E-Learning

Project Runway: 5 lessons for training and design

I recently got hooked on Project Runway, the reality show in which aspiring fashion designers compete to create new designs within significant restrictions on time, materials, and theme. I’m not a fan of reality shows nor am I a fashionista, but I find it fascinating to watch the participants’ responses to working creatively under intense pressure. I see some application to training and instructional design.

1. Mind the scope
The Project Runway participants perform under grueling time constraints. They hear about the theme of the week, make some quick sketches, go shopping with specified budget and time limits, start fabricating, fit their models, and polish the garments into readiness for the runway—all within a 15-hour day, followed by a 4-hour stint. It is critically important for them to gauge their designs to what can effectively be accomplished in that relentless schedule. Awareness of the realistic scope of a project is essential. In episode 6 of this season, Amy launched into an ambitious effort to create a pair of pants out of multi-layered, overlapping petals of fabric. She miscalculated the scope of the effort needed to pull it off successfully and she ended up being smacked down by the judges. Instructional designers and trainers also need to be mindful of scope. Although they may have more time to create training modules, the time constraint is in the delivery of the learning. It is tempting to cram too much into a lesson, to overload the learner and defeat the learning. Know your parameters and design accordingly.

2. Failure is okay …to a point
On Project Runway, designers are encouraged to take risks. Those who play it safe or stick to reliable formulas are not likely to arouse the judges’ admiration and votes. In many organizations, there is increasing attention to the productive aspects of risk-taking and failure. All this is good. However, there should be self-check points along the path of risk. When Jonathan’s colleagues were referring to one of his dresses as an explosion in a toilet paper factory, it was time for him to stop and seriously appraise his direction instead of plunging blindly ahead (episode 6). When Amy worried about the unruliness of her hair-filled, cowl-necked dress, it would have been a good move to just cut it off and rethink her expression of the concept (episode 8). Risk-taking stretches designers and trainers in new directions, but if those directions are not productive, know when it’s time to pull out and start over.

3. Limitation is liberating
In my favorite episode of this season (#7), the crew headed to the hardware store to buy all of their materials. As usual, they had a limited budget and time in which to make purchases. This combination of constraints produced some of the most impressive fashion creations I’ve seen on the show. Jay fabricated a stunning haute couture outfit out of black plastic garbage bags and blue painters tape. Mila sliced up black and white plastic paint tray liners into an amazing dress that totally belied the humble materials. By contrast, a later design challenge that was conceptually wide open, asking for fashions evoking earth, air, fire, or earth, yielded the least interesting garments. It’s tempting to seek out ever more sophisticated design tools to deliver effective training, but it’s a good exercise to see what you can accomplish with humble materials and simple techniques.

4. No prima donnas
Episode 9 paired the remaining eight designers in teams, forcing these highly individualist design sensibilities to work collaboratively. Jay, who has displayed superstar qualities in design and craftsmanahip, bombed seriously when he had to work with Mila. The animosity between the two of them was right on the surface. Mila was able to keep cool and focused but Jay stumbled badly. He was not able to manage his emotions and concentrate on the outcomes. Not only was his design poorly conceived, it was poorly crafted—a setback for the man who had produced that brilliant garbage bag outfit. There’s more room for prima donna behavior in the fashion world than there is in the training world. In training, collaboration is common. Even for those trainers who work solo, there is always team-building with your learners. Excellent training design and delivery is underwritten by those soft skills that enable good communication and teamwork.

5. Be unruffled
I am always impressed at the calm and confidence of the designers as they watch the models walk the runway in their creations. They speak with assurance about the concept and the technical effort they had put into the fashions, even if they are about to be cast out of the competition. In training, it’s the learners who are the ultimate judges. Go before them with confidence, take critiques in stride, and take your lessons learned back to the drawing board for the next round.

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