I like to solve problems through models. They help to quickly break a system down to its simplest parts, and also easily identify areas for opportunity. In thinking about sports and their games, I’ve come to realize that I am designing a service around events. Figure 1 breaks down the necessary components of an event. They are : 1) People - in order for an event to happen, there must be a certain number of people. For some events, this can be a single person, some events, like dates, need 2 people, and other events need numerous people. Some events, such as sports, can’t take place unless a minimum amount of people are reached. 2) Time - there must be a set time that people arrive at the event. This is often the most difficult thing to plan around, as people’s schedules are incredibly hectic, especially in New York City 3) Place - Though the internet has allowed for many events to now take place “online”, the events that I’m interested take place in the real world, away from the screen. Again, this can be difficult to coordinate, especially in New York City, as space for anything comes at a premium. 4) Activity - An event needs a purpose, something that everyone is there for. People want to know exactly what will be taking place in the time they have set aside to come to this location. If its a concert, they want to know who’s playing, if its a date, they like to have an idea of what the activity will be. In the next few models, I’ve taken a look at other services that coordinate people in place and time around a set activity. Skillshare (Figure 2) allows regular people to become teachers, creating single classes around a topic, while also setting their own place and time. From there, students who are interested in the topic, and also have that time available and can make it to that location, sign up for the class. Meetup (Figure 3) takes a different approach, asking everyone to first join a shared interest group, such as Soccer Moms. From there, admins of the group have the ability to create events at a place and time, with invites going out to everyone in the interest group. HowAboutWe? (Figure 4) is a new dating service that is about meeting in real life as soon as possible, rather than trying to decide if you like each other via pre-set questions and emails back and forth. In this model, one person suggests a date activity and location (How about we…walk around the MoMa and pick out our favorite pieces of art). People can browse the site and pick dates (and the person organizing it) that interest them, and they set a time to meet. Finally, Duet (Figure 5) is an app that has the goal of strengthening relationships (especially marriages) through coordinating real life encounters. Duet allows one partner to send an activity idea to another, and then they coordinate the details, as well as document the activity. I’ve also taken a look at the models of participatory sports available to New Yorkers. In the pickup game model (Figure 6) an organizer says that they want to play a sport at a certain time and place, and then must rely on friends and friends of friends to be available at this time, which often leads to much confusion in scheduling (see previous journey maps). At the opposite end of this level of organization is the co-ed / rec model (Figure 7) that someone like Zog Sports offers. In this model, a captain organizes a team around the activity, but then must join a league and be given a schedule of place and time by this third party. This often leads to teams not being able to field a complete team the day of the game, or worse, a team never forming because people can’t commit to the schedule before the season. Finally, (Figure 8) looks at the group fitness model, in which an instructor works at a gym/studio and all of the classes are organized around this location. In this model, the gym acts as a gatekeeper between people and fitness, as they need the instructor to motivate them, as well as a group of people around them. The gym takes a large portion of the trainers income in order to facilitate this relationship. But enough modeling other successful services. Its time to model my own.
I like to solve problems through models. They help to quickly break a system down to its simplest parts, and also easily identify areas for opportunity. In thinking about sports and their games, I’ve come to realize that I am designing a service around events. Figure 1 breaks down the necessary components of an event. They are : 1) People - in order for an event to happen, there must be a certain number of people. For some events, this can be a single person, some events, like dates, need 2 people, and other events need numerous people. Some events, such as sports, can’t take place unless a minimum amount of people are reached. 2) Time - there must be a set time that people arrive at the event. This is often the most difficult thing to plan around, as people’s schedules are incredibly hectic, especially in New York City 3) Place - Though the internet has allowed for many events to now take place “online”, the events that I’m interested take place in the real world, away from the screen. Again, this can be difficult to coordinate, especially in New York City, as space for anything comes at a premium. 4) Activity - An event needs a purpose, something that everyone is there for. People want to know exactly what will be taking place in the time they have set aside to come to this location. If its a concert, they want to know who’s playing, if its a date, they like to have an idea of what the activity will be. In the next few models, I’ve taken a look at other services that coordinate people in place and time around a set activity. Skillshare (Figure 2) allows regular people to become teachers, creating single classes around a topic, while also setting their own place and time. From there, students who are interested in the topic, and also have that time available and can make it to that location, sign up for the class. Meetup (Figure 3) takes a different approach, asking everyone to first join a shared interest group, such as Soccer Moms. From there, admins of the group have the ability to create events at a place and time, with invites going out to everyone in the interest group. HowAboutWe? (Figure 4) is a new dating service that is about meeting in real life as soon as possible, rather than trying to decide if you like each other via pre-set questions and emails back and forth. In this model, one person suggests a date activity and location (How about we…walk around the MoMa and pick out our favorite pieces of art). People can browse the site and pick dates (and the person organizing it) that interest them, and they set a time to meet. Finally, Duet (Figure 5) is an app that has the goal of strengthening relationships (especially marriages) through coordinating real life encounters. Duet allows one partner to send an activity idea to another, and then they coordinate the details, as well as document the activity. I’ve also taken a look at the models of participatory sports available to New Yorkers. In the pickup game model (Figure 6) an organizer says that they want to play a sport at a certain time and place, and then must rely on friends and friends of friends to be available at this time, which often leads to much confusion in scheduling (see previous journey maps). At the opposite end of this level of organization is the co-ed / rec model (Figure 7) that someone like Zog Sports offers. In this model, a captain organizes a team around the activity, but then must join a league and be given a schedule of place and time by this third party. This often leads to teams not being able to field a complete team the day of the game, or worse, a team never forming because people can’t commit to the schedule before the season. Finally, (Figure 8) looks at the group fitness model, in which an instructor works at a gym/studio and all of the classes are organized around this location. In this model, the gym acts as a gatekeeper between people and fitness, as they need the instructor to motivate them, as well as a group of people around them. The gym takes a large portion of the trainers income in order to facilitate this relationship. But enough modeling other successful services. Its time to model my own.
