Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Friday, July 25, 2008
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Anothr Great Article from Freelance Switch
How to Upgrade Your Skill-level in 24 Hours
Matthew Yarde
You’re at an interview for a project. Your potential client decides to select you for the job. Better still, they are willing to give you double the rate you had requested.
As you walk out of the meeting feeling confident about winning the project, you hear your inner voice start to nag you about a few small details. By the time you walk out of the building, you realize something: there’s a certain thing they asked you to do that requires a skill you haven’t mastered yet… and the project is due in 24 hours.
I’ve run into this problem a few times in my life. I accepted projects without really knowing if I could finish them. And yet, all of these projects helped pushed me to the next level. Nowadays, I understand why I was able to advance myself through that pressure: by using Parkinson’s Law.
According to Wikipedia, the law holds that “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.” This means that when given a limited amount of time, your focuses increases, and you’re forced to give attention only to what you need to do. By using this powerful law, you’ll be able to perform your best work.
You can also use this same law to increase your skill level.
Before we get started, I’m assuming that you want to improve your skills and you have a good idea of a skill that you want to tackle. Also, you must realize that this should be a skill that you need to have, not something you would “like to have”.
This practice can be applied not just to freelancing work, but to anything you need to learn very quickly. However, I’m not recommending that you deliberately take on projects above your skill-level in the hope that Parkinson’s Law will save your butt. While useful in emergency situations, it’s best applied carefully and deliberately, following the steps outlined below to increase your skill level in 24-hours:
* Give yourself a project that requires you to mix your old skills and at least two new skills.
By mixing your old skills along with at least two new skills, your mind will retain this information faster than if you were to focus on just the new skills alone. Some people make the mistake of focusing on just the new items when you actually need to mix it up with your old skills. Hence why I call this an “upgrade”; you’re improving your old skills and “renewing them” so to speak, while also practicing new skills.
* Mark a day in your calender that you will dedicate to this project.
It can be later in the week. It can be two weeks from now. It can even be a month from now. The more time you give yourself, the more likely you’ll forget about it. Make sure to schedule a day where you know you’ll be able to work on this project. A weekend day is probably best. Once you write down a date, stay committed to that project date. Select a time for when you’ll start work on the project and remember this well… 24 hours later, that project better be finished!
* Study for this project at your own pace.
Now, study for your project… slowly. Do this at your own pace and only study a little bit at a time. Familiarize yourself with your materials. Search for tutorials and examples. Remember to study for at least 15-30 minutes each day until the project is completed.
* Remind yourself about the project every day.
While you are studying and before you go to bed, remind yourself about the project. Tell yourself that you will finish it to the best of your ability.
* Once the day arrives, commit to finishing.
Finally, the day is here. Now, you have 24 hours committed to the project and you’ve got to finish it or bust your gut trying.
Why have I setup guidelines like this? Here’s the secret behind my madness:
By writing down and confirming your project day, you are setting up a brain-trigger. Your mind will start to mentally prepare you for that day. By studying just a little each day, your mind will begin to organize itself.
When you give yourself reminders about the project, this adds more power to your studying. Right now, you may not understand the material. You may even half-understand it. But on the day of the project, your mind will give you a razor sharp focus, pushing aside all the minor things and bringing to the fore what it already knows about putting this project together.
And what if you didn’t study? The added stress will force you to study the rest of the material and you will retain the information better. This is where the magic of Parkinson’s Law comes into play, except it’s a “controlled stress”. It’s the type of stress that will help you focus better and within 24 hours, your current skill-level will be upgraded by the time you finish the project.
Would you like to improve your results? Try these fun suggestions in addition to the guidelines I’ve set:
* Make a bet with a friend. Have a friend assign you the project and place something for value up for grabs. Now, when I say “of value”, it has to be a value of you. For example, if you win the bet, he’ll take you out to dinner, but if you lose the bet, you’ll have to give him $300. Why does your friend get the lower end while you lose more? To add more of a “do or die” element to your mission.
