By Katie Weeks
Maintaining your creative drive is hard work. So what happens when you run out of inspirational fuel? Whether you’ve hit a creative roadblock or simply want to drag your brain out of a rut, give us a week and we’ll get your creative gears turning.
Day 1
Create a smile file. Collect things that make you laugh or think harder. Clip magazine articles, cartoons or cool announcements and keep them together for instant inspiration.
Day 2
Play “What If.” The goal of this game is to think of the most outlandish situations possible. What if paper were outlawed? The more outlandish the scenario, the better.
Day 3
Buy three magazines you normally wouldn’t give a second glance. Consider the following questions: How does each magazine visually tackle its subject matter? How do they aesthetically connect with their audiences? What does each do differently?
Day 4
“Designers should do whatever they need to do to clear themselves-whatever they can do to be able to listen-to hear their own intuition. The creative process always works; in our lives, it gets over-ridden by other stuff.”
-Petrula Vrontikis, Vrontikis Design Office, LA
Day 5
Get out. Drive, walk, run, bike. Do anything that takes you somewhere new and then explore your surroundings.
Day 6
Take a long shower or bath. You’ll be surprised at what comes to mind when you’re too soapy to write it down.
Day 7
“Stay up late. Strange things happen when you’ve gone too far, been up too long, worked too hard, and you’re separated from the rest of the world.”
-Bruce Mau, Bruce Mau Design, Toronto
Related Links
– Creative Squiggles Exercise Promotes Creativity
– Start A Creativity Journal
– Design: No School Like The Old School
– Creative’s Top 10 Reasons For Underbilling
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