I like to solve problems through models. They help to quickly break a system down to its simplest parts, and also easily identify areas for opportunity. In thinking about sports and their games, I’ve come to realize that I am designing a service around events. Figure 1 breaks down the necessary components of an event. They are : 1) People - in order for an event to happen, there must be a certain number of people. For some events, this can be a single person, some events, like dates, need 2 people, and other events need numerous people. Some events, such as sports, can’t take place unless a minimum amount of people are reached. 2) Time - there must be a set time that people arrive at the event. This is often the most difficult thing to plan around, as people’s schedules are incredibly hectic, especially in New York City 3) Place - Though the internet has allowed for many events to now take place “online”, the events that I’m interested take place in the real world, away from the screen. Again, this can be difficult to coordinate, especially in New York City, as space for anything comes at a premium. 4) Activity - An event needs a purpose, something that everyone is there for. People want to know exactly what will be taking place in the time they have set aside to come to this location. If its a concert, they want to know who’s playing, if its a date, they like to have an idea of what the activity will be. In the next few models, I’ve taken a look at other services that coordinate people in place and time around a set activity. Skillshare (Figure 2) allows regular people to become teachers, creating single classes around a topic, while also setting their own place and time. From there, students who are interested in the topic, and also have that time available and can make it to that location, sign up for the class. Meetup (Figure 3) takes a different approach, asking everyone to first join a shared interest group, such as Soccer Moms. From there, admins of the group have the ability to create events at a place and time, with invites going out to everyone in the interest group. HowAboutWe? (Figure 4) is a new dating service that is about meeting in real life as soon as possible, rather than trying to decide if you like each other via pre-set questions and emails back and forth. In this model, one person suggests a date activity and location (How about we…walk around the MoMa and pick out our favorite pieces of art). People can browse the site and pick dates (and the person organizing it) that interest them, and they set a time to meet. Finally, Duet (Figure 5) is an app that has the goal of strengthening relationships (especially marriages) through coordinating real life encounters. Duet allows one partner to send an activity idea to another, and then they coordinate the details, as well as document the activity. I’ve also taken a look at the models of participatory sports available to New Yorkers. In the pickup game model (Figure 6) an organizer says that they want to play a sport at a certain time and place, and then must rely on friends and friends of friends to be available at this time, which often leads to much confusion in scheduling (see previous journey maps). At the opposite end of this level of organization is the co-ed / rec model (Figure 7) that someone like Zog Sports offers. In this model, a captain organizes a team around the activity, but then must join a league and be given a schedule of place and time by this third party. This often leads to teams not being able to field a complete team the day of the game, or worse, a team never forming because people can’t commit to the schedule before the season. Finally, (Figure 8) looks at the group fitness model, in which an instructor works at a gym/studio and all of the classes are organized around this location. In this model, the gym acts as a gatekeeper between people and fitness, as they need the instructor to motivate them, as well as a group of people around them. The gym takes a large portion of the trainers income in order to facilitate this relationship. But enough modeling other successful services. Its time to model my own.
I like to solve problems through models. They help to quickly break a system down to its simplest parts, and also easily identify areas for opportunity. In thinking about sports and their games, I’ve come to realize that I am designing a service around events. Figure 1 breaks down the necessary components of an event. They are : 1) People - in order for an event to happen, there must be a certain number of people. For some events, this can be a single person, some events, like dates, need 2 people, and other events need numerous people. Some events, such as sports, can’t take place unless a minimum amount of people are reached. 2) Time - there must be a set time that people arrive at the event. This is often the most difficult thing to plan around, as people’s schedules are incredibly hectic, especially in New York City 3) Place - Though the internet has allowed for many events to now take place “online”, the events that I’m interested take place in the real world, away from the screen. Again, this can be difficult to coordinate, especially in New York City, as space for anything comes at a premium. 4) Activity - An event needs a purpose, something that everyone is there for. People want to know exactly what will be taking place in the time they have set aside to come to this location. If its a concert, they want to know who’s playing, if its a date, they like to have an idea of what the activity will be. In the next few models, I’ve taken a look at other services that coordinate people in place and time around a set activity. Skillshare (Figure 2) allows regular people to become teachers, creating single classes around a topic, while also setting their own place and time. From there, students who are interested in the topic, and also have that time available and can make it to that location, sign up for the class. Meetup (Figure 3) takes a different approach, asking everyone to first join a shared interest group, such as Soccer Moms. From there, admins of the group have the ability to create events at a place and time, with invites going out to everyone in the interest group. HowAboutWe? (Figure 4) is a new dating service that is about meeting in real life as soon as possible, rather than trying to decide if you like each other via pre-set questions and emails back and forth. In this model, one person suggests a date activity and location (How about we…walk around the MoMa and pick out our favorite pieces of art). People can browse the site and pick dates (and the person organizing it) that interest them, and they set a time to meet. Finally, Duet (Figure 5) is an app that has the goal of strengthening relationships (especially marriages) through coordinating real life encounters. Duet allows one partner to send an activity idea to another, and then they coordinate the details, as well as document the activity. I’ve also taken a look at the models of participatory sports available to New Yorkers. In the pickup game model (Figure 6) an organizer says that they want to play a sport at a certain time and place, and then must rely on friends and friends of friends to be available at this time, which often leads to much confusion in scheduling (see previous journey maps). At the opposite end of this level of organization is the co-ed / rec model (Figure 7) that someone like Zog Sports offers. In this model, a captain organizes a team around the activity, but then must join a league and be given a schedule of place and time by this third party. This often leads to teams not being able to field a complete team the day of the game, or worse, a team never forming because people can’t commit to the schedule before the season. Finally, (Figure 8) looks at the group fitness model, in which an instructor works at a gym/studio and all of the classes are organized around this location. In this model, the gym acts as a gatekeeper between people and fitness, as they need the instructor to motivate them, as well as a group of people around them. The gym takes a large portion of the trainers income in order to facilitate this relationship. But enough modeling other successful services. Its time to model my own.
