Creativity: Methods to Design Better Products and Services

Suited For: All Levels
G2 Logo 5 Stars Google Logo 5 Stars
Closes in
6
23
18
42
45 % booked

In This Course, You'll

  • Get excited to innovate and get creative, even when you feel blocked. Learn a repeatable creative approach that'll help you generate strong concepts on demand, break through when you're stuck, and turn your best ideas into solutions users love. In this course, design legend and author of the bestselling book "Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)," Professor Alan Dix, shows you why the best ideas come from a structured process and gives you the toolkit to do it yourself. The World Economic Forum ranks creative thinking among the top skills employers want in any profession, today and through 2030. Whether you're starting out, switching careers, or in a senior role and want a process you can rely on, you'll turn creativity from something that happens to you into something you can switch on. No creative background needed.

  • Make yourself invaluable by mastering a wide range of ideation methods so you never get stuck in one approach. To generate and explore new ideas, you'll apply Bad Ideas, Random Metaphors, and Arbitrary Constraints, and to refine and develop them, you'll apply Embrace Opposites, Multiple Classifications, and Teasing Apart, Piecing Together (TAPT). With Edward de Bono's Six Thinking Hats, you'll learn to guide a team to see a problem from every angle. You'll also learn to build an environment that nurtures creativity and to remove the hidden barriers that hold people back. You won't just have better ideas, you'll help everyone around you have them too. As AI churns out endless options, it's your timeless, human-centered design skills, like understanding people and what they actually need, that ensure your solutions are genuinely new and useful.

  • Gain confidence and credibility with a creative process that helps you be productive even under pressure. You'll learn to plan and time-manage your work so good ideas arrive when you need them, and apply proven strategies to beat procrastination, bias, and fixation. You'll keep momentum going with busywork, recognize when stepping back to let an idea incubate is the smartest move, and tackle big, messy "wicked problems" without stalling. When you hit a wall, you'll know whether to push through, switch to something else, or step away, instead of forcing it. And because your best ideas often arrive in the shower or on a walk, not at your desk, you'll learn simple ways to capture them before they slip away. The result is a process you can rely on, so you deliver strong work whether the spark comes on schedule or not.

  • Craft your personal portfolio with a piece that clearly captures your entire creative process. With optional, hands-on activities, you'll build a case study that shows how you ideate, from a ready-made persona and empathy map through to a fully developed concept. Downloadable templates let you apply your new skills immediately. You walk away able to show employers and clients what a polished mockup alone doesn't: how you actually approach and solve problems.

Learn From Industry Leaders

Master complex skills with proven best practices and toolkits directly from industry leaders. Meet your experts for this course:

  • Alan Dix: Author of the bestselling book "Human-Computer Interaction" and Director of the Computational Foundry at Swansea University.

  • Don Norman: Father of User Experience (UX) Design, author of the legendary book "The Design of Everyday Things," and co-founder of the Nielsen Norman Group.

Explore Course Content

Earn Industry-Recognized Certificates

Industry giants trust our courses to train their teams, and prestigious universities integrate our content into their curricula. Add your certificates to your LinkedIn profile, résumé, and job applications.

Our clients: IBM, Harvard University, University of Cambridge, NASA, Adobe, Stanford, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, LinkedIn
Course Certificate Example

Is This Course Right for You?

  • You want an evidence-based curriculum taught by industry leaders.
  • You want real-world design skills that translate directly into professional practice.
  • You want to earn industry-recognized credentials.
  • Your time is too valuable for scattered free content with no structure.
  • You want learning that leads to better roles and stronger earning potential over time.
Explore Course Content

Loved by People Around the World

View full testimonial from Gaby Vargas
Gaby Vargas
Gaby Vargas
UX Designer

I really loved the way Alan explained the course; he's very polite and kind. I felt really good watching the videos. It didn't feel like tak...

IxDF Course Certificate awarded to Gaby Vargas for completing the "Creativity: Methods to Design Better Products and Services" course
View full testimonial from Richie McGirr
Richie McGirr
Richie McGirr
Developer / Designer

As an instructor, Alan Dix is very engaging. I felt like he was talking to me as a friend the entire time. He also obviously knows his stuff...

IxDF Course Certificate awarded to Richie McGirr for completing the "Creativity: Methods to Design Better Products and Services" course
View full testimonial from Tirzah Strobos
Tirzah Strobos
Tirzah Strobos
Junior UX/UI Designer

Alan is so interesting. He is relatable. He tells stories; he doesn't give lectures. He keeps you engaged through the entire video and cours...

