This is part of my series on thought leaders in the innovation space. Check out the other articles here.

“There’s an unprecedented demand for design thinking right now,” says Dr. Julie Schell. And during this exciting moment, Julie is at the center of one university’s quest to teach this powerful toolkit to the next generation of learners.

Julie is a faculty member at a fairly new school at the University of Texas Austin — the School of Design and Creative Technologies — where she is also the Executive Director for Learning Design, Effectiveness and Innovation. She oversees all extended and executive education offerings for the new school.

Julie is actively partnering with businesses, nonprofits, K-12, colleges, and universities to design new ways to answer this clamor for design thinking skills. In her first four months, she designed and delivered trainings and programs for several Fortune 500 companies and the Boys and Girls Club of the Austin Area that are transforming business and social change.

Julie’s resume is impressively long, but here are some of the highlights: she’s an academic researcher as well as a prominent learning experience designer who draws on over 20 years of experience in higher education. She has held positions at the nation’s top research universities, including Yale, Stanford, Columbia, and Harvard. In 2014, Teachers College at Columbia University identified her as an Early Riser in Higher Education for her original contributions to the field. Her scholarship focuses on incorporating the science of learning into the practice of learning experience design, and therefore teaching and pedagogy.

I recently interviewed Julie and I loved hearing her energetic and unique perspective, which bridges both higher education and corporate innovation.

A beginner’s mind
One memorable fact I learned about Julie upfront is that she loves power and Olympic weightlifting. Part of the reason she is drawn to this pastime is her job: “As an educator, it is crucial for me to remember what it feels like to learn something complex and, as a new learner, to not get it. Most of my students are brand new to design thinking or have minimal experience with it.”

She continued on how these two worlds intersect: “Doing technical lifts well requires a lot of knowledge and skill, not just strength. I am disappointed almost every single time I lift, but I always learn something. I need to remember what it is like to learn something that is new, elusive, and that takes extensive practice to master.”

“I always tell my students to pay very close attention to the moment when they want to give up because that is the moment when the most intense amount of learning is occurring.”

She brings this “beginner’s mindset” to her students. “I always tell my design thinking students to pay very close attention to the moment when they want to give up because that is the moment when the most intense amount of learning is occurring.”

“When I get frustrated when I miss a lift, I try to eat my own dog food. When I’m trying to lift something extremely heavy and my brain says ‘No, I just can’t.’ I ask myself, ‘What would you tell your students if they said that?’”

This is an intriguing notion to noodle on — how can we push and challenge ourselves outside of our work-life to enrich our work? How can our hobbies or passions bring new outlooks on what we do?

Outmoded educational models

As mentioned up front, Julie is part of a significant shift happening in higher education; universities are trying to catch up and teach the skills needed in our new world of startups, entrepreneurship, design, and innovation. In many ways, this shift is in its infancy — higher education is still fairly old-fashioned in its methodologies.

Julie explained: “There are some things that have changed a lot in higher education, but there are other things that have stayed relatively the same. I once heard this analogy: if a physician from the 1600s walked into a surgery right now and tried to use the tools, they would be disoriented. But, if a teacher walked into a classroom, on even our most innovative higher education campuses, they’d know exactly what to do. Our approaches to teaching are very similar to what they were 400 years ago.”

“Our approaches to teaching are very similar to what they were 400 years ago.”

Historically, lectures have been considered the most efficient way to educate masses of people: “It’s an archaic model that focuses on the transmission of information. That’s very transactional. Then, we’re going to send [students] out in the world and they’re going to have to think and they’re going have to figure out problems that they’ve never seen before. We’re not really setting them up to do that.”

In response, programs like Julie’s at UT’s School of Design and Creative Technologies are experimenting with more immersive approaches to teaching: “I’m enamored by how a colleague of mine at the School of Architecture, Professor Tamie Glass, is teaching a studio class that I think exemplifies the power of experiential learning. Her students are matched with an organization trying to solve a living, breathing design problem. I think that kind of model — where students experience what they will face when they go out into the world — is the future of higher education and we should be doing more of it. I am focused on bringing the rigor of the academic experience our undergraduates receive to our corporate learners as well.”

The demand for design thinking
Just as higher education is looking at how to answer the demand for design thinking, so are organizations of all types. Julie shared: “Design thinking is having its moment in history. If you look at Google trends, it’s been at its peak in terms of popularity. The people who want it are non-designers. They’re people who aren’t going to be educated in formal design classrooms. They’re people who are in businesses.”