I like to solve problems through models. They help to quickly break a system down to its simplest parts, and also easily identify areas for opportunity. In thinking about sports and their games, I’ve come to realize that I am designing a service around events. Figure 1 breaks down the necessary components of an event. They are : 1) People - in order for an event to happen, there must be a certain number of people. For some events, this can be a single person, some events, like dates, need 2 people, and other events need numerous people. Some events, such as sports, can’t take place unless a minimum amount of people are reached. 2) Time - there must be a set time that people arrive at the event. This is often the most difficult thing to plan around, as people’s schedules are incredibly hectic, especially in New York City 3) Place - Though the internet has allowed for many events to now take place “online”, the events that I’m interested take place in the real world, away from the screen. Again, this can be difficult to coordinate, especially in New York City, as space for anything comes at a premium. 4) Activity - An event needs a purpose, something that everyone is there for. People want to know exactly what will be taking place in the time they have set aside to come to this location. If its a concert, they want to know who’s playing, if its a date, they like to have an idea of what the activity will be. In the next few models, I’ve taken a look at other services that coordinate people in place and time around a set activity. Skillshare (Figure 2) allows regular people to become teachers, creating single classes around a topic, while also setting their own place and time. From there, students who are interested in the topic, and also have that time available and can make it to that location, sign up for the class. Meetup (Figure 3) takes a different approach, asking everyone to first join a shared interest group, such as Soccer Moms. From there, admins of the group have the ability to create events at a place and time, with invites going out to everyone in the interest group. HowAboutWe? (Figure 4) is a new dating service that is about meeting in real life as soon as possible, rather than trying to decide if you like each other via pre-set questions and emails back and forth. In this model, one person suggests a date activity and location (How about we…walk around the MoMa and pick out our favorite pieces of art). People can browse the site and pick dates (and the person organizing it) that interest them, and they set a time to meet. Finally, Duet (Figure 5) is an app that has the goal of strengthening relationships (especially marriages) through coordinating real life encounters. Duet allows one partner to send an activity idea to another, and then they coordinate the details, as well as document the activity. I’ve also taken a look at the models of participatory sports available to New Yorkers. In the pickup game model (Figure 6) an organizer says that they want to play a sport at a certain time and place, and then must rely on friends and friends of friends to be available at this time, which often leads to much confusion in scheduling (see previous journey maps). At the opposite end of this level of organization is the co-ed / rec model (Figure 7) that someone like Zog Sports offers. In this model, a captain organizes a team around the activity, but then must join a league and be given a schedule of place and time by this third party. This often leads to teams not being able to field a complete team the day of the game, or worse, a team never forming because people can’t commit to the schedule before the season. Finally, (Figure 8) looks at the group fitness model, in which an instructor works at a gym/studio and all of the classes are organized around this location. In this model, the gym acts as a gatekeeper between people and fitness, as they need the instructor to motivate them, as well as a group of people around them. The gym takes a large portion of the trainers income in order to facilitate this relationship. But enough modeling other successful services. Its time to model my own.
I like to solve problems through models. They help to quickly break a system down to its simplest parts, and also easily identify areas for opportunity. In thinking about sports and their games, I’ve come to realize that I am designing a service around events. Figure 1 breaks down the necessary components of an event. They are : 1) People - in order for an event to happen, there must be a certain number of people. For some events, this can be a single person, some events, like dates, need 2 people, and other events need numerous people. Some events, such as sports, can’t take place unless a minimum amount of people are reached. 2) Time - there must be a set time that people arrive at the event. This is often the most difficult thing to plan around, as people’s schedules are incredibly hectic, especially in New York City 3) Place - Though the internet has allowed for many events to now take place “online”, the events that I’m interested take place in the real world, away from the screen. Again, this can be difficult to coordinate, especially in New York City, as space for anything comes at a premium. 4) Activity - An event needs a purpose, something that everyone is there for. People want to know exactly what will be taking place in the time they have set aside to come to this location. If its a concert, they want to know who’s playing, if its a date, they like to have an idea of what the activity will be. In the next few models, I’ve taken a look at other services that coordinate people in place and time around a set activity. Skillshare (Figure 2) allows regular people to become teachers, creating single classes around a topic, while also setting their own place and time. From there, students who are interested in the topic, and also have that time available and can make it to that location, sign up for the class. Meetup (Figure 3) takes a different approach, asking everyone to first join a shared interest group, such as Soccer Moms. From there, admins of the group have the ability to create events at a place and time, with invites going out to everyone in the interest group. HowAboutWe? (Figure 4) is a new dating service that is about meeting in real life as soon as possible, rather than trying to decide if you like each other via pre-set questions and emails back and forth. In this model, one person suggests a date activity and location (How about we…walk around the MoMa and pick out our favorite pieces of art). People can browse the site and pick dates (and the person organizing it) that interest them, and they set a time to meet. Finally, Duet (Figure 5) is an app that has the goal of strengthening relationships (especially marriages) through coordinating real life encounters. Duet allows one partner to send an activity idea to another, and then they coordinate the details, as well as document the activity. I’ve also taken a look at the models of participatory sports available to New Yorkers. In the pickup game model (Figure 6) an organizer says that they want to play a sport at a certain time and place, and then must rely on friends and friends of friends to be available at this time, which often leads to much confusion in scheduling (see previous journey maps). At the opposite end of this level of organization is the co-ed / rec model (Figure 7) that someone like Zog Sports offers. In this model, a captain organizes a team around the activity, but then must join a league and be given a schedule of place and time by this third party. This often leads to teams not being able to field a complete team the day of the game, or worse, a team never forming because people can’t commit to the schedule before the season. Finally, (Figure 8) looks at the group fitness model, in which an instructor works at a gym/studio and all of the classes are organized around this location. In this model, the gym acts as a gatekeeper between people and fitness, as they need the instructor to motivate them, as well as a group of people around them. The gym takes a large portion of the trainers income in order to facilitate this relationship. But enough modeling other successful services. Its time to model my own.
