightening in the distance…

Some good potential side tracks, great!

a thunder now shakes the ground…

Oh that slightly bigger change will make so much sense!

and the cats and dogs are falling from the sky!

And then suddenly one big…

…BANG!

---

Silence.

Soaked, in the middle of the intervention, it hit me (and not only me, but also hit the intervention itself!). Why a physical board game? Why? What am I trying to escape?

It took me no longer than 5 seconds to see it all in screens, like a reel ..following each other. Another 10 to draw them. 5 more to imagine the user interactions. And the gamification, and the story, and the characters, and the tone of voice, and even the colours! Ah the colours (they usually take longer to appear)!

And there I was, drenched and happy, finishing an intervention, seeing the blue skies. Satisfied with my decision to go digital. I found an inner peace for now, I thought, looking at the rainbow…

Using gamification, how can the mentoring experience be disrupted: re-framed & re-designed to provide wider accessibility and engagement?

An olive branch

A symbol of peace; something you say or do to show that you wish to make peace with somebody

Oxford Learner’s Dictionary

---

Choosing an olive branch to represent my Golden Bough initially came as a surprise. However, the more I was avoiding thinking about it, in order to explore better options (see below on this), the more this one stuck. Interestingly, I still keep finding more and more reasons behind it.

The olive branch & me

Let me start from the most obvious point – well, the olive branch is literally a piece of nature. The inevitable connection between human and nature is something that moves me deeply. Regularly observing myself, I encounter new evidences on how important this union is. Going back to my childhood and my Macedonian roots, the olives have always been the border trees – the ones that are seen only when one gets close to the border or when they cross it. Back in the days – it was the physical border between Bulgaria and Greece, today – it is the border of my imagination. And of course that magical green colour, oh! It is there, but it is also not!

I noticed I sometimes tend to be a perfectionist. I struggle to leave things unfinished, or to start doing them at all, unless I am sure the result will be satisfactory (to my imaginary standards). So every now and then there is this internal war to start creating and enjoy the imperfection vs. “don’t bother now, it’s not going to be good enough”. With the olive branch, I would like to offer internal peace and allow the former side to win. At least for now.

Last, but not least, I would like to give some peace to my thoughts from the war outside – pandemic, economic crisis, politics, work.. Finding peace and quietness and comfort in my own mind is what I hope the olive branch will give me.

The olive branch & my project

To get through the second year of my studies, I believe I would need to develop further my patience and persistence skills. I am exploring the practise of meditation and building healthy daily habits to enable me test these boundaries.

I would also like to gain more in-depth knowledge on mentoring. I have been volunteering as a mentor for the past 3 months and I have built a network of other mentors and mentees. I would need to use the olive branch to further create peaceful connections with mentoring communities – to gather feedback and test ideas.

Applying the olive branch through the gamification prism, I want to explore the fundamental gaming principles, and methods for creating and testing games. Where winning or losing shouldn’t matter. Where the importance should be on the game. I am still to look for relevant literature and articles and to contact relevant stakeholders.

Last but not least, by answering my question, I would love to offer peace out to the world – more people finding help and inner peace by being mentors and/or being mentees. Maybe by trying to disrupt the mentoring process, I would be aiming to create a new, different type of relationship – more equal, more sustainable, more peaceful. Like an olive branch.

If you’re good with numbers, does this mean you’re not good with words?

Do people who are good with words rule the world today?

Can we have all the answers in numbers only, but not words?

Can we visualise numbers with art (just as we do with words)? Is this art? What is the art of the numbers? Can we think in numbers, not in words?

Can you “read” and interpret art with numbers, but not with words?

Influence

Movie: The Professor and the Madman – building the Oxford dictionary

Book: The Humble Pi – how much maths is incorporated in our lives

Work: Data management & visualisation

“All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players.”

Indeed we are, but nowadays I suppose the focus is more on the games we’re playing?

We had an absolutely great session with Richard and a rather simple drawing online tool – Polypad. On a hindsight, this most probably would be one of the most favourite sessions I’d had during the studies. Given the tool with basic forms and colours, we were asked to visualise our research questions and.. wow! – what a difference it made expressing my thoughts (random and scattered as they were) without words. As if I saw my project through a completely different prism.

And as much as I was completely entertained by whole experience, whilst it was happening, on reflection I noticed the constant flow states I was going into. Being creative, expressive and absolutely present in the moment apparently gave me a huge delight. Pushing the boundaries even further, what I actually enjoyed very much ware the metaphors, finding the hidden meanings, peeling the outer layers, only to find more underneath, usually in a different dimension. Oh, what a joy!

The first picture depicts my research question as a constant flow of various questions and answers between a mentor and a mentee. That exchange of information constantly carried on the wings of the “birds” – circulating, but being updated every time it passes through an actor. The question mark would symbolise the one that is eager to learn, the curious (the mentee) and the smile, would be the mentor – the one happy to enhance, to give and receive. Underneath is a board with various (almost random) fields, describing the medium and the tool that supports the communication above. Next to the board there’s a literal representation of a sand timer, adding the layer of time to the picture – as being limited, but also as all being gradually developed and tracked throughout it.