Certificate
View full testimonial from Thiago Mota
Thiago Mota
Thiago Mota
Product Designer

The organization of the course has a good foundation of theories and processes that bring value to any professional challenge. The instructo...

IxDF Course Certificate awarded to Thiago Mota for completing the "Creativity: Methods to Design Better Products and Services" course
View full testimonial from Celina van Hees
Celina van Hees
Celina van Hees
Improving digital services | Digital strategy | UX | Design and data driven

I really liked the enthusiasm of Alan Dix. For me, externalization was an insight. I have a lot of ideas and information in my head. But if...

IxDF Course Certificate awarded to Celina van Hees for completing the "Creativity: Methods to Design Better Products and Services" course

How It Works

  1. Build High-Impact AI and Design Skills

    Industry leaders from companies like Adobe, Google, and NASA teach you real-world skills grounded in industry practice and research.

  2. Combine AI and Timeless Design Skills

    Learn both AI and the human-centered design skills that AI can't replace.

  3. Earn Industry-Recognized Certificates

    Add IxDF Course Certificates to your LinkedIn profile and résumé to show you've completed an evidence-based curriculum taught by industry leaders.

  4. Turn Your Skills Into Career Opportunities

    Use your new skills to take on higher-value work, qualify for promotions or find a role that fits you better.

  5. Build a Network That Supports Your Career

    Connect with designers in 496 cities across 107 countries. Learn together, get mentored, and build relationships that open doors.

Course Overview

  • Each week, one lesson becomes available.
  • Study flexibly. Take as much time as you want.
  • 22 hours / 57 lesson items in 6 lessons.

Lesson 2: Convergence: How to Uncover Knowledge and Be Creative Through Analytical Thinking

Available once you start the course. Estimated time to complete: 6 hours, 4 mins.

Lesson 3: How to Nurture Your Own Creativity and Build a Creative Team Environment

Available anytime after Oct 4th, 2026. Estimated time to complete: 5 hours, 30 mins.

Lesson 4: How to Plan and Time-Manage Creative Projects to Guarantee Successful Outcomes

Available anytime after Oct 11th, 2026. Estimated time to complete: 4 hours, 51 mins.

Preview the Course

Transcript
Transcript
Transcript

What's Inside IxDF Membership?

  • High-impact design and AI skills

  • Learn from 209 industry leaders

  • 42 evidence-based courses

  • 161 one-hour Master Classes

  • Industry-recognized certificates

  • $2,189 worth of toolkits

  • 11,409 active design jobs

  • 10 structured career programs

  • Global community in 496 cities

  • $6,649 worth of premium tools

  • 276 ready-made templates

  • and much more

Start Today

Risk-free: 14-day money-back guarantee

Suited For: All Levels
G2 Logo 5 Stars Google Logo 5 Stars
Closes in
6
23
18
42
45 % booked

Privacy Settings

By using this site, you accept our Cookie Policy and Terms of Use.
Customize
Accept all
Gaby Vargas
Gaby Vargas
UX Designer

I really loved the way Alan explained the course; he's very polite and kind. I felt really good watching the videos. It didn't feel like taking a class, it was more like having a conversation and getting advice from someone that really wants to help you and that's really good at his job.

Richie McGirr
Richie McGirr
Developer / Designer

As an instructor, Alan Dix is very engaging. I felt like he was talking to me as a friend the entire time. He also obviously knows his stuff. This was a very fun and useful class. Useful for anyone who makes stuff, even for people like me who do a little bit of design but mostly write code.

Tirzah Strobos
Tirzah Strobos
Junior UX/UI Designer

Alan is so interesting. He is relatable. He tells stories; he doesn't give lectures. He keeps you engaged through the entire video and course because he is so passionate about it, and it resonates with me.

Thiago Mota
Thiago Mota
Product Designer

The organization of the course has a good foundation of theories and processes that bring value to any professional challenge. The instructor has charisma and passion for the subject, which makes studying with him worthwhile.

V Shankar
V Shankar
Senior UX Designer

Alan's enthusiasm and great examples are things I can relate to my personal traits and behaviors.

Celina van Hees
Celina van Hees
Improving digital services | Digital strategy | UX | Design and data driven

I really liked the enthusiasm of Alan Dix. For me, externalization was an insight. I have a lot of ideas and information in my head. But if I tell someone, they don’t understand me, because it is too much for them, with lots of details. They don’t understand, even if I try to explain it in simple words. If I get it externalized, it is out of my head, which gives me peace of mind. It makes the information easier to structure, more compact, and easier to explain to others.

Michal Manak
Michal Manak
Senior User Experience Designer

Alan is an infinite pool of knowledge about everything related to design.