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The Role of This Tool in the Fourth Phase of the Design Thinking Method
In the Develop phase, Force Connections helps a team unlock unconventional ideas by deliberately linking the design challenge with random, unrelated stimuli—objects, words, images, or domains—and using those connections to inspire new concepts.
This technique breaks habitual thinking patterns and prompts analogies to other industries or experiences, often leading to original solutions that stand out from competitors. It is especially valuable when existing ideas feel repetitive or uninspired.
Force Connections is most suitable for creative reframing problems—such as reinventing an onboarding experience, making a dull task engaging, designing a memorable physical or digital touchpoint, or differentiating a service in a crowded market. It works best when the challenge is well understood, but current conceptual directions appear overly conventional.
Force Connections is constrained by the quality and relevance of the random stimuli; if they are too abstract or too trivial, the exercise can feel forced or silly, producing ideas that are hard to translate back to the real problem. It also requires participants who are willing to play with analogy; highly literal teams may struggle to engage.
The Procedure for Using This Design Thinking Tool
Step 1: Clearly articulate the Develop‑phase challenge on a board (e.g., “make paying a bill feel easy and positive”) and ensure everyone understands it.
Step 2: Introduce random stimuli—images, objects, words, or themes from unrelated areas like sports, games, travel, nature, or entertainment—either prepared beforehand or randomly selected.
Step 3: In pairs or small groups, pick one stimulus at a time and ask, “How is this like our challenge?” and “What ideas does this suggest?”, capturing all concepts without critique.
Step 4: After exploring several stimuli, convene the groups to share their most interesting ideas and discuss how they might translate into concrete concepts or design patterns.
Step 5: Cluster the strongest ideas into emerging concept directions and choose a subset to develop into sketches, storyboards, or low‑fidelity prototypes.
Tips for Facilitators: The facilitator should clarify the core challenge and then curate a diverse set of random stimuli in advance—photos, words, objects, or cards drawn from unrelated domains (e.g., nature, sports, games, cities, art, animals). They prepare a simple instruction card or slide explaining the two key questions (“How is this like our challenge?” and “What could we borrow from this?”) to prevent participants from getting lost in the game. The facilitator also plans the flow (e.g., small groups each work with 3–4 stimuli, then share) and sets a playful tone, explicitly allowing participants to make odd connections and suspend practicality in the first step.
Next Steps in Your Design Thinking Journey
Continue your innovation journey with the following 3 Options to deepen your Design Thinking practice and amplify your impact.
