Reply To: Exercise 3: 5 Close Contacts
Reflections:
How did you feel about the exercise before starting? Were you anxious, excited, confused?
Before the start of this exercise, I felt a bit anxious because I am still catching up in this workshop and I wanted to make sure that I have 5 contacts that are available for me to talk to this week. I feel a bit stressed to coordinate and ensure I got the information that I needed. I am also very excited because I got to work on the field that I am interested in. I want to hear my friends’ perspectives and see if they resonate with similar problems.
How did your feelings change as you did the exercise?
I felt more organized, and I felt more confident in articulating the problems with others.
How did you feel during the conversations? How did the other people seem to feel?
I made sure to keep my interviewees engaged throughout the conversations while staying within the scheduled meeting time. They all seemed genuinely interested in the issues I am working to solve, likely because they have experienced some of these problems themselves. The first two interviews took the longest, as I was still getting a feel for how to facilitate the discussion effectively, and I felt like I was rushing toward the end. However, by the time I reached the last three, I was able to finish more efficiently than anticipated and enjoyed the process more.
Did you get advice beyond your expectations? Did you learn from the conversations?
Yes, I got advice beyond my expectations.Some even shared valuable resources and websites for further exploration. Although I have been working in healthcare for over 10 years and thought I had a solid grasp of the field, the conversations I had this week were truly eye-opening. Listening to the voices of the customers—who are all of us navigating the healthcare system—gave me a deeper understanding of their experiences and emotions.
Do you feel your understanding of the problem and the quality of the solution improved?
Yes, after gathering people’s advice, I gained more information and perspectives to better understand the problems and tailor the solutions accordingly.
Do you think the people you talked to are interested in learning how the project evolves?
Yes, a few of them asked me to keep them updated on which project I will be working on.
How would you characterize the conversations—boring, fun, exciting?
I enjoyed the conversations and learned a lot. Since my interviewees had experienced some of the problems discussed, I could sense their frustrations. However, the discussion became even more exciting when we began discussing solutions and advice to these issues.