The people seeking design thinking training are not what might be assumed: “They’re not designers per se. We’ve got all of these nonexperts who want to learn to impact the world, and design thinking can do that — when it’s learned and then applied effectively. [It’s] people who are in nonprofits who are trying to solve really wicked problems like police brutality or campus sexual assault. Or corporate leaders who want to innovate in new and exciting ways. And if they learn design thinking, learn it well, and they’re able to apply it, they will radically transform their organizations. They’ll outperform competitors and they’ll change people’s lives.”

“We’ve got all of these nonexperts who want to learn to impact the world, and design thinking can do that — when it’s learned and then applied effectively.”

Of course, there’s not enough time, space, or funding for all the people who want design thinking skills to enroll in the School of Design and Creative Technologies’ programs at UT. Julie talked about how people want these skills and: “They want it accelerated. They want to learn how to do design thinking really quickly. They want it in their homes, on their computers, self-paced, without human interaction.”

There is not only a supply and demand issue but a gap in how to get people the right training. Julie pointed to this difficulty because design thinking is so much about hands-on activities and collaboration: “To learn human-centered design you have to be with humans. You can’t be watching a video, right?”

Structure and support, not ideas
I also picked Julie’s brain on some of the downfalls she’s seen with organizations who are entering the innovation space: “One thing that really gets in my craw is when leaders think that innovation is just coming up with a good idea. Most leaders and managers are sophisticated enough to know that innovation is more than just a good idea. But in practice, it is pretty rare to see organizations that understand that innovation happens by design, not by an apple falling on someone’s head.”

“It is pretty rare to see organizations that understand that innovation happens by design, not by an apple falling on someone’s head.”

She identifies structure and support as key to innovation. “I’ve seen some organizations where leadership states that a core value proposition is innovation or that it’s a top strategic priority, but then provide zero infrastructure for innovation.”

“The human beings in these organizations whose jobs are to ‘innovate or die’ are put in impossible positions. You have talented people who are clamoring to change the world and have an impact, but all the leashes of the current business practice hold them back.”

Heros don’t work
Another issue that Julie sees is that companies don’t have the right incentive structures for supporting innovation. “The people who are responsible for innovation are measured by ROI and not by the number of things that they’ve tried. I think there should be a structure that rewards people for coming up with ideas, trying them, prototyping them, and being experimental.”

“That’s not how innovation works. A hero can’t fight the performance engine.”

Additionally, Julie believes that innovation can not be done alone or by one “superstar”: “I can’t stand when [organizations] pick a hero to come in. That’s the surefire way to know that an organization is not ready to innovate. That’s not how innovation works. A hero can’t fight the performance engine.”

Are you ready?
The need for cultural change is huge for companies who want to innovate: “Culturally, organizations don’t know how to collaborate. They don’t know how to get people to give feedback, or take feedback in a way that can be heard.”

Because of some of these cultural gaps, Julie has been thinking about the idea of ways to gauge “innovation readiness.” Can we assess if a company is ready to work in this new way?

“I think people need to assess their innovation readiness before they start doing an innovation project. We’re setting people up for failure because the organization doesn’t have the infrastructure to support innovation.” She shared some of the questions she would ask: “How good are your employees with dealing with ambiguity? How much are your employees teaching themselves? Are there hierarchies?”

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Julie is changing the way students and organizations are working here in my hometown of Austin and it’s super exciting. As a parting gift, I’ll leave you with Julie’s short-and-sweet innovation ‘silver bullets’: “Empathy and project management.”

If you want to read my other articles about innovation experts and practitioners, please check them all out here.

The post What Power Lifting Taught This Innovator appeared first on Voltage Control.

When we think about a classic weight loss narrative, the quintessential before-and-after photographs may come to mind. In these photos, the transformed individual is almost always pictured alone. But when I think of my before-and-after, I imagine myself surrounded by the supportive team of wellness experts that has gotten me to where I am today. As product design consultant and former CTO, I know that teams really matter. It’s been no different in my path from unhealthy diabetic to a thriving, healthy human.

