Designing for Awe & Wonder: Design Deep Dive

Level 500: Harvesting | 5-Week Deep Dive

Research by Dacher Keltner at UC Berkeley demonstrates that awe reduces inflammation markers, increases generosity, expands time perception, and fosters connection to something greater than the self. Guests in awe-states spend more freely, perceive experiences as longer, and attribute greater value to their journey. Awe is a design objective with measurable outcomes.

Over five weeks, explore the eight sources of awe, the neuroscience of wonder, and how to design moments of elevation that dissolve boundaries between self and world. You will build a complete Awe & Wonder Design Guide for your specific context, peer-reviewed and refined through the cohort. Facilitated by Jake Haupert.

Modules

Module 1: The Science of Awe (Sessions 1-2, Jun 2 and 4): Keltner’s eight sources of awe: moral beauty, collective effervescence, nature, music, visual design, spirituality, life and death, and epiphany. The neuroscience of wonder and what happens in the brain and body during encounters with vastness. Working exercise: audit your current offerings for awe moments, identifying where elevation already exists and where it is left to chance.

Module 2: Ethical Elevation Design (Sessions 3-4, Jun 9 and 11): The difference between invitation and manipulation in awe design. Designing for vulnerability and openness without exploiting it. The role of ceremony, ritual, and collective effervescence. Cultural sensitivity across contexts. Working exercise: design three awe moments for your offering drawing from nature, human connection, and contrast. Peer feedback on ethical boundaries.

Module 3: Applied Design Techniques (Sessions 5-6, Jun 16 and 18): Integrating surprise, mystery, and white-space into itineraries and experiences. Moments of elevation, connection, and contrast as design elements within the broader PATH framework. The rhythm of intensity and rest that allows wonder to land. Working exercise: map a complete experience arc with awe touchpoints using TTC’s itinerary checklist.

Peer Review Week (Jun 23-25): Independent peer review of your Design Guide draft. Each participant reviews two peers’ guides and provides written feedback on design quality, ethical considerations, and practical feasibility. Integration Workshop available Thu Jun 25 for those exploring post-experience design.

Module 4: Final Presentations (Sessions 7-8, Jun 30 and Jul 2): Present your completed Awe & Wonder Design Guide. Faculty and peer feedback. Refinement discussion. Closing integration: how you carry this work into your next season.

What You Walk Away With:

An Awe & Wonder Design Guide containing research-backed principles for each of the eight sources of awe, applied design techniques mapped to your specific offerings, a portfolio of elevation moments with ethical guidelines, and an experience arc template with awe touchpoints you can replicate across your work.

Investment: $1,000 | $750 Members

Designing for Awe & Wonder: Design Deep Dive

$1,000.00

Research by Dacher Keltner at UC Berkeley demonstrates that awe reduces inflammation markers, increases generosity, expands time perception, and fosters connection to something greater than the self. Guests in awe-states spend more freely, perceive experiences as longer, and attribute greater value to their journey. Awe is a design objective with measurable outcomes.

Over five weeks, explore the eight sources of awe, the neuroscience of wonder, and how to design moments of elevation that dissolve boundaries between self and world. You will build a complete Awe & Wonder Design Guide for your specific context, peer-reviewed and refined through the cohort. Facilitated by Jake Haupert.

Enroll In Deep Dive