One of the most interesting finding for me, was that none of the above concepts were fully defined in my head, before I actually expressed them with shapes and started talking about them.

During the feedback / observation session, I have received some great comments from the group, which developed my thinking even further. Here are some of them:

• huge accent to the actors, compared to the rest of the elements
• polarisation in the actors (aren’t they a bit of both?)
• all elements hold a metaphor, only the sand timer is realistic

I loved listening the comments and observing people trying (quite successfully) to understand it and feed me back. A couple of extra pairs of eyes and minds, gave me a great ground for improvements.

The second picture shows an enhanced version of the first one. I have realised the board / the field should not be sitting outside of the whole communication flow – it should be there, right in the middle, acting as a real medium for it. I have also moved the timer on the upper-right hand side, where we are used to have the legend of the map (or the main menu, if speaking in a digital- world-language).

I love the second version. I plan to use it when developing my question further.

360 degrees – Once

During my independent summer period study, there’s one major event that has happened – I’ve seen my idea live and my research question developed. That event turned the course of my course in 360 degrees. For all the feelings and emotions, the ups and downs and ups again that followed my discovery, there will be a dedicated blog post. The main outcome, though is that my main research question has completely changed.

Growing out of some circumstances around me and a couple of random (or not so random) events and encounters, I have noticed a pattern: people daring to start something new or having an idea developed up to a certain point, but currently facing similar obstacles: not knowing how to proceed, being uncertain for the future, feeling lost, needing “digital” help. As much as all these (except the last) have been always a factor for any beginner, currently they are all super-enhanced by Covid-19 (especially the last).

For a while the idea for guidance and advising has given me a very strong sense of purpose (starting from when I was helping my younger brother doing his lessons in his early school years, leading to me becoming an English teacher, which I still consider to be amongst the best days of my life), I have found myself consulting three very different, but also somewhat similar ladies within the past month:

Lady 1 – An inspiring young musician – singer and songwriter, who would like to gain popularity and develop a unique brand / presence 

Lady 2 – An experienced PR manager, seeking for independence and trying to set up a freelance business

Lady 3 – A beautician, whose direct business suffered from the pandemic and is now looking for alternative digital options

So far I have held 2 meetings / sessions with each lady – behind the links there are some early prototypes I have prepared and discussed with each of them. In parallel, I have registered domains for their websites and started exploring options for building them.

What I’ve noticed is that there is uncertainty in multiple layers – they have all needed, each in their own way, more in-depth, tailor-made advice.

Now, gaining some clarity whilst considering my new research question, I am planning to make further interventions with other ambitious girls / women, who are about to start chasing their dreams or are already on the way, but are currently feeling lost.

360 degrees – Twice

My WHAT-WHY-HOW-IF revised

WHAT: What is the subject or area that you intend to research? What is the precise question that you will be addressing?

The area of my research will be focused around holistic ways of helping aspiring ladies chase their dreams and develop their ideas, advise and mentor in times of uncertainty and desperate need of digitalisation. What can be the best 360 / holistic approach in advising women in chasing their dreams when they’re feeling lost? What initial digital help can be provided for them that they struggle to find elsewhere?

WHY: Why will this research be of value to you – and the world?

As mentioned above, this gives me a very strong sense of purpose and a huge satisfaction. Additionally, I believe there is still a huge gender gap in our society and many women (young and old) need guidance in developing their dreams. Hopefully, when that research is complete and this project implemented, there will be a world where more dreams come true, despite the obstacles presented by current circumstance.

HOW: How will you accomplish your project in practical terms? What will be your methodology, management strategy, and schedule?

I am still sticking to the plan to adapt lean, agile methodology, when developing this project – doing small, sizeable chunks of work that I can quickly test and iterate on with the relevant stakeholders.

Task	Period
Current iteration + session 3	By the end of August
Next iteration + session 4	By mid September
Exploring similar initiatives and potential stakeholders	Ongoing until the end of September
Next iteration + session 5	By mid October

*iteration = website development / brand identity / online presence / product development, etc.

WHAT IF: What are the positive implications and potential if you achieve this mastery? How will this position you (and your stakeholders) at the end of the Course?

I will develop my skills for identifying the multiple layers and the complexity of each problem and the ability to break it down in manageable pieces, so they can be addressed. I will develop my listening and understanding skills. I will develop the ability to read between the lines.

I will develop my skills for representing an idea with a design, or multiple designs – presenting options and sensing what the other party would like. I will develop my imagination in trying to find creative answers. I will continue learning how to ask better questions. I will develop a digital toolkit which helps me address the above and provide a structured and value-adding service for women looking to change the world.