I recently shared my story with Austin Fit magazine, which inspired me to write more about the people I have worked with. Over the last couple of years, I have finally gotten fit and much of it is because I partnered with the right coaches, trainers, and healers for me. It is because of these individuals (with a hefty dose of my own drive, of course) that I am now in control of my diabetes, fitter than ever, and running a successful new business venture. Hopefully my tale encourages you to seek out your own wellness mentors, whoever they may be.

The Back Story

My wellness journey has its roots in southern Virginia, where I grew up. I had an active childhood, much of it spent climbing trees and running through the woods. My parents, who were raised with limited resources, taught me that it was a punishable offense to leave food on your plate. (High-fat, high-carb Southern comfort food, at that.) Looking back, there is a dotted line from aspects of my youth to my eventual diabetes diagnosis. Yet, my upbringing also gave me the grit that has allowed me to take control of my health.

Fast forward to post-college, when I began working in software and technology. Career-wise, these were exciting years. In terms of my health, it was brutal. I was working 100 hour workweeks on little sleep, no exercise and fueled by queso, brisket and Coca-Cola. Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised when, in 2005, I was suddenly tired, lethargic, urinating excessively and hungry all the time.

Eventually, I went to my doctor, who quickly diagnosed me as a Type 1 diabetic. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I had heard of diabetes, but only knew that it had something to do with blood sugar and eating candy bars when you got shaky. Oh, I had a lot to learn. Since then, there’s been many ups and downs: medications that didn’t work, an ER trip, learning the right foods to eat, re-introducing external insulin with an insulin pump, no carb diets, the Master Cleanse, weight gain…You get the picture.

Through continuous thoughtful experimentation and exploring a multidisciplinary approach, I’ve increased my strength, flexibility, endurance, and speed. I’ve found that if I do the same thing repeatedly my body will find a groove and the activity becomes easy. Constantly changing my routine allows me to constantly find new ways to grow. Boxing has helped me with my speed and stamina, Pilates has helped me with my flexibility and my connected core power, massage, acupuncture, and ART has helped me recover quickly from injury as well as create proper alignment for optimal movement.

Boxing Made Me a Believer

It all started to shift in 2015 when my former colleague John announced “I’m going to train you” after I made a half-hearted statement about getting into shape. Something struck me at that moment and I agreed. We met at Castle Hill Fitness on a Monday morning at 7AM and John introduced me to boxing workouts. That evening, I went to Academy and bought wraps and gloves so I could learn to use the punch mitts and heavy bag.

Right away, I was addicted to boxing and immediately noticed differences in myself. I owe so much of my transformation to John. He was with me every morning for months. While determination is rooted in my DNA, John helped me apply that to fitness. We even started a boxing social club at Castle Hill Fitness. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday we were there from 7–8 am, catching mitts, working the heavy bag, and running through circuits.

“In boxing, your conditioning is centered around being able to do something for 3 minutes straight followed by a small window of recovery before doing another round. Douglas started his journey with 3 minutes of lunges and step-ups. I wish I could give you a climactic story of how Douglas has transformed himself, but it is merely through being consistent. He shows up every day and pushes as many reps as possible for 3 minutes.” — John Fitch, Venture Partner Animal Ventures, Entrepreneur & Wildman

Over two years later, boxing still a cornerstone of my weekly routine. For me, it’s an active form of meditation.

Pilates Created the Connection

As I grew more confident and fit, I mixed things up and tried everything from yoga and kickboxing to plyometrics and barre. But, I fell in love with Pilates. (Part of the allure was that Joseph Pilates was a boxer.) I started taking 3–5 classes a week. In addition, I began taking private Pilates sessions with Mandie Pitre, to deepen my practice and develop a better method when attending classes. I attended a special workshop she taught and was intrigued by her slow, intentional style.

“When Douglas enthusiastically entered my Pilates class, he was ready to move and groove, and I saw space for him to learn to connect dynamically through the entire body. I made my focus to challenge him to move in a new way, to move slowly, to repattern his body to create fluid power without tension. I’m proud to have played a role in Douglas’ outstanding transformation from uncoordinated movement to highly intentional, powerful, and artful motion.” -Mandie Pitre, Master Pilates Teacher & Yoga Instructor, Castle Hill Fitness

Mandie turned me into a Pilates fanatic. I started to take all the classes that Castle Hill offers. I began to get a better understanding of each teacher’s style and which approaches resonated with me. I signed up for an advanced series by Lindsay Lark, which taught me more difficult exercises. I enjoyed working on these moves that challenged my strength and stamina.

