MIND MAPPING TOOL

Challenge –Addressing the problem of professionals who are constantly on their  workstations in offices and have a sedentary lifestyle because of which they have many  health issues related to physical posture. We can improve the health of every individual  with the introduction of compulsory 20 minutes play time of the indoor sports like table  tennis, badminton, billiards etc. Since today everyone is ignoring their health because of  busy life, the incorporation of indoor sports not only offer entertainment, but are also good  cardiovascular exercises that extend health benefits to players of different ages and fitness  levels. Be it any age group, people face chronic to acute health problems because of lack of  body movement and prolonged positions or postures and stress. All spheres of life get  affected by little negligence of health. The introduction of table tennis as a sport reduces  the risk of injuries and the intensity is manageable for most people. It helps to lose weight  and avail several social, mental and health benefits.

Selection- The design tool selected is called mind mapping. Mind mapping is one of the  most powerful tools in the design thinker's toolbox. It’s used to look for patterns. Mind  mapping is looking for patterns and insights in a large quantity of data one has collected  during one’s exploration of what is the current reality. It helps to develop criteria for “what  if ”stage. It is moderately a graphical representation of large chunks of data to organize it in  an easily understandable manner. A mind map is more creative, intuitive, and a more  visual engaging idea. In design thinking, one uses the mind mapping process to capture and  represent the minds of the customers. It’s not the stage of coming to conclusion or  solutions rather it is the stage of figuring out possible ideas for deriving solutions. Sources  of data collection can be ethnographic interview results, formal quantitative data, surveys,  questionnaires etc.

Application- We created a mind map highlighting topics such as problems faced by  targeted customers (sedentary professionals), reason for introduction of activity, options  that can be considered for improvement of health, alternate solutions, prime issues at work,  choice of activities that the workers may prefer, work patterns, working hours etc.  Interviews, surveys, and questionnaires were conducted to receive the feedback of the  targeted customers (sedentary professionals). We asked the workers working at different  levels of the organization to create a mind map describing their current health conditions  and the amount of work they do, their working hours in seated position and whether they  do any exercise in a day and asked them to list the indoor activities they wanted to opt for if  a chance was given to do so. Then these mind maps were evaluated to come to a solution.

Insight – Seeing the productive generation suffer because of the negligence of their health  traumatizes me, as people capable of doing their best are unable to do because they spend  less time outdoors comparatively to indoors which deteriorates their health. The impacts of  lack of exercise on target audiences, are as mentioned below:

•  Physical inactivity may increase the risks of certain cancers.

•  Physical inactivity may contribute to anxiety and depression.

•  Physical inactivity has been shown to be a risk factor for certain cardiovascular  diseases.

•  People tend to put on weight leading to obesity.

•  Sitting for a prolonged period may lead to a decrease in skeletal muscle mass.

•  Physical inactivity is linked to high blood pressure and elevated cholesterol levels.

The solution for the above-mentioned issues after analyzing the problems and suggestions  of the workers from indoor activities like badminton, table tennis, billiards etc. was table  tennis. The reason was that this sport occupies less space and more over it-

• Improves hand eye coordination  • Develops mental acuity  • Improves reflexes  • Burns calories  • Improves leg arm and core strength  • Keeps brain sharp  • Stimulates the hippocampus that retains long term memory

Approach – Storytelling is an apt tool which can be implemented apart from mind  mapping, as it could help us to motivate and inspire people to exercise, which would be a  step closer to a world with better and healthier people. Listening to their side of stories  could be a tool helpful to understand their hurdles and provide them with solutions to take  up exercises or sports. Speaking to people gives us a platform where one-to-one  interactions or group interactions will help people understand the dilemma of the current  generation and what could be the downfall if precautionary measures are not implied.

We can have a more deep and meaningful experience of their problems only by having a  close reading of their behaviors, subtle indications, their non-verbal expressions, body  language, and environments.

Being a good listener could help us to judge situations better, and not jump to conclusions.  It would also help us develop a sense of care, a desire to continue motivating people for the  good cause, nurture, and provide them with the required assistance.

