Digithoughts

Whether you've been in the business for a year or 20 years, chances are you've sat in front of a blank screen thinking, "what's next?!" without a clue to the answer. I've seen designers stare at a logo on the screen for half a day while trying to come up with that BIG idea. Every designer is different and there is no holy grail that works for everybody. But there are exercises and practices that may help alleviate the situation.

Just Start Moving
Of the lessons learned along the way, the most useful one I've ever found was discovered in my creative writing courses in college. I'd spend hour upon hour tapping my pencil on an empty notebook just trying figure out where to begin the story. The important thing to remember is just to begin. There is no reason to fear commitment in the early phase of the project. Inertia is powerful and you feel the momentum swing often while working, but it takes a first step.

Sketch Sketch Sketch
There is no tool more useful in the designer’s toolbox than a sketchbook. Sometimes it is the best excuse to step away from your computer and all of the eyestrain inducing distraction that comes with it. Put the pencil to the paper and work it out there.

Bottoms Up
I don't mean go drinking (although I've hashed out many ideas over a pint or two). What I mean is start at the bottom of the page and work up (or backwards). There is so much emphasis on establishing the brand at the top of the page to make a strong visual impact. But by starting at the bottom of the page it can ease some of the pressure and allow you to get moving. Similarly, this is true when drawing. Sometimes, in order to focus on the raw shapes of the subject itself, you flip it upside down.

Inspiration Time Trial
Designers are always looking at examples of design, both good and bad. There are a number of great resources out there for finding newly launched and fresh samples of interactive design, but I recommend this option with a big caveat, don't do it to just waste time. Give yourself a short deadline and some direction. Instead of just looking for great examples of design, look for things that are more specific (i.e. competitors, eCommerce design, pro bono examples...) and stick to your deadline. It's really easy to fall into the rabbit hole and find you've wasted the whole day in no better shape than where you began.

Trace
If you have a wireframe, simply start by getting it into Photoshop. It doesn't have to be detailed and you don't have to work in color, it can be in black and white. In the end you'll have all of the content you need to design. Chances are by the time you're done, you'll have come up with a few different ideas on how to treat the content that you may not have considered in the beginning.

Boxes & Lines
I touched on this in my last example. If you don't have a wireframe, make one. I probably shouldn't have to tell you this, but I still hear about people skipping the wireframe process all the time. The more complex the project, the more crucial and detailed the wireframe. If you aren't spending the time to make them, or have them made by qualified user-experience designers, chances are you are spending twice as much time designing.

Creatives, being the fastidious lot we are, we all have our own paths to get over the hurdle. No matter how many sites we notch into our bedpost there will always be times when we get stumped, but there are solutions out there. These are a few that work for me.

Michael Jackson Art Director

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