Learning by Design: Why “Failure” Should be Part of the Creative Process

This blog is the first of many showcasing my process in analyzing needs and providing solutions to learning challenges. And what better way to start than with my first attempt—far from perfect, but a crucial stepping stone in my journey. I share it because failure is an essential part of the creative process. I embrace the stumbles because I know the final product will be better in the long run. I expect them, and I work around them in the end. Below, you will learn more about the project. Enjoy!

I wasn’t worried. I had done the whole working full-time while being a full-time graduate student before. Managing my time and getting ahead of things so they didn’t pile up was easy. But what I wasn’t prepared for was taking on the full responsibility of learning required software on my own. That’s right—my graduate program didn’t include tools of the trade in the curriculum, only theory and principle. Surprise! What a blast. Challenge accepted.

During this semester, I was also teaching an introductory course for first-year college students. One of the challenges I faced was delivering an effective lesson on writing professional emails. Given the course’s time constraints, I aimed to transition an in-person lecture into a self-paced video lesson. The learning objectives were straightforward: students should be able to recall the main components of a professional email, determine which elements apply to specific scenarios, and construct an email that meets all key criteria. With asynchronous learning in mind, I set out to create a resource that students could revisit as needed.

The best thing that came out of this semester of working, teaching, and also being a student was that I received the gift of failure. I blundered my way through using Articulate 360 software for the project, which was meant to be an informational video, but I was focused on getting my feet wet before my tougher classes started in the spring. At the time, I was eager to explore industry-standard tools, and Articulate 360 seemed like a solid choice. However, I quickly realized it wasn’t designed for video editing. It was more complicated to use and took me a long time to complete (especially since I knew nothing about how to use it). But I poured through countless hours of online tutorials and read up on how to approach the project anyway. And despite knowing that it wasn’t “great,” I feel that it still did the job it was meant to do for the course I incorporated it into.

No one else in my class used Articulate. Honestly, I was a bit appalled that some never used it once during my program—especially when I was reading that knowing it was the bare minimum that an instructional designer needed in their toolbox to get basic work. Despite my encouragement, they went their own way. But this led me to my biggest challenge—choosing the right tool.

Below, you will find the project plan and a link to the final piece. The plan includes a full overview of the context analysis, learner analysis, instructional problem, learning objectives, solution, prototyping (storyboard and script), and evaluation reflections. The final piece is just over six minutes in length.

I share this work to normalize how creativity should work—we are not meant to create something brilliant in our first go! It’s a journey. As a creative director working with others on educational products, I have to remind that time is our most important asset. It’s crucial to make the most of it, as this work is entirely iterative in nature. My hope is to fully flesh out something that we can all be proud of in the end, and that makes the biggest impact on all who use the product. When I think of human-centered design, I am not just considering the learner; I am considering myself and my clients as well! Learning experience design (LX) is my passion, and just as I was up for learning that initial software system on my own, I am up for the challenge presented by each of my clients.

If you’re looking for instructional design solutions that balance creativity, strategy, and user-centered design, let’s connect! Visit my Work with Me page to explore how I can help bring your vision to life. 

Curious how I can address challenges in your business initiatives?  Book a free 15-minute consultation with me.

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Full Project:

Plan: Viewable Google Document

Final Project (Version 2):

Until next time – keep shining for those who would otherwise remain in the dark.  

Be the light!