What can we learn from shortcuts? | Tom Hulme

Translator: Clement Cheung Reviewer: Alan Watson

When we're designing new products,

我哋設計新產品、服務或者業務嗰陣

services or businesses,

the only time you'll know if they're any good,

你永遠都唔會知道點嘅設計先為之好

if the designs are good,

is to see how they're used in the real world, in context.

除非你行出去望吓啲人用成點

I'm reminded of that every time I walk past Highbury Fields

次次行過倫敦海伯里公園嗰陣

呢個念頭都會自動彈出嚟

in north London.

It's absolutely beautiful.

嗰度超靚

There's a big open green space.

有個好大嘅綠化空間

There's Georgian buildings around the side.

側邊有一迾喬治王朝風格嘅建築

But then there's this mud trap that cuts across the middle.

但中間零零舍舍有條泥路

People clearly don't want to walk all the way around the edge.

好明顯啲人唔想氹氹框啦

Instead, they want to take the shortcut,

佢哋想走捷徑

and that shortcut is self-reinforcing.

於是乎自己行咗條路出嚟

Now, this shortcut is called a desire path,

我哋會叫呢個做「公眾期望嘅走法」

咁樣嘅走法往往都受歡迎

and it's often the path of least resistance.

I find them fascinating,

而我都覺得呢啲捷徑好正

because they're often the point where design and user experience diverge.

因為佢哋說明咗設計 同用家體驗往往有出入

Now at this point, I should apologize,

但呢一刻，希望大家唔好話我

因為陣間你會見到好多 同「捷徑哲學」有關嘅嘢

because you guys are going to start seeing these everywhere.

But today, I'm going to pick three I find interesting

今日，我揀咗三個幾得意嘅故仔

and share what actually it reminds me

分享吓佢哋對於我

about launching new products and services.

做設計嗰陣有啲咩啟發

The first is in the capital city of Brazil -- Brasilia.

第一個响巴西首都，巴西利亞

And it reminds me that sometimes,

提醒到我嘅係

有時設計就係用最直接嘅方法 嚟滿足人嘅需要

you have to just focus on designing for a real need

at low friction.

Now, Brasilia is fascinating.

巴西利亞係幾正㗎

It was designed by Niemeyer in the '50s.

五十年代由建築師尼邁爾規劃設計

It was the golden age of flying,

當其時因為航空業好發達

so he laid it out like a plane, as you can see there.

所以佢將巴西利亞規劃成飛機咁嘅外形

Slightly worryingly,

唯一頭痛嘅係

he put most of the important government buildings in the cockpit.

佢將好多重要政府建築 擺响駕駛艙嗰個位

But if you zoom in, in the very center of Brasilia,

當你放大嚟睇，响城市正中心

just where the point is there,

紅色點嗰度

你會見周圍都穿插住一條條嘅小捷徑

you see it's littered with desire paths.

They're absolutely everywhere.

度度都係

Now, they thought that they had future-proofed this design.

佢哋自以為個設計好有前瞻性

They thought in the future we wouldn't need to walk anywhere --

以為第時人唔使再用對腳

揸架車就可以四圍去

we'd be able to drive --

so there was little need for walkways or pavements.

所以斷定第時唔需要任何行人路

But as you can see, there's a real need.

但現實話我哋聽，我哋需要行人路

These are very dangerous desire paths.

呢拃捷徑全部都好危險

If we just pick one, in the middle,

就攞中間嗰條嚟講

you can see it crosses 15 lanes of traffic.

你見佢橫跨咗成 15 條行車線

It won't surprise you guys

所以巴西利亞嘅行人事故 比起美國啲城市平均高出五倍

that Brasilia has five times the pedestrian accident rate

of your average US city.

一啲都唔出奇

People are resourceful.

人總係好多計仔

They'll always find the low-friction route

總係會扭盡六壬搵最快嗰條路

to save money, save time.

為嘅只係慳錢慳時間

Not all these desire paths are dangerous,

不過唔係條條捷徑都咁危險嘅

I was reminded flying here when I was in Heathrow.

我記得有次响希思羅機場

Many of us get frustrated when we're confronted

我哋成班都𢲷晒頭

唔明做乜免稅區中間 無端端有條行人路喺度

with the obligatory walk through duty-free.

我估唔到嘅係

It was amazing to me

how many people refused to take the long, meandering path to the left,

好多人唔會行左邊嗰條正式嘅路線

and just cut through to the right,

反而穿過右邊，自己開咗條捷徑

cut through the desire path.

The question that's interesting is:

有個幾得意嘅問題：

What do designers think when they see our behavior here?

班設計師見到我哋咁行法，會點睇呢？

Do they think we're stupid?

覺得我哋好蠢？

覺得我哋好懶？

Do they think we're lazy?

Or do they accept that this is the only truth?

定還是會欣然接受呢？

This is their product.

佢哋設計咗啲路出嚟 而我哋就合力改個設計

We're effectively co-designing their product.

So our job is to design for real needs at low friction,

所以我哋嘅設計要以人為本、簡單直接

because if you don't, the customer will, anyway.

因為就算你個設計唔啱用

啲用家都會改到啱為止

The second desire path I wanted to share

第二條得意嘅捷徑响加州大學

is at the University of California.

And it reminds me

提醒我嘅係

that sometimes the best way to come up with a great design

有時最掂嘅設計係來自用家自己

is just to launch it.

Now, university campuses are fantastic for spotting desire paths.

大學校園總會搵到啲好正嘅捷徑

I think it's because students are always late and they're pretty smart.

