Higher purpose in product design that takes it from Zero to Hundred

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Have you ever wondered what makes a product truly great? What is the secret behind the products that touch our hearts and souls? How can we design products that make a positive difference in the world?

The answer is simple: design with higher purpose.

Designing with higher purpose means creating products that serve a user's needs, goals, and aspirations. It means putting the user at the center of everything we do, not the technology, the platform, or the leadership team. Here is a story:



Akbar, the Indian emperor who loved music, praised Tansen, his court musician "You are possibly the best singer with mesmerizing voice in the world. " Tansen with all humbleness and humility said "He will be pale in comparison to his Guru Swami Haridas". So, Akbar desired to hear him sing and went with Tansen in disguise.

They found Swami Haridas meditating under a tree in Vrindavan. Swami Haridas sang a hymn in praise of God. His music was divine and enchanting. Akbar felt a wave of bliss and peace in his heart. He forgot he was a king and felt he was one with God.

He thanked Swami Haridas for his music and said he was the true master of music. He asked Tansen why his music was so different from Swami Haridas's. Tansen explained, "I am singing for you, but He is singing for Him (God)."

Akbar understood his words and understood the higher purpose. 

This story illustrates the difference between designing for yourself and designing for your user. When you design for yourself, you may create something impressive and sophisticated, but it may not resonate with your user's emotions and values. When you design for your user, you may create something simple and elegant, but it may touch your user's heart and soul. So in a beautiful product, user is the hero and not the technology/ platform/ fancy UI/ animation. It is not about fitting in the most advanced technology (AI/ ML, GPT, AR/VR, Blockchain or configurable platform etc.) or to have most cool & fluid UI with animations.

Sometimes the team only develops a scenario that covers the most essential features (P0). P0 features are the ones that make the product viable and valuable. It takes the product from Zero to One. But there are also other features, maybe P1 and P2s, that make the product more complete and engaging. These P1s and P2s are what make your users loyal, trusting, and loving. These multiplies the One to Hundred. When the team realizes the higher purpose, these P1 and P2s become P0s.

So next time you design a product, ask yourself: are you designing for Akbar or the God? Are you designing with higher purpose?

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