“A designer shapes the situation, the situation talks back, and the designer reflects on the back-talk.”

We often imagine experts, artists and high-performing professionals as totally confident and all-knowing. We believe in the expert as some visionary who seems steps aheads and who can arrive at a problem with formula or solution already at hand. At a glance, experts seemingly have found the “key” to any challenges, and it’s as if they have all the answers and just know what to do in any situation in their field.

But is this an accurate portrayal of expertise and modern working professions? Are professionals just know-it-all’s?

First published in 1983, The Reflective Practitioner by Donald A. Schön explores the nature of professional knowledge and how professionals approach problems, think in action, and ultimately reflect and stay curious on and in their creative processes and problem-solving.

Schön argues against what he terms “Technical Rationality,” this assumed all-knowing model of professional knowledge, which he characterizes as the application of theoretical principles and standardized techniques to well-defined problems. While so-called “textbook solutions” and rationalist expertise are effective in some situations, most profesional and artistic work is messy, ill-defined, unpredictable and ambiguous. You can’t simply apply ready-at-hand solutions to these kinds of unique challenges we each face. Schön argues instead for a new “epistemology of practice,” grounded in the book’s central concept of “reflection-in-action.”

Reflection-in-action describes a practitioner’s ability to reflect on their knowledge and actions while engaged in their work.

Rather than possessing enlightened encyclopedic abilities and answers to all problems, expert practitioners often operate based on tacit knowledge, honed through years of experience, which defies easy articulation; and in fact, actual professional practice is a dynamic, reflective, and context-dependent process. True experts don’t just reach into their bag of past challenges for set answer but lean into uncertainy, experiment with novel approachs and engage in a dynamic interplay of framing and reframing problems in light of the situation’s feedback. Put another way, professional work is art and craft.

For Schön, professionals do indeed leverage their repertoire of past exemplars but in a more open-minded and dialogical manners. Modern professionals face complex problems that call us to deploy a more adaptive, creative, and reflective approach. He refers to this as a “reflective conversation with the situation” which he describes beautifully as: “A designer shapes the situation, the situation talks back, and the designer reflects on the back-talk.”

Unfortunately we still live in a world where experts are assumed to act confidently and all-knowingly; and bosses and managers often expect us professionals to simply solve it intuitively and obviously as we are the so-called “expert.” Through a series of examples in multiple fields spanning architecture, psychotherapy, design and even engineering, Schön articulates a vision of the professional and expertise as not just what you know but as one encompassing many facets and demanding adaptability, questioning assumptions and considering approach, options and what best fits to “screwy” problems.

Originally written over 40 years, this book still retains a profoundly important critique for a techno-rationalist conception of expertise and professional work. It contains a wealth of still relevant and applicable mentals models for modern working professionals and artists. As a knowledge worker and professional technical artist, the book’s core message rang true and I think it contains a lot of useful thoughts for any so-called expert or professional in any field, e.g. explaining tacit knowledge, admitting we don’t know anything and encouraging curiosity and openness when facing challenges.

💡 If you’re ready to bring reflection to your creative or professional practices, Stay Reflective offers guided reflection journeys to help you get started. It’s got lots of reflection starters and each exercise comes with dynamic and personalized follow-up questions.

Here are my key takeaways and lessons as well as a selection of book notes.

My Quick Take Review

• ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I rated this book a X out of 5 on Goodreads.
• Would I recommend it? Even though I quite enjoyed this book and found several parts of it incredibly interesting, I’m not sure I’d highly recommend this book for the typical artist or working professional, because the writing style can be a bit cumbersome and the examples feel a bit dated. It leans more into academic questions, rather than key insights, practical guidance and techniques.
• Would I read it again? I doubt I’d read this book again, per se. I would love to look at this book’s key ideas through follow-up studies and academic research, because I believe a reflective practice or collaborative modality are key parts of creative process.

What I got out of this book?

How do professionals adapt their knowledge and skills to unique problems?

Schön’s book reminded me that rarely is just having the skills or knowledge enough when it comes to one’s professional or creative practice. There are occassionally times when our expertise, experiences, or ready-at-hand answers are enough to solve a problem. But often times that’s the exception rather than the rule, because more often than not, professional work involves a combination of doing and thinking, seeing and re-seeing as you come up with what is a solution, simulate and evaluate its fit and finally enact it. In view of these “screwy” challenges, Schön argues that expert practice necessitates mental and reflective practices.

The Unexpected Gift of a “Screwy” Site

“You should begin with a discipline, even if it is arbitrary, because the site is so screwy—you can always break it open later,” advises Quist, the studio master in Don Schön refers to early in the book. This seemingly simple statement encapsulates a profound approach to professional practice—one that embraces uncertainty, experimentation, and a willingness to engage in a “reflective conversation with the situation.”

Schön argues that truly skilled practitioners, whether they are architects, psychotherapists, engineers, or managers, don’t simply apply pre-existing knowledge to familiar problems. Instead, they approach each situation as a unique entity, embracing surprise as an opportunity for learning and innovation.