“I have witnessed Douglas dramatically change his body over the past year. He is stronger, quicker, and healthier. His dedication to the work is inspiring. Every morning I arrive at the studio before 6am, and Douglas is already there warming-up. That is how you change your life!” Lindsay Lark, Pilates Studio Manager, Castle Hill Fitness

Pilates has helped me tap into the deep connections within my body. my core and, most importantly, my breath. I’d always heard about the power of breath and never believed it much. But now, I use Pilates breathwork all the time.

Bodywork Keeps Me Going

I am also firm believer in professional bodywork and stretching. I see Dr. Jessica Tranchina for A.R.T (Active Release Technique), Jingyu Gu for acupuncture, Sonya Emery (a former professional boxer) for boxing massage and psoas release, and Dr. Ben Charlton for chiropractic adjustments. Each of these experts has helped me recover, combat injuries and improve my workouts.

Jessica was recommended to me to address an injury in my heel. I was experiencing some nerve pain whenever I stepped on my foot in a certain way, and it prevented me from jumping rope. After telling her about my foot, she asked about my shoulder, which had been giving me trouble for awhile. My range of motion was impaired, and it was painful to move it in specific ways. In addition to fixing my heel, she addressed my shoulder as well. I now have full range-of-motion in my shoulder; even my Pilates instructors noticed!

“Douglas came to me happy, healthy, strong, motivated, driven, knowledgeable, open-minded, and a student of his journey. The diligent client that he is, he continued his self-care in between our sessions including self-adhesion releases, specific stretches, and guided strength training. Because he participated wholly and completely with his care, his results were, and are, quick and effective.” Dr. Jessica Tranchina, PT, DPT, NASM-CPT, A.R.T provider, CKTP, Primo Rehab

I first met Sonya after complaining to my friend about soreness in my shoulder from boxing. He told me about an ex-Golden Glove champ who trains at Richard Lord’s boxing gym here in Austin. He said that she specializes in mixed-martial arts clients as she deepened her practice by working on herself. She has done amazing stuff for my sore shoulders from boxing as well as psoas releases that help give me more range of motion in my hips. The hips are the secret to a powerful punch!

“Douglas is one of my more inspiring clients! My ring name for him is The Discipliner because he approaches his health with more discipline and balance than many pro athletes, all while managing to run a successful company. His path to health and fitness is his lifelong quest. He is a Warrior.” — Sonya Emery, Massage Therapist

One day after an intense boxing workout I noticed that something didn’t quite feel right in my neck. As the day developed, it got stiffer and stiffer. After icing it, self-massage and a session with Sonya, it began to release. However, there was still a lingering injury. When I tilted my head back even a few degrees, my left arm would go numb. I started researching other practitioners to help me address this issue, and met Jingyu Gu. Jing’s acupuncture, although extremely painful, fixed my problem in one visit. I continue to see him monthly.

“[My treatments] aim at finding out and eradicating the root causes of various chronic diseases, including pains and soft tissue problems. This healing process can take time, patience and courage. In pursuing his own health and healing, Douglas definitely demonstrated all of these qualities.” -Jingyu Gu, PhD & Lic Acu, Wellspring

I also spend a lot of time stretching and doing self-administered treatments. My 1-hour warm-up includes self A.R.T. with a lacrosse ball, wooden stick, and Therabands, Pilates exercises on the spine corrector and ballerina stretches to release my leg muscles. Likewise, I end my workout by following a static stretching routine from Castle Hill’s Ben Himes. I wrap it all up with an infrared sauna session and a Wim Hof cold shower just to make sure I’m ready for my day.

My journey to wellness started from a desire to tighten my diabetes control. It has become so much more than that. I have honestly transformed my body and my mind. Today, I still have difficult days, but I’ve made tremendous progress. I used to dread working out, now I crave sweat. This has impacted other areas of my life as well. I’m convinced that my success in my new company is due to the focus and resilience I gain through intense fitness and rigorous diet.

“Douglas’ fitness journey has been successful due to his consistency, goal setting, metric tracking, openness to challenge, and exploration of variety. He is one of the few people who has almost entirely bridged the gap from general-population to athlete.” — Benjamin Himes, CEO Sharp End Sports, Elite Trainer, Castle Hill Fitness

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