* Make it a barter. Put up a barter ad on Craigslist and ask for an item in exchange for doing a project that will focus on the new skill you want to learn. Make sure that when you barter to explain what it is you are trying to do. 9 times out of 10, people will actually want to help you out with your mission to better yourself… especially if they get a high quality product out of it.
Before I conclude this article, there is one thing I would like to tell you about. That’s the project date. What if you can’t commit to that date after you write it down? Well, there are two ways to go about it:
* Shorten the timeline. Do NOT extend it.
If you extend the timeline, you will only put it off and your mind will get lazy. By shortening the timeline your mind will be focused on the project more than ever.Or…
* Stick with the deadline and follow through!
No matter what, life WILL get in the way of your projects sometimes. Thus, you must find a way to make sure the project gets done AND deal with whatever life throws at you. Learning a new skill is never easy. However, by sticking to a goal you set for yourself, you will probably learn more than a new skill. You’ll learn something about yourself. So, stick with it, no matter what!
If you choose to take this challenge, good luck!
Matthew “Nukirk Digi-tal” Yarde is a freelance web designer always looking for ways to improve his skills. In his spare time, he maintains a social commentary/entertainment/productivity blog, Life-Remixed.com and a performs as a hip-hop/spoken word artist.
Matthew Yarde
You’re at an interview for a project. Your potential client decides to select you for the job. Better still, they are willing to give you double the rate you had requested.
As you walk out of the meeting feeling confident about winning the project, you hear your inner voice start to nag you about a few small details. By the time you walk out of the building, you realize something: there’s a certain thing they asked you to do that requires a skill you haven’t mastered yet… and the project is due in 24 hours.
I’ve run into this problem a few times in my life. I accepted projects without really knowing if I could finish them. And yet, all of these projects helped pushed me to the next level. Nowadays, I understand why I was able to advance myself through that pressure: by using Parkinson’s Law.
According to Wikipedia, the law holds that “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.” This means that when given a limited amount of time, your focuses increases, and you’re forced to give attention only to what you need to do. By using this powerful law, you’ll be able to perform your best work.
You can also use this same law to increase your skill level.
Before we get started, I’m assuming that you want to improve your skills and you have a good idea of a skill that you want to tackle. Also, you must realize that this should be a skill that you need to have, not something you would “like to have”.
This practice can be applied not just to freelancing work, but to anything you need to learn very quickly. However, I’m not recommending that you deliberately take on projects above your skill-level in the hope that Parkinson’s Law will save your butt. While useful in emergency situations, it’s best applied carefully and deliberately, following the steps outlined below to increase your skill level in 24-hours:
* Give yourself a project that requires you to mix your old skills and at least two new skills.
By mixing your old skills along with at least two new skills, your mind will retain this information faster than if you were to focus on just the new skills alone. Some people make the mistake of focusing on just the new items when you actually need to mix it up with your old skills. Hence why I call this an “upgrade”; you’re improving your old skills and “renewing them” so to speak, while also practicing new skills.
* Mark a day in your calender that you will dedicate to this project.
It can be later in the week. It can be two weeks from now. It can even be a month from now. The more time you give yourself, the more likely you’ll forget about it. Make sure to schedule a day where you know you’ll be able to work on this project. A weekend day is probably best. Once you write down a date, stay committed to that project date. Select a time for when you’ll start work on the project and remember this well… 24 hours later, that project better be finished!
* Study for this project at your own pace.
Now, study for your project… slowly. Do this at your own pace and only study a little bit at a time. Familiarize yourself with your materials. Search for tutorials and examples. Remember to study for at least 15-30 minutes each day until the project is completed.
* Remind yourself about the project every day.
While you are studying and before you go to bed, remind yourself about the project. Tell yourself that you will finish it to the best of your ability.
* Once the day arrives, commit to finishing.
Finally, the day is here. Now, you have 24 hours committed to the project and you’ve got to finish it or bust your gut trying.Why have I setup guidelines like this? Here’s the secret behind my madness:
By writing down and confirming your project day, you are setting up a brain-trigger. Your mind will start to mentally prepare you for that day. By studying just a little each day, your mind will begin to organize itself.