In Quist’s design review with his student, Petra, Schön vividly illustrates the concept of “reflection-in-action.” This process is an ongoing, dynamic interplay between thinking and doing. It enables practitioners to navigate complexity, uncover latent possibilities, and create outcomes that transcend technical solutions. By remaining open to the unexpected and treating the “screwy site” as an opportunity rather than a limitation, practitioners can achieve both the necessary functional result and potentially innovative, transformative goal.

Reflection-in-Action

“Practitioners themselves often reveal a capacity for reflection on their intuitive knowing in the midst of action” (p. 8).

Reflection-in-action describes a practitioner’s ability to reflect on their knowledge and actions while engaged in their work. It involves questioning assumptions, framing and reframing problems, and experimenting with new approaches in response to unexpected situations.

Schön’s contrasts this with knowing-in-action which refers to the tacit, often unconscious knowledge that practitioners draw upon in their everyday practice. knowing-in-action encompasses the skills, routines, and intuitive judgments that allow them to perform competently.

Reflection-in-action, on the other hand, involves bringing this tacit knowledge to the surface, making it explicit, and critically examining its validity and relevance in specific situations:

“Usually reflection on knowing-in-action goes together with reflection on the stuff at hand. There is some puzzling, or troubling, or interesting phenomenon with which the individual is trying to deal. As he tries to make sense of it, he also reflects on the understandings which have been implicit in his action, understandings which he surfaces, criticizes, restructures, and embodies in further action.” (p. 63)

Reflective practices and creative process help us adapt to complex, uncertain, or unique situations.

Uncertainty and Framing

As nearly everyone learns shortly after college or a training course, situations of practice we actually face are often unstable, uncertain, and resistant to technical, “textbook” solutions. As Schön puts it:

“The situations of practice are not problems to be solved but problematic situations characterized by uncertainty, disorder, and indeterminacy” (p. 25).

In view of the uncertainty of work practices and lack of technical rationalist solutions, Schön advocates for a deeper, reflective engagement. Because how you see a problem largely determines your ability to solve it, it is important to consider how you name, label and frame the problem. Schön provides an early formulation of the framing problem, made famous in behaviorial economics.

Framing refers to the way practitioners define and interpret a situation, influencing their understanding of the problem, the relevant factors, and the potential solutions. Framing is not a static process but rather a dynamic one, involving continuous reframing as the situation unfolds and new information emerges. According to Schön, “it is the work of naming and framing that creates the conditions necessary to the exercise of technical expertise.” (p 54).

Adaptability, Exploration, and Testing in Professional Practice

Because modern professionals operate in a rapidly evolving landscape, Schön underscore that experts and aspirants should embrace adaptability, engage in exploratory experimentation, and apply testing frameworks such as move-testing and hypothesis-testing.

1. Adaptability: “Professions are now confronted with an unprecedented requirement for adaptability… The dilemma of the professional today lies in the fact that both ends of the gap he is expected to bridge with his profession are changing so rapidly: the body of knowledge that he must use and the expectations of the society that he must serve. Both these changes have their origin in the same common factor—technological change.” (p. 25) Put another way, professionals can’t merely adopt new tools or solutions but also imagine and navigate the application and implications of technology.
2. Exploration: “In the most generic sense, to experiment is to act in order to see what the action leads to. The most fundamental experimental question is, ‘What if?’” (p. 171) Exploratory experimentation allows professionals to interact with uncertain environments in a low-stakes, playful and imaginative manner. “Exploratory experiment is the probing, playful activity by which we get a feel for things.” (p. 171). They have the added benefit of challenging the framing problem and have the potential to uncover unexpected insights too.
3. Move-Testing: “Each move is a local experiment which contributes to the global experiment of reframing the problem.” (p. 112). Each action, or “move,” serves as a local experiment and simulated what if that contributes to a larger understanding of the situation. “Moves produce effects beyond those intended” (p. 172).

By embracing adaptability, exploration, and different testing methods, professionals can navigate the inherent uncertainty of practice.