I like to solve problems through models. They help to quickly break a system down to its simplest parts, and also easily identify areas for opportunity. In thinking about sports and their games, I’ve come to realize that I am designing a service around events. Figure 1 breaks down the necessary components of an event. They are : 1) People - in order for an event to happen, there must be a certain number of people. For some events, this can be a single person, some events, like dates, need 2 people, and other events need numerous people. Some events, such as sports, can’t take place unless a minimum amount of people are reached. 2) Time - there must be a set time that people arrive at the event. This is often the most difficult thing to plan around, as people’s schedules are incredibly hectic, especially in New York City 3) Place - Though the internet has allowed for many events to now take place “online”, the events that I’m interested take place in the real world, away from the screen. Again, this can be difficult to coordinate, especially in New York City, as space for anything comes at a premium. 4) Activity - An event needs a purpose, something that everyone is there for. People want to know exactly what will be taking place in the time they have set aside to come to this location. If its a concert, they want to know who’s playing, if its a date, they like to have an idea of what the activity will be. In the next few models, I’ve taken a look at other services that coordinate people in place and time around a set activity. Skillshare (Figure 2) allows regular people to become teachers, creating single classes around a topic, while also setting their own place and time. From there, students who are interested in the topic, and also have that time available and can make it to that location, sign up for the class. Meetup (Figure 3) takes a different approach, asking everyone to first join a shared interest group, such as Soccer Moms. From there, admins of the group have the ability to create events at a place and time, with invites going out to everyone in the interest group. HowAboutWe? (Figure 4) is a new dating service that is about meeting in real life as soon as possible, rather than trying to decide if you like each other via pre-set questions and emails back and forth. In this model, one person suggests a date activity and location (How about we…walk around the MoMa and pick out our favorite pieces of art). People can browse the site and pick dates (and the person organizing it) that interest them, and they set a time to meet. Finally, Duet (Figure 5) is an app that has the goal of strengthening relationships (especially marriages) through coordinating real life encounters. Duet allows one partner to send an activity idea to another, and then they coordinate the details, as well as document the activity. I’ve also taken a look at the models of participatory sports available to New Yorkers. In the pickup game model (Figure 6) an organizer says that they want to play a sport at a certain time and place, and then must rely on friends and friends of friends to be available at this time, which often leads to much confusion in scheduling (see previous journey maps). At the opposite end of this level of organization is the co-ed / rec model (Figure 7) that someone like Zog Sports offers. In this model, a captain organizes a team around the activity, but then must join a league and be given a schedule of place and time by this third party. This often leads to teams not being able to field a complete team the day of the game, or worse, a team never forming because people can’t commit to the schedule before the season. Finally, (Figure 8) looks at the group fitness model, in which an instructor works at a gym/studio and all of the classes are organized around this location. In this model, the gym acts as a gatekeeper between people and fitness, as they need the instructor to motivate them, as well as a group of people around them. The gym takes a large portion of the trainers income in order to facilitate this relationship. But enough modeling other successful services. Its time to model my own.
I like to solve problems through models. They help to quickly break a system down to its simplest parts, and also easily identify areas for opportunity. In thinking about sports and their games, I’ve come to realize that I am designing a service around events. Figure 1 breaks down the necessary components of an event. They are : 1) People - in order for an event to happen, there must be a certain number of people. For some events, this can be a single person, some events, like dates, need 2 people, and other events need numerous people. Some events, such as sports, can’t take place unless a minimum amount of people are reached. 2) Time - there must be a set time that people arrive at the event. This is often the most difficult thing to plan around, as people’s schedules are incredibly hectic, especially in New York City 3) Place - Though the internet has allowed for many events to now take place “online”, the events that I’m interested take place in the real world, away from the screen. Again, this can be difficult to coordinate, especially in New York City, as space for anything comes at a premium. 4) Activity - An event needs a purpose, something that everyone is there for. People want to know exactly what will be taking place in the time they have set aside to come to this location. If its a concert, they want to know who’s playing, if its a date, they like to have an idea of what the activity will be. In the next few models, I’ve taken a look at other services that coordinate people in place and time around a set activity. Skillshare (Figure 2) allows regular people to become teachers, creating single classes around a topic, while also setting their own place and time. From there, students who are interested in the topic, and also have that time available and can make it to that location, sign up for the class. Meetup (Figure 3) takes a different approach, asking everyone to first join a shared interest group, such as Soccer Moms. From there, admins of the group have the ability to create events at a place and time, with invites going out to everyone in the interest group. HowAboutWe? (Figure 4) is a new dating service that is about meeting in real life as soon as possible, rather than trying to decide if you like each other via pre-set questions and emails back and forth. In this model, one person suggests a date activity and location (How about we…walk around the MoMa and pick out our favorite pieces of art). People can browse the site and pick dates (and the person organizing it) that interest them, and they set a time to meet. Finally, Duet (Figure 5) is an app that has the goal of strengthening relationships (especially marriages) through coordinating real life encounters. Duet allows one partner to send an activity idea to another, and then they coordinate the details, as well as document the activity. I’ve also taken a look at the models of participatory sports available to New Yorkers. In the pickup game model (Figure 6) an organizer says that they want to play a sport at a certain time and place, and then must rely on friends and friends of friends to be available at this time, which often leads to much confusion in scheduling (see previous journey maps). At the opposite end of this level of organization is the co-ed / rec model (Figure 7) that someone like Zog Sports offers. In this model, a captain organizes a team around the activity, but then must join a league and be given a schedule of place and time by this third party. This often leads to teams not being able to field a complete team the day of the game, or worse, a team never forming because people can’t commit to the schedule before the season. Finally, (Figure 8) looks at the group fitness model, in which an instructor works at a gym/studio and all of the classes are organized around this location. In this model, the gym acts as a gatekeeper between people and fitness, as they need the instructor to motivate them, as well as a group of people around them. The gym takes a large portion of the trainers income in order to facilitate this relationship. But enough modeling other successful services. Its time to model my own.

