The lecture "Dividing Projects In Phases" by Benedetta Piantella couldn't have come at a better time. I am guilty of trying to make everything perfect or close to perfect, to the point where I might abandon an idea if it is not exactly what I envisioned it to be.
This can cause quite a lot of stress and excess time thinking about an idea rather than just jumping in to explore the possibilities the idea might go in. In my previous assignment, the main theme you may notice when I describe my process is that I tend to spend days thinking, planning, and building the project in my mind first. This is not necessarily a negative way to approach my projects but there are easier ways to get started as described by Piantella. I appreciated having an alternative view of how to begin my projects. It allowed me to identify new ways to look at them and be comfortable with an incomplete idea blossoming as it is being created. Piantella also mentions in her lecture that there is no one way to divide your project and expresses these steps in phases They are as follows:
Phase 0: Brainstorming
Phase 1: Research & Development
Phase 2: Early Prototyping & Testing
Phase 3: Iteration & Redesign
Phase 4: Usertesting
Phase 5: Showtime
Phase 6: Reflection & Documentation
The areas I would most like to work on is Phase 2 & 3. I would approach early prototyping by making my thoughts and ideas about a particular project more available on paper or any physical medium from the start to the time I begin creating. This would allow me to see my process more clearly and even revisit a previous idea to create a new one. For phase 3, redesigning a project can be difficult if you don't allow free-flowing possibilities. Being able to identify a new approach to your idea is key to developing and expanding the directions your project can go.
At the end of Piantella's lecture, she says and reiterates through a video that the goal is progress and completion. There is always an opportunity to revisit a project make it better, ask for advice, and continue to work on it. Receiving feedback from peers is always a great way to see through someone else's eyes and identify how your project is being perceived outside of the scope of your lense. A challenge for me is also to try out new tools and step outside of my comfort zone. This means maybe using animations, video editing tools, 3-D printing, etc. everything that is pretty much new to me. Time to make it happen!