Assignment | Learning to See the World Through a Design Lens

Sondra Long

The traits of a designer: what is your curriculum?

My curriculum right now is learning how to be present differently. I have worked with people and conducted interviews for many years, but this class is helping me recognize how much I can still miss. Experience gives me something to draw from. It can also lead me to assume I understand someone before I have fully heard them.

I noticed this during my interview with Esan. His appearance and posture made me think he was tired. I had to pause and separate what I could actually see from what I thought it meant. His shoulders were lowered, but he had not told me he was tired. That moment helped me understand how much humility listening requires. Even in a close relationship, there is room to ask, learn, and be surprised.

Alan Morinis’s discussion of a personal spiritual curriculum helped me connect this experience to the qualities I bring into my relationships. His account of Mussar emphasizes examining and developing those qualities through practice.¹ For me, that means practicing patience, paying closer attention, and being willing to reconsider an assumption. These are things I need to work on in everyday conversations, especially when I feel certain I already know what is happening. Professor Goldberg’s lectures also helped me see that creating something for others can become part of our own formation. We learn about ourselves as we move through the work.²

I am also learning to give a question time before moving toward an answer. The Field Guide’s “How Might We” method encourages us to frame questions that leave room for different possibilities.³ This connects directly to my church listening project. A listening circle may be helpful, but I need to hear from people about what would make it possible for them to participate honestly. Some may feel comfortable in a group. Others may need a private conversation or a way to write down their thoughts.

Brainstorming gives other people room to contribute ideas I might not have considered. Storyboarding helps us make an idea visible so we can talk about it, notice what is missing, and make changes.⁴ I want to practice these methods with a willingness to let other people’s experiences shape what develops.

What I am coming to understand is that my curriculum includes paying attention to my own responses. Can I listen without rushing? Can I remain open when someone challenges my understanding? Can I try something manageable, reflect on what happens, and allow that learning to guide the next step? Sometimes the work will ask me to change an idea. Sometimes it will ask me to change how I show up.

References

1. Morinis, Alan. Everyday Holiness: The Jewish Spiritual Path of Mussar. Assigned Chapters 1–5 excerpt, including the introductory discussion of a personal curriculum.

2. Goldberg, Neil. Design Thinking for Social Change. Online course lectures, particularly “Step 6: Reflect,” and October 17, 2026 class discussion.

3. IDEO.org. (2015). The Field Guide to Human-Centered Design. “How Might We” (p. 85), “Brainstorm” (p. 94), and “Storyboard” (p. 113).

4. ibid.

What do you love most about your community of care? What is lurking in its shadows?

What I love most about City of Refuge is the relationships. Some of these relationships have been part of my life for decades. There are people here whom I love deeply, and the care we share matters to me. That connection is part of why I want to keep working on how we listen and respond to one another.

What I see in the shadows is the space between the care we intend to offer and what someone actually experiences. In our earlier cohort inquiry, we encountered young people who did not feel safe enough to tell us what they really thought. I have also seen people leave without our fully understanding what happened. Those experiences stay with me. I wonder what people are carrying that we have not heard and whether they know where they can bring a concern.

Professor Goldberg’s emphasis on context helped me think more carefully about this.¹ Someone attending online may experience the church differently from someone sitting in the room. A person who speaks easily in a group may not recognize how difficult that setting is for someone else. Some people may need a private conversation. Others may want time to write down what they are thinking. We need to ask what creates room for honesty.

I also have to examine my own part in this. As I said in class, if I am part of the problem, perhaps I need to change.² That can be uncomfortable, especially when I believe I am acting out of care. Morinis’s discussion of self-examination and service reminds me to pay attention to how my habits affect other people.³ I need to be willing to hear that something I intended as helpful did not feel helpful to the person receiving it.

My developing project explores ways for congregants to share compliments, concerns, suggestions, and experiences, with thoughtful follow-through. Neil suggested beginning with a small prototype and asking participants how it worked.⁴ A listening session could help us explore one part of that process. People could respond to a prompt or share something already on their minds. Afterward, we could ask what helped them speak honestly, what made it difficult, and what they needed from us next.

The Field Guide’s “How Might We” and “Storyboard” methods give us ways to keep exploring possibilities while making an idea concrete enough to discuss and improve.⁵ I want us to learn whether people feel heard and what we can realistically sustain.

The love in this community is something I value deeply. I want that love to be experienced through our willingness to listen, receive difficult feedback, and respond with care. That is what keeps me committed to this work.

References

1. Goldberg, Neil. Design Thinking for Social Change. Online course lectures on inquiry, framing, and testing; October 17, 2026 class discussion, including my project explanation and his feedback.

2. ibid.

3. Morinis, Alan. Everyday Holiness: The Jewish Spiritual Path of Mussar. Assigned Chapters 1–5 excerpt, particularly the discussions of inner cultivation and service to others.

4. Goldberg, Neil. Design Thinking for Social Change.

5. IDEO.org. (2015). The Field Guide to Human-Centered Design. “How Might We” (p. 85) and “Storyboard” (p. 113).