Challenge and selection:  The tool I am choosing is Mind Mapping.  The name is suggestive and translates on having a big  puzzle and connecting dots.  The dots in this case are the data that becomes information to  develop and innovative product or service.    Application:  Given an idea to get it matured for something that could be of common use, there is the need to  test the water in the ocean of consumer products.  Gathering friends, coworkers and relatives in  different situations can be helpful to ask them how they feel to something that they use in every  day life and how would they feel if this item/service could change.   For this case, I am  concentrating on a consumer product that I want to know how the normal people feel about it.   Their need, their use, the utility and missing value or hidden characteristics not perceived.   After  knowing what they think about this, I could imagine what to change and how for this consumer  product in the future.  From crazy changes to trial ones, this may impact to everyone at the same  time.    Insight and approach:  Knowing what we have and understanding where to go can be extremely out of scope with so  many variables, features or options gathered. May be in a second round or refined research, we  can set boundaries and limit options to the potential consumers to reduce scope of complexity  for a first stage.  Increase complexity for a second or third generation of product and foresee  some level of “prefect” product in a slow maturity phase.   It is understood that this technique is  very useful to see what we have and then after data and information gathering and processing  we can see where we need to go.

