Tool details
Boundary shifting
A way to discover solutions and features outside of the boundaries of the systems related to your problem.
Tool category:
Tool thumbnail
When to use
The team is stuck and needs inspiration to innovate.
Why you should
Finding solutions that work in another system can give a new perspective on your problem.
What you get
"Out of the box" solutions and ideas.
Steps to take
Identify the current problem that needs to be solved, this will be defined as problem 1. List the distinct activities, behaviours and emotions you want to research.
Next to each one, write down a setting or situation where you might observe this activity, behavior, or emotion. For example, if the activity is “use a device at the same time every day,” parallel situations might be how people use alarm clocks. These parallel areas are problem 2.
Identify solutions that exist, know of or you might think of problem 2, write them down.
Go through the different solutions for problem 2 and identify which of them can be used to solve problem 1.
Make a plan to apply the solutions to solve the problem.
Implement the solutions that have been identified and can help solve or mitigate the problem.
Further reading
The alternative systems should have as many overlaps or parallels as possible with the problem or idea you are working on.