I like to solve problems through models. They help to quickly break a system down to its simplest parts, and also easily identify areas for opportunity. In thinking about sports and their games, I’ve come to realize that I am designing a service around events. Figure 1 breaks down the necessary components of an event. They are : 1) People - in order for an event to happen, there must be a certain number of people. For some events, this can be a single person, some events, like dates, need 2 people, and other events need numerous people. Some events, such as sports, can’t take place unless a minimum amount of people are reached. 2) Time - there must be a set time that people arrive at the event. This is often the most difficult thing to plan around, as people’s schedules are incredibly hectic, especially in New York City 3) Place - Though the internet has allowed for many events to now take place “online”, the events that I’m interested take place in the real world, away from the screen. Again, this can be difficult to coordinate, especially in New York City, as space for anything comes at a premium. 4) Activity - An event needs a purpose, something that everyone is there for. People want to know exactly what will be taking place in the time they have set aside to come to this location. If its a concert, they want to know who’s playing, if its a date, they like to have an idea of what the activity will be.

In the next few models, I’ve taken a look at other services that coordinate people in place and time around a set activity. Skillshare (Figure 2) allows regular people to become teachers, creating single classes around a topic, while also setting their own place and time. From there, students who are interested in the topic, and also have that time available and can make it to that location, sign up for the class. Meetup (Figure 3) takes a different approach, asking everyone to first join a shared interest group, such as Soccer Moms. From there, admins of the group have the ability to create events at a place and time, with invites going out to everyone in the interest group. HowAboutWe? (Figure 4) is a new dating service that is about meeting in real life as soon as possible, rather than trying to decide if you like each other via pre-set questions and emails back and forth. In this model, one person suggests a date activity and location (How about we…walk around the MoMa and pick out our favorite pieces of art). People can browse the site and pick dates (and the person organizing it) that interest them, and they set a time to meet. Finally, Duet (Figure 5) is an app that has the goal of strengthening relationships (especially marriages) through coordinating real life encounters. Duet allows one partner to send an activity idea to another, and then they coordinate the details, as well as document the activity.

