Reply To: Exercise 4: 10 Friends and Family Members
Reflection:
How did you feel about the exercise before starting? Were you anxious, excited, confused?
I felt a bit nervous about this exercise before starting because I needed to interview 10 people within one week. During exercise 3, it was challenging to find 5 people to talk to, as everyone was very busy. Additionally, as I was still catching up on all these exercises, I felt overwhelmed by the coordination and identifying individuals to interview. I originally scheduled interviews with 9 people but ended up speaking with 7. I will explain later why I paused after the seventh interview.
How did those feelings change as you did the exercise?
I became more confused after speaking with more people, though I genuinely appreciate the advice I received. It was clear that everyone was sincerely interested in my project and believed it would benefit the community. However, I realized that the topic I’m covering is too broad. I need to narrow my scope and clearly define my goal—what exactly do I want to achieve and who do I want to help?
How did you feel during the conversations? How did the other people seem to feel?
People appreciate my efforts to address the healthcare accessibility problem, recognizing its urgent need. The conversations went well, and they are eager to hear more about my progress. I feel more motivated after hearing that this topic is considered important. I enjoyed the conversations.
Did you get advice beyond your expectations? Did you learn from the conversations?
I received two pieces of advice: they were not about improving accessibility but about my passion. First, the focus should be on whether I genuinely want to pursue this project and define my goal, rather than just improving accessibility. I haven’t yet clarified what success looks like for this project. I recognize that it is very complex and often feel overwhelmed. Sometimes, I consider choosing simpler tasks to achieve a sense of accomplishment. After speaking with the seventh interviewee, I decided to pause the discussions to reflect on my goals. I plan to interview the remaining participants next week. However, one interviewee mentioned that the key skills gained from these exercises and interactions—such as discovering our passion and improving communication skills—are valuable. Ultimately, these skills will contribute to the project’s success, even though we may not see the results until after the class is over. This was very helpful and motivated me to keep going.
Do you feel your understanding of the problem and the quality of the solution improved?
I received a lot of advice that I need time to process. I appreciate the input and will focus on defining my goal, as I am feeling a bit overwhelmed.
Do you think the people you talked to are interested in learning how the project evolves?
Yes, they were very excited about it and asked me to keep them posted.
How would you characterize the conversations—boring, fun, exciting?
I enjoyed the conversations; they were both fun and inspiring. I found it exciting to talk to people, and some suggestions led me to explore areas I hadn’t previously considered.