Additional Book Notes & Quotes

• The Role of Professionals in Society: “The professions have become essential to the functioning of our society.”
• Technical Rationality and Its Limitations: “Professional activity consists in instrumental problem solving made rigorous by the application of scientific theory and technique.” (Schön’s central critique)
• “Practical knowledge exists, but it does not fit neatly into Positivist categories.”
• The Knowledge-Practice Gap: “The widening rift between universities and the professions, research and practice, thought and action.” (p. 7). Despite this gap, professionals often reach innovative solutions through their tacit knowledge and reflective practices.
• Tacit Knowledge: Professionals rely on tacit knowledge, which is often intuitive and difficult to articulate: “Competent practitioners usually know more than they can say; their knowing is tacit.” (p. 8)
• Knowing-in-Action: “Knowing-in-action… a kind of knowing is inherent in intelligent action.”* (p. 64)
• Reflection-in-Action: “A way of thinking about what you are doing while you are doing it, questioning assumptions, and reframing problems in light of unexpected situations.”
• Problem Framing: “Problem setting is a process in which we name the things to which we will attend and frame the context in which we will attend to them.” (p. 52)
• “Exploratory experiment is the probing, playful activity by which we get a feel for things.” (p. 171)
• Move-testing: “Each move is a local experiment which contributes to the global experiment of reframing the problem.” (p. 112) / “Moves produce effects beyond those intended.” (p. 172)
• Improvisation: “Improvisation consists in varying, combining, and recombining a set of figures within the schema which bounds and gives coherence to the performance.” (p. 70)
• Design Thinking: “A designer shapes the situation, the situation talks back, and the designer reflects on the back-talk.” Schön emphasizing the iterative and interactive nature of design.
• Reflective Conversations: Professionals engage in “reflective conversations” not only with clients but also with materials, situations, and unexpected outcomes.
• Virtual Worlds are “Symbolic representations used by professionals to simulate, test, and communicate complex ideas.” Schön believes drawings, and narratives help practitioners simulate, test, and communicate ideas.
• “Virtual worlds are contexts for experiment within which practitioners can suspend or control some of the everyday impediments to rigorous reflection-in-action.” (p. 191) - These worlds create space for experimentation and rigorous reflection
• Exemplars: “A practitioner’s repertoire includes the whole of his experience insofar as it is accessible to him for understanding and action.” (p. 163).
• Exemplars (previous cases or solutions) guide action but can limit creativity if overly relied upon. Reflective practitioners use them as starting points while remaining open to reframing problems.
• Surprise: “Surprise triggers reflection-in-action, challenging assumptions and prompting experimentation.”
• Generative Metaphors unlock new ways of seeing and solving problems:
  “Paintbrush as pump was a generative metaphor in the sense that it generated new perceptions, explanations, and inventions.” (p. 216)
• Meta-Reflection: “When a practitioner does not reflect on his own inquiry, he keeps his intuitive understandings tacit.” By reflecting more formally on your practice and creative problem-solving, you make your professional action and decision-making explicit and can iterative and improve.
• Reflective Practice as a Learning System: “The reflective practitioner tries to discover the limits of his expertise through reflective conversation with the client.” (p. 339)
• “The idea of reflective practice leads to new conceptions of the professional-client contract, the partnership of research and practice, and the learning systems of professional institutions.” (p. 395)

Concluding Thoughts:

What distinguishes a skilled practitioner from someone who is merely proficient in their field?

In The Reflective Practitioner, Schön argues that the answer lies in the “artistry” of professional practice. He challenges the notion that expertise is solely the product of technical mastery. Instead, he advocates for the reflection, experimentation, and creative decision-making in navigating the complexities of real-world situations.

How do professionals adapt their knowledge and skills to unique problems?

Modern expert professionals are able to reflect and learn in the moment while you are doing the work. They look to past exemplars but not simply for an answer but in order to enact a deeper process of seeing patterns, drawing on past experiences and reframing. Instead of possessing all the answers, an expert knows different ways to see the situation, what questions to ask and how to approach the problem.

What are limits to Schön’s model reflection-on-action?

Modern professionals face significant barriers to reflection. They are often expected to project confidence and provide immediate answers, even when uncertainty is inevitable. Admitting doubt feels risky, especially in front of bosses, clients, or peers, where it may be mistaken for incompetence.

Time pressures also make reflection challenging. The fast pace of work often resembles a constant firefighting drill, leaving little room for curiosity or thoughtful problem-solving.

Organizations can further stifle reflection by prioritizing quick fixes or the so-called “right” solution over open exploration of uncertainties and simulating possible virtual worlds. In such environments, uncertainty may be perceived as a lack of expertise, potentially jeopardizing your career too.

Finally, the myth that professionals must have all the answers can isolate them from collaborative solution-finding. By excluding clients, teammates, and others, they miss opportunities for creative iteration, a process often critical to discovering the best and most holistic solutions.

What are key lessons modern professionals can take away from this book and apply in their work practices?

According to Schön, modern professionals should strive to:

1. Embrace Uncertainty: Our work and creative projects often involve involve messy, uncertain situations. Stay curious, open to reframing problems and asking questions, rather than seeking immediate, definitive solutions (from the internet or AI!).
2. Cultivate Reflection: Work and art isn’t just about what you do or how you solve problems but demands a reflective practice. Take time to reflect and build a habit of reflection-in-action in order to adapt and learn during your work and creative practice. Even when you are under time pressure or uncertainty, these reflective practice might offer alternative paths and novel solutions.
3. Leverage and Trust Tacit Knowledge: Even though it might not be from your training or found in a textbook, trust your intuitive and experiential knowledge. Not all solutions can be made explicit. Embrace your expert, creative instincts as a foundation for creative problem-solving.
4. Engage in Exploration: The playful “what if?” is incredibly powerful question to answer yourself and your projects regularly. Use experimentation and simulation asking to probe, test, and refine solutions iteratively, before and as you act.
5. Collaborate Creatively: Even if you are the so-called expert, welcome clients, peers, and others into your problem-solving process. New voices and perspective can help you generate better, more innovative outcomes, and it can also invite a strong collaborative creative community in your work or art.

💡 If you’re ready to bring reflection to your creative or professional practices, Stay Reflective offers guided reflection journeys to help you get started. It’s got lots of reflection starters and each exercise comes with dynamic and personalized follow-up questions.

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