I’ve also taken a look at the models of participatory sports available to New Yorkers. In the pickup game model (Figure 6) an organizer says that they want to play a sport at a certain time and place, and then must rely on friends and friends of friends to be available at this time, which often leads to much confusion in scheduling (see previous journey maps). At the opposite end of this level of organization is the co-ed / rec model (Figure 7) that someone like Zog Sports offers. In this model, a captain organizes a team around the activity, but then must join a league and be given a schedule of place and time by this third party. This often leads to teams not being able to field a complete team the day of the game, or worse, a team never forming because people can’t commit to the schedule before the season. Finally, (Figure 8) looks at the group fitness model, in which an instructor works at a gym/studio and all of the classes are organized around this location. In this model, the gym acts as a gatekeeper between people and fitness, as they need the instructor to motivate them, as well as a group of people around them. The gym takes a large portion of the trainers income in order to facilitate this relationship.

But enough modeling other successful services. Its time to model my own.

March 5, 2012 2

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Play

As a kid, I loved playing sports. There wasn’t a time of year that wasn’t filled with soccer, baseball, or basketball practice. And when I wasn’t playing on these organized teams, I was out in the middle of our cul-de-sac, playing street hockey with the neighbors. Or I was out on recess, playing 6th grade vs 5th grade football with our principal. Or perhaps I was over in the green belt, inventing an all new sport with my friends that only lasted for a day. It didn’t matter. I was playing. 