我估因為啲學生成日遲到

兼有啲小聰明

So they're dashing to lectures.

所以飆去上堂嗰陣，硬係會搵捷徑

They'll always find the shortcut.

And the designers here knew that.

呢間大學嘅設計師都深明此道

So they built the buildings

所以佢哋起好啲大樓之後

and then they waited a few months for the paths to form.

等一頭半個月，由啲路自然成形

They then paved them.

然之後鋪返條路出嚟

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Incredibly smart approach.

呢條橋超聰明！

In fact, often, just launching the straw man of a service

事實上，直接交個波出去

can teach you what people really want.

你就會知道啲人其實想要乜

For example, Ayr Muir in Boston knew he wanted to open a restaurant.

就好似波士頓嘅 Ayr Muir 咁

佢想開餐廳，但開喺邊好呢？

But where should it be?

What should the menu be?

賣啲咩好呢？

He launched a service,

於是乎佢揸住架餐車

in this case a food truck,

and he changed the location each day.

日日駛去唔同地方

He'd write a different menu on the side in a whiteboard marker

用雙頭筆寫低有咩嘢食賣

to figure out what people wanted.

日日唔同款，試吓水溫

He now has a chain of restaurants.

依家佢啲餐廳經已開到成行成市

So it can be incredibly efficient

所以話，將設計權交畀用家 其實可以好有效

to launch something to spot the desire paths.

The third and final desire path I wanted to share with you

第三個、亦係最尾我想分享嘅

is the UNIH.

係美國國立衛生研究院

It reminds me that the world's in flux,

佢提醒我，呢個世界每秒都變緊

and we have to respond to those changes.

所以我哋要順應時勢

So as you'll guess, this is a hospital.

你應該估到呢度係醫院

I've marked for you on the left the Oncology Department.

左上角寫住「腫瘤科」

The patients would usually stay in the hotels down on the bottom right.

啲病人通常會响右下角啲酒店度住

This was a patient-centered organization,

呢間醫院好以人為本

so they laid on cars for their patients.

會為病人提供專車接送

But what they realized when they started offering chemotherapy

但係當佢哋開始有幫病人做化療嗰陣

is the patients rarely wanted to get in cars.

就留意到病人好少會搭專車

They were too nauseous, so they'd walk back to their hotels.

佢哋周時作嘔作悶，所以寧願行返酒店

就係咁，病人自己行咗條路出嚟

This desire path that you see diagonally, formed.

打斜呢條

The patients even called it "The Chemo Trail."

病人仲叫佢做「化療徑」添

Now, when the hospital saw this originally,

開頭醫院見到條路

仲諗住冚返層草皮上去

they tried to lay turf back over it, ignore it.

But after a while, they realized it was an important need

後尾佢哋至發現班病人好需要呢條路

they were meeting for their patients,

so they paved it.

所以鋪好咗條路畀病人

我哋要做嘅嘢 就係鋪好呢啲用家想要嘅路

And I think our job is often to pave these emerging desire paths.

If we look back at the one in North London again,

再望返最開頭倫敦嗰個公園

條捷徑並唔係一直响度

that desire path hasn't always been there.

The reason it sprung up

佢之所以出現

is people were traveling to the mighty Arsenal Football Club stadium

係因為每逢有比賽

啲人就湧晒去隔籬嗰個阿仙奴球場

on game days,

from the Underground station you see on the bottom right.

由右下角個地鐵站一路行行行

So you see the desire path.

先有今日呢條路

If we just wind the clock back a few years,

如果返返去幾年前 個球場仲未起完嗰陣

when the stadium was being constructed,

there is no desire path.

我哋唔會見到條路

So our job is to watch for these desire paths emerging,

所以我哋要做嘅嘢 就係睇住啲路幾時出現

and, where appropriate, pave them,

可以嘅就鋪好佢

as someone did here.

正如呢幅相咁

有人整咗個欄喺路中心

Someone installed a barrier,

其他人就嘗試向右兜過佢

people started walking across and round the bottom as you see,

仲鋪靚佢添！

and they paved it.

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

But I think this is a wonderful reminder as well,

同時，呢啲捷徑提緊我哋

世界係變緊

that, actually, the world is in flux.

每一秒都有變化

It's constantly changing,

because if you look at the top of this image,

你大可以望吓幅相對岸

there's another desire path forming.

又有另一條小路慢慢現形

So these three desire paths remind me

呢三條捷徑提醒我

we need to design for real human needs.

做設計要以人為本

I think empathy for what your customers want

肯從用家角度出發 話唔定就係企業成功嘅關鍵

is probably the biggest leading indicator of business success.

Design for real needs

要體貼人嘅需要

and design them in low friction,

要用最簡單嘅設計

because if you don't offer them in low friction,

如果你個設計唔夠直接

someone else will, often the customer.

自自然有人會改返直佢

Secondly, often the best way to learn what people really want

再講，想知啲人要啲乜

最好就將設計權交畀佢哋

is to launch your service.

The answer is rarely inside the building.

齋坐响寫字樓唔會幫到你

Get out there and see what people really want.

不如行出去留意啲人需要啲乜

And finally, in part because of technology,

最後，有賴科技進步，成個世界變化萬千

the world is incredibly flux at the moment.

It's changing constantly.

冇一刻停落嚟

These desire paths are going to spring up faster than ever.

嚟緊呢啲捷徑肯定越見越多

Our job is to pick the appropriate ones

我哋要做嘅，就係搵啲合適嘅小捷徑

and pave over them.

然後將佢哋變成路

Thank you very much.

多謝大家！

(Applause)

（鼓掌）