Inspiration Sucks

I’ve seen a lot of people start their process by trying to get inpsired before they begin to create, then finding that what they produce feels samey or familiar and that they lack direction after fleshing out the initial concept. In this post I want to propose a solution to that.

The Secenario

So you’ve got a new project, you’ve talked with your client and understood what they’ve wanted. You then visit your favourite CSS galleries in search of some fresh inspiration to help get your creative juices going. It’s like the coffee you have with breakfast, it gets you ready for the day.

After visiting these gallieries for a considerable amount of time with no real goal or purpose, you set about designing what you’ve agreed to do for your client. Fast-forward to a few days later and you look at what you created in disgust, you no longer like your design and you’re sick of looking at it. You then continue to surf the same galleries, comparing what you find to the work you did only a few days ago, and it doesn’t look as good.

Repeat.

You’re doing it wrong.

Take a step back and think about what you’re doing. Are you really solving a problem with design or are you just looking at what others have created, taking it at face value, and then creating something roughly based on many of the designs you’ve just seen? That right there isn’t inspiration. Inspiration is a feeling that makes you perk up and want to create something. It’s something that you have to act on immediately, not something that can you can force upon yourself by browsing through vairous galleries.

A better approach would begin with understanding the project. Don’t just let your client explain the project to you, actively question them about it. They aren’t the designer, you are, they wont be able to give you all the information you’re going to need because they don’t know what information you need. Understanding what you’re designing is the most important part of the process, otherwise you’ll be providing a solution to the wrong problem.

The next step is where inspiration galleries would fit in—if at all. After understanding the task at hand, you’ll probably have some questions that you need to answer for yourself. Questions like “What is the best way to approach this type of functionality?”, “How have other people solved this specific problem and is their solution any good?”, and “What are the best ways to make this element stand out?”. While galleries wont be able to answer all your questions, it’s a good way of seeing how others have approached similar and specific problems. You are no longer searching for inspiration, but researching specific things that are relevant to what you’re doing. You’re there with a purpose and a goal.

Trying to force inspiration doesn’t work. If you’re inspired, awesome, seize the moment and go create something, right now, really, do it now. If you aren’t, then start the process logically instead of striving to be inspired.