But then, in junior high, we were asked to try out for the school basketball team. For the first time in my life, the sport that I loved became not about how much I liked to play it, but rather, how skilled I was at playing it. It turns out the answer was “not very.” All of my friends made the team, I did not. I was crushed. I went on to play in the same recreational league from previous seasons, but was now surrounded not by my best friends, but by the “rejects” of various junior high basketball teams. If this was a Disney movie, we’d band together, listen to an inspiring talk from our coach, have a training montage, and beat the Webber Panthers on a buzzer beater by yours truly. But in reality, we played out our six games and parted ways. It was the last season I’d play organized basketball.

Gradually, other sports were taken from me as skill, not passion, became the qualification for participation. By the time my friends and I reached high school, we were specialized athletes, participating on one team, perhaps two for the exceptional athletes (which, as a track athlete, I was not). These sports became more like jobs to us, requiring months of training on either end of the season and signed commitments promising not to partake in other sports for risk of injury.

But about once a month, throughout our various seasons, we broke our pledges with a phone call of just two words: “Lopez Hoops.” Lopez was my original home basketball court, the elementary school where I first played 5 on 5 basketball on the playground. But where 10 of us little elementary school kids could once fit within the dimensions of the court, we now struggled to fit more than 4 of us onto these courts, which was fine for our preferred 2 on 2 format (It also didn’t hurt that the hoops were only 8 feet tall, affording almost all of us the ability to dunk). We’d play game after game, sometimes getting multiple game across various courts going. When you lost you were off, reduced to watching, cheering, and plotting with your teammate for your return to the court. Nobody ever paired up with the same teammate they had the previous session, rotating teammates and discovering a winning formula throughout the day.

The disparity between my skills and those of my friends, now with years of competitive basketball under their belts, was more than apparent. It didn’t matter. We were playing with a common passion that far exceeded any level of skill. Some of us were playing a game that had been taken from us, while others were playing a game that had become their lives. It didn’t matter. We were playing.

February 27, 2012 3

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Social objects are the engines of socially networked experiences, the content around which conversation happens. Social objects allow people to focus their attention on a third thing rather than on each other, making interpersonal engagement more comfortable. People can connect with strangers when they have a shared interest in specific objects.

—

This is incredibly obvious, but something worth noting. Sports are a social object. Whether its gathering to watch a live event, talking to friends over Twitter/Text from afar, talking to coworkers the next day, or even breaking the ice with a stranger (“so….Tim Tebow…who saw that coming?”), sports are the catalyst for conversation. Sometimes the conversation ends at the surface level, sometimes it takes us deeper (“I saw it coming, I’ve been a fan of Tebow since we were both at Florida” “Oh you went to Florida?”…..etc). 

I’ve had a screen saver on my TV for years that pulls in all of the photos of my personal Tumblr. Given my love for sports, a majority of the images tend to be sports related. Whenever we have people over, we turn on some music and the screensaver kicks on. Inevitably, within 5 minutes, an image goes by that sparks up a conversation (“Was that a picture of David Nied? Wow, remember that first Rockies team?”).

November 26, 2011 0

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Thesis Thoughts 10.4.11

I hesitate to call these “proposals.” They’re more two directions that I’ll be exploring over the next week to decide where to go next.

Direction 1

Last week, I proposed that sports fans in the 21st century have become paradoxically more disconnected from the fundamentals of fandom as they connect more to their teams through new technology such as push notifications and tweets. And while I still think that these elements can break down a narrative if viewed in isolation, I am now inclined to believe that they have done a lot to strengthen the bond of many sports fans and their teams, especially the most dedicated of fans. 

At this point, I’m interested in reframing the research that I’ve done into fandom not as a problem space for existing fans, but rather, an opportunity to capture new fans.

My hypothesis is that the barrier of entry for becoming a sports fan is often overly intimidating and seemingly insurmountable to a casual sports fan. How can we recast the measure of fandom from a measure of knowledge, but to a measure of passion and loyalty? How are honor, tribalism, narrative, unpredictability, and shared experience, the key characteristics of being a sports fan, currently lacking in people’s lives? How can I design ways to introduce these components to sports fans? Or as Frank said, how can I create a “gateway drug” for sports fans to higher level of fandom?

In a great deal of my research thus far, I’ve come across fascinating stories of people inheriting their team at different points of their life, but all of them are united in the lifelong bond they form thereafter, both with their team and with each other. What makes people grab on to these teams? Why do some choose to temporarily fixate on a team or sport, such as during the Olympics and World Cup, and then just as quickly cast them off at the end of 3 weeks? How can we create a way to hold on to these teams longer?

Innovations like fantasy football have been paramount in helping to make people sports fans by helping establish a baseline narrative of sports, the shared experience of watching football together, and the unpredictability and eustress of following your team, but it severely lacks in providing people with a tribe. After all, no two people’s fantasy football teams are the same.

