Design Thinking 101

Dawan Stanford runs Fluid Hive, a consultancy focused on design-driven innovation, and his podcast is the audio extension of that practice. Design Thinking 101 is a series of long-form conversations with experienced practitioners who are actually applying design thinking in the real world -- not just talking about it as a buzzword. New episodes drop about every two weeks and average around 56 minutes, which gives conversations room to breathe. Stanford has a distinctive interviewing approach. He gives his guests enormous space to think and talk, then adds context from his own practice to draw out even deeper insights. Listeners have noted this style feels more like sitting in on a mentoring session than listening to a typical podcast interview. The guests come from a wide range of fields: business, social innovation, education, government, and healthcare. That cross-sector perspective is valuable because you see how the same design thinking principles play out differently depending on context. One episode might feature someone redesigning a hospital patient flow, the next someone applying behavioral design to a government service. The show covers design thinking, service design, behavioral design, and user experience design, always connecting methodology back to real outcomes and real challenges. Stanford also records occasional solo episodes where he breaks down core concepts, like his short introduction to design thinking that serves as a solid entry point for newcomers. If you are a practitioner trying to connect design thinking to actual strategy and action rather than just sticky notes on a wall, this podcast takes that work seriously.