There are so many fantastic sources of inspiration on the internet and so many talented people around that it would be really strange to hear someone saying that they can’t get inspired.
From sites like Ffffound, Dropular, NOTCOT and sites on the Cargo Collective not to mention here at MONOmoda, there’s an overwhelming array of images, ideas and creativity at your disposal. And that’s exactly the problem. At times it can be overwhelming even.
In a situation like this, the question to ask would be, how much is too much? With all the images and techniques and ideas one can rapidly find themselves with too many options, too many links, ideas and ways in which they can proceed that the whole process of taking in inspiration instead becomes a paralysis to creativity.
Of course not everybody has this issue, as they are able to focus in only on the things that are relevant or of interest to them. But for the rest of us who feel like a kid in a candystore when we open up our design blog RSS feeds or go to our favourite websites every morning, it might be a good idea to moderate our intake of inspiration.
It’s easy to become so enamoured with other people’s work and ideas that your mind becomes too heavy to work on its own. You find yourself needing more and more inspiration, but actually creating less. I call this the ‘visual chocolate’ effect.
One way round this would ‘look a little, think a little’. Take in a little dose of new images, ideas etc, then hit the sketchbook. I find alternating between new ideas and my Moleskine creates a flow where I am still creating, learning and opening my mind, rather than just watching other people create.
In summary, if you find yourself creating less and less, or creating nothing at all and permanently in a state of creative block or creative unrest, the problem might not be that you have too little inspiration, but rather that you have too much!
If you remember just to look a little then think a little, you’ll be on your way to striking a healthy balance between being inspired and being over-inspired.
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Quite interesting that in the ‘You might also like:’ there was an item for ‘Improving your inspiration’.
I think that the key here is finding a balance. If you’re feeling the need to look for more and more inspiration, then you’re clearly not giving due attention to that which you’ve already peered at.
A good study of any design is sure to set off a few fireworks in any designer’s head, so if you’re constantly pursuing more excellent designs, then your probably not paying much attention.
I think as a community we’re very lucky to have so many forms of finding relative inspiration, so we certainly can’t complain we’re being bombarded!
Thanks for your comment Russell. That does raise an interesting issue regarding the speed at which work is consumed on the internet. Something that could have taken weeks can be glossed over in mere seconds (or less). I wouldn’t say we’re being bombarded if we actually are the ones who go looking for those sites… I suppose there’s a difference between going to these sites merely to look at design work, in which case it’s fine to take as much as you like and look at as much as you like. My point was relating to looking for inspiration in order to create new things, and becoming so excited and interested in what is out there that you find it difficult to concentrate on one idea etc. Two ends of a scale!