Making research around my idea for sustainable clothing and following recommended Instagram accounts that are supporting the cause, I decided to trust the social media algorithms and follow accounts that it suggested me. First one – very useful, some great stats and information on sustainable clothing. Second one – very interesting, giving guidance how to upscale your clothes. Third one – ahh.. looks like the same idea to mine. Let me double check? Yes. The website just fully explains my idea – all my thoughts in this area, gathered, structured, organised, simplified, written in a nice and understandable fashion (pun intended), as if someone just scooped them out of my mind and put them there.

What followed was a very emotional moment for me. A blend of feelings coming and going, trying to be rationalised. Not trying to fit within any psychological framework – there were three major stages I went through:

• Shock & disbelief: Not-in-a-nice-way wow! Is that actually happening for real? What are the chances that someone somewhere came up with exactly the same idea and did exactly (90% similar) execution to what I was prototyping..
• Self-blame: I should’ve done it earlier, I should’ve started working on it, as soon as the idea came out and not postponing it.. I’ve read somewhere that the universe is planting idea seeds, but if not act upon, they’re just being planted somewhere else.. Not a firm believer in this understanding, but cannot not think about it..
• Acceptance, gratitude & huge relief: Having had that idea for a while, there was constantly something in the back of my mind that it’s my duty to realise it. It gave me so much pressure that when I finally saw it alive, I was very grateful that someone made it real – they dared to be persistent and follow it and that just freed me.

“Mirrors are magical objects.”

I can’t agree more – there is a lot of mystery around a mirror, that may never be revealed.

But where do I see myself best? When do I really see a reflection of myself?

The answer to the above didn’t come really easy, but it was such a significant moment when it actually came, that I guess I will remember it forever.

Two events happened that day:

• I was out on a rainy walk, getting gradually soaked by the light drizzle, thinking and reflecting and looking at the wet tiles underneath my feet..
• I was in, taking a quiet bath, thinking and reflecting and looking at the small waves on the surface..

And that was it – the answer was the water! Eureka! I silently exclaimed, in a situation so similar to Archimedes’. I know my discovery wouldn’t be as grand and impactful as his, but in that very moment it felt absolutely special. And it made so much sense.

I have always loved being around bodies of water – the sea will captivate me, the river would make me curious, a lake would make me calm, a waterfall will purely excite me! And the rain, oh how I love the rain that makes my mind go wild! And of course, indoors a long shower or a bath – all these being triggers that are making me mindful and present and able to see myself.

Maybe it didn’t work that well for Narcissus, but hey – this might actually be the oldest mirror known to humanity (and for sure some animal species). And here I am – just another representative in the line.

Opportunity

It’s been almost an year now, that this idea was bothering me (literally every day). I was waking up (and still do) with the same question, that I soon realised is a question every single person in this world asks themselves – “What should I wear today?”.

Interestingly enough, one cannot imagine actually how many times the answer to this question is “I don’t know!”. In my case the proportion is 9/10 – yes, in nine out of ten cases I actually have no idea what should I wear this day. So was the case today.

What’s the weather like? What’s the schedule for the day? Quick check of the forecast, glance outside the window, and.. ok, let’s browse my wardrobe… First thing I see and oh no, not the green sweater again, I already wore it twice last week! Let’s try something different today. Ah, this lovely dress needs ironing, and that favourite shirt is in a desperate need for a dry cleaning. Shall I dig deeper? 8 mins later, when half of the clothes are unfolded and messy I take the green sweater again and rush out. In the end of the day – I love it so much!

I can imagine there are so many other souls out there having similar experiences to mine. Some just quickly picking up from the top of the pile, others performing that whole exercise on some subconscious level, without even being aware of it. and the most organi having all that prepared from the night before – ironed and hanged, ready for the next day. In whichever group you fall, you still need to deal with that so universal question.

Numbers

In the same time the clothing industry is booming and the numbers and statistics are terrifying.  

£30 billion pounds is the estimation of the unused clothing in our UK wardrobes – mine, yours, your neighbours, your colleagues.. £30 billion pounds frozen in clothes, resting quietly and waiting for their glorious days (that usually never come). And that is only in UK.

In addition to that £140 million worth of clothing goes into landfill every year. And that again is only in UK.

And in the same time for 2016 the amount of clothes purchased in the UK is 1 130 000 tonnes. Raised with 60% over 6 years.

I’ll leave you some time to think and re-read the numbers again.

All this is just a small portion of all the data available out there. Not a very consistent data, as there is no international regulator to gather and organise such, but still enough numbers to support the huge primarily environmental impact of the clothing industry.

Trends and novelties

Terms like “sustainable fashion”, “zero-waste design”, “smart clothing” are out there for a long time now, however currently there is no big impact, let alone proven effects. In addition only 8% of all the clothes are actually being recycled.

And still we all don’t know what to wear…

A change is desperately needed.

Solution

Multiple industries have been completely disrupted by the digital revolution. That is, however, not the case with the clothing one. And if there are still multiple opportunities that can be applied for the recycling part of the process, I believe there’s a huge potential in the re-using part. The only thing that needs to happen is for us to change our consumer behaviour (aka leave that green sweater alone and start using smartly all your clothes).