I would like to share with you some thoughts about my way of finding an inspiration and stay creative and how I capture and process my design ideas.

As you know ideas come to us in the most unexpected moments of our lives that is why you need to be prepared to capture them before they go away. Here how I do it:

I carry a small notebook and pen wherever I go. This simple step will let you capture your ideas whenever you are not at home or your design studio. You will be able to review your ideas later

I also capture my ideas using modern media devices. Smartphones allow you to take decent pictures and record videos as well as capture your voice.

Do not rely on one medium though because electronic devices tend to let us down sometimes.For example the bttery might go unexpectedly flat or there is not enough memory. So always keep something alternative. Camera and notebook or voicerecorder and an Iphone.

Keep your ideas in separate folders. I use following categories to store my design content: logos, graphics, product design, future visions. It is very easy to get quick access to the specific project instantly without hassle when I need to.

Review your ideas from time to time. I allocate a certain amount of time only to reviewing my old materials. Very often in this process I come up with some new ideas that are even better that the original ones.

Convert your physical sketches, notes in to digital format. I have come up with much faster and more effective way of convertig projects from a paper to digital format. I use a digital camera instead of a scanner that takes time to warm up and it is very time consuming to use. I also recommend using an image browser that allows you to tag each photo or add a small descrption so that access to your project is much faster.

Where do I find an inspiration?

The best way to find the inspiration is to leave your work enviroment. Go for a walk, start running, cycling. Just stay away from your present work environment. Most of my cool ideas came when I was on the move.The change of your environment can stimulate your brain and generate some new ideas related to places you are going to.

Listen to what other creative people have to say, read books, find out how other people do things and learn from their experiences. I personally listen to audiobooks instead of reading because it allows me to leave my work place and do something else at the same time like going for a walk or run.

What is your creative process? I am interested in finding out what are your ways of expanding your creativity. Leave a comment.