Stop Googling, Real Research Unleashes Your Creativity!

jaywalker7 2025년 06월 10일

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What's the first thing you do whenever you start a new project? Most people probably just type a few keywords into Google and skim the results, which is what I used to do, but one day I realized that if everyone is looking for information the same way, you're bound to end up with similar ideas.

Last year, I was tasked with designing an innovative service, and I realized that the traditional research methods I was using were just variations on what was already out there. A design thinking expert told me something that really stuck with me: "Be creative with how you do research, and you'll get creative results."

So I decided to redesign my research methodology from a completely new perspective: a detective-like approach to uncovering hidden patterns and connections, rather than just "collecting" information.

The prompt.

복사

As an expert in creative research methodology design, please answer.

** Area of inquiry.

Topic: [the field/problem I want to dig into]

Limitations of traditional approaches: Gathering surface-level information

Goal: Uncover previously undiscovered insights

** Multidimensional Research Strategies

A) Counterfactual Exploration

- Collecting information from the opposite perspective

- Backward reasoning by analyzing failure cases and anti-patterns

- Focused exploration of niche areas missed by competitors

B) Cross-field connection method

- Select 3-4 fields [completely different from the topic] and look for similar patterns

- Borrowing ideas from basic disciplines such as anthropology/psychology/biology, etc.

- Analyze the intersection of past practices and future trends

C) Field Penetration Research

- Direct experience and observation beyond desk research

- In-depth interviews with extreme users (early adopters, laggards)

- Ethnography to uncover hidden needs in everyday life

D) Creative connection tools

- Frameworks to combine information gathered in new ways

- A way to systematize serendipity

- Analytical methods that balance intuition and logic

Include a list of research playbooks and tools that you can put into practice.

After three months of applying this creative research methodology, we had a lot of unexpected insights. The biggest change was focusing on the quality of information rather than the quantity.

For example, when we were looking for ways to improve our delivery service, we stumbled across a research paper on emergency medical systems that borrowed the concept of 'golden time' and gave us an idea for a completely new delivery algorithm. Two areas that would never have been connected through conventional research, but through our creative approach, an innovative solution was born.

Another interesting discovery was 'failure analysis': everyone tries to benchmark only success stories, but analyzing the patterns of failed services revealed a real need in the market. Digging into the question "why did this service fail despite being a good idea?" revealed hidden opportunities that would have been impossible to find with a traditional approach.

When I presented the results of the project six months later, my teammates were amazed and said, "How did you come up with that perspective?"

If you're working on a project that requires creative thinking, why not get creative with how you gather information? After all, if you fish in the same ocean, you're bound to catch the same fish!

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