Is there an opportunity in the stadium experience? People attend sporting events for a variety of reasons, not always as fans. How can we create an experience to lead up with anticipation, provide them with a compelling experience that they feel connected to in game, and leave with an “afterglow” (H/T Frank) that helps build their fandom. Each game someone attends should build on the previous experience and not feel like an individual affair.

In short, I am interested in developing a framework for potential sports fans to feel more connected to their teams and fellow fans, while simultaneously expressing their individual identity through who they root for.

or, as Allison stated, “To give somebody a piece themselves that they didn’t know was there…that’s powerful”

Pros of this direction ::

I have a passion for sports, and the fan experience

Classmates are a great target user

Could lead nicely into future in entrepreneurship

Red Flags to this direction :: 

I have no clue what I would “make”

I’m afraid that I would make 5 screen shots of a website and a user journey video

Tough to get out of the “concept” level

Am I adding gamification to a game?

Why isn’t this just another FB app?

Next Steps :: 

Continue to research fandom

Continue to research sports fans

KJ Analysis with Dave about sports and fans (done)

Liz’s suggestion - Develop small, testable prototypes about in small areas to begin picking away (love this idea, but no clue what they’d be. maybe this will come after KJ analysis)

References :: 

http://www.codecademy.com/ - Site slowly teaches you coding through simple, step by step instructions. Gamification.

http://rouxbe.com - Online Video Cooking School & Cooking Classes

Mayor Emmanuel Twitter account.

Frank’s Survey Casts http://blog.frankchimero.com/post/2192456624

Direction 2

Sports, by their nature, generate an immense amount of data. Every pitch in a baseball game is meticulously recorded, from speed and location over the plate, to where it was hit and how the runners advanced. Simultaneously, other data is being recorded, such as temperature on the field, number of people watching it live, and how other teams are performing simultaneously across the country.  

In his lecture “Presenting Data and Information.” Edward Tufte references the sports section of a newspaper as the most elegant presentation of data and statistics for mass consumption. But as we move away from the newspaper, is this information being translated properly in the digital world? As data visualization and infographics gain traction as a popular method for data consumption, is this information being presented in a way that is accurate, relevant, and of high integrity?

A recent post on Deadspin about the demise of the popular basketball blog, Free Darko, suggested that as sites with quality writing decline, “we lose something when our writers stop describing even what everyone else can see for himself. We lose that contagious love of detail — of simply watching very closely — and we cede yet more ground to those basketball writers who would use the sport as an arena for their grumpy toy morality.” But what if the solution isn’t a resurgence of journalism, but rather, a new form of journalism that relies on data visualization to bring the previously invisible information to the viewer’s attention.

In my thesis exploration, I would primarily explore different techniques to tell the complete narrative of a sporting event, and its larger picture in context of the season. How can fans be given the proper information, at the proper time, whether its before a game, during a game, or after a game to help them understand, and therefore feel more connected to, the sporting event they’re connecting with. 

Simultaneously, I would also like to investigate the method of data collection that presently exists within sports. Much of this is still done through old school methods of radar guns and hand scoring. Similar to the emerging view of our homes and cities as the “internet of things,” how can we view the field of play in sports through this lens. How can the advancements that we’ve made through personal sport data, such as RunKeeper and Nike+, be thought of in the context of spectators sports?

In short, I am interested in designing a set of data visualizations for sports fans in order to aid in the narrative and understanding of various sporting events.  (Yikes, I don’t like that. I think I more eloquently state my purpose up above).

Pros of this direction ::

Merges not only my passion for sports, but also, my love for data visualization

Promotes simultaneously building and researching

Aids me in developing what I consider to be a valuable skill 

Well established research / perspectives in this field

Sports are a relatively unique take on data visualization

Interested in working in this field beyond grad school

Red Flags to this direction ::

Perhaps too focused too early on final product?

Perhaps too much work in this field already?

Next Steps :: 

Survey existing sports data visualizations

Dive headfirst into Tufte

Dive headfirst into Processing

Reread Moneyball

References :: 

Pennant iPad app

Flip Flop Fly Ball

Peter Hall’s Lecture / Essay “Where’s the Critique”  http://dcrit.sva.edu/view/events/lecture-with-peter-hall-3/

Edward Tufte lecture / Site

Free Darko Says Goodbye http://deadspin.com/5790905/freedarko-says-goodbye  Via Frank

Mapping Urban Invisibles http://www.amazon.com/Exposed-City-Mapping-Urban-Invisibles/dp/0415551803/ref=pd_rhf_p_t_4

October 11, 2011 1

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