When you give yourself reminders about the project, this adds more power to your studying. Right now, you may not understand the material. You may even half-understand it. But on the day of the project, your mind will give you a razor sharp focus, pushing aside all the minor things and bringing to the fore what it already knows about putting this project together.
And what if you didn’t study? The added stress will force you to study the rest of the material and you will retain the information better. This is where the magic of Parkinson’s Law comes into play, except it’s a “controlled stress”. It’s the type of stress that will help you focus better and within 24 hours, your current skill-level will be upgraded by the time you finish the project.
Would you like to improve your results? Try these fun suggestions in addition to the guidelines I’ve set:
* Make a bet with a friend. Have a friend assign you the project and place something for value up for grabs. Now, when I say “of value”, it has to be a value of you. For example, if you win the bet, he’ll take you out to dinner, but if you lose the bet, you’ll have to give him $300. Why does your friend get the lower end while you lose more? To add more of a “do or die” element to your mission.
* Make it a barter. Put up a barter ad on Craigslist and ask for an item in exchange for doing a project that will focus on the new skill you want to learn. Make sure that when you barter to explain what it is you are trying to do. 9 times out of 10, people will actually want to help you out with your mission to better yourself… especially if they get a high quality product out of it.
Before I conclude this article, there is one thing I would like to tell you about. That’s the project date. What if you can’t commit to that date after you write it down? Well, there are two ways to go about it:
* Shorten the timeline. Do NOT extend it.
If you extend the timeline, you will only put it off and your mind will get lazy. By shortening the timeline your mind will be focused on the project more than ever.Or…
* Stick with the deadline and follow through!
No matter what, life WILL get in the way of your projects sometimes. Thus, you must find a way to make sure the project gets done AND deal with whatever life throws at you. Learning a new skill is never easy. However, by sticking to a goal you set for yourself, you will probably learn more than a new skill. You’ll learn something about yourself. So, stick with it, no matter what!
If you choose to take this challenge, good luck!
Matthew “Nukirk Digi-tal” Yarde is a freelance web designer always looking for ways to improve his skills. In his spare time, he maintains a social commentary/entertainment/productivity blog, Life-Remixed.com and a performs as a hip-hop/spoken word artist.
20 Ways to Avoid Creative Block When You are a Graphic Designer
by Blake Phillips || Art Director || Vibra Design
As a designer everyone has experienced a point where they just can no longer think of anything worth while. It’s in these situations when you have to reevaluate your perception of what works and what doesn’t. Use the following 20 tips to avoid and get through a tough designer's block.
1. TAKE PHOTOGRAPHY
Almost all graphic designers have a camera with them, so why not use it? Can’t find that perfect texture or color? That’s fine, go out and take a picture of what you need. You may find inspiration in a very uncommon place. Be sure to take plenty of pictures, not just a few, then return to your office and review them to recall special feelings or smells from those memories.
Huge List of Free Stock Photography on the Net
2. CALL A FRIEND
Sometimes all it takes is a friend to say something worthwhile. Call your friend(s) and discuss past events to help you recall something enjoyable, being in the right set of mind is what it’s all about, and friends bring you out of the “working mode” and into a much more pleasant frame of mind. Remember not to call them and interrupt them when they are at work as it may work the opposite way in that case.
3. FLIP THROUGH DESIGN BOOKS
There are a ton of books out there that were made just for people that have designer’s block. The authors of most of these books have compiled huge amounts of graphi design work into one comprehensive picture book. These are often sorted to help you find a specific idea or theme. Just don’t underestimate the power of any ole' books, even novels, comic books, and short stories can also help get you out of slump. Here is a great list of graphic design books.
4. READ TUTORIALS
Most tutorials are out there for people who want to learn about design, layout, graphics and illustration software, but for graphic designers it can also be used to brush up on old techniques or to see the newest trends. These sites also often contain links to samples of how the tutorial was used in context of an actual design piece. With the latest design suites, it’s often impossible to learn every new feature of a new software and these tutorials can also help show you what it new and useful with a software update. Here is a huge list of Tutorial Sites.
5. VISIT INSPIRATIONAL WEBSITES
It’s almost a given that you know about a whole range of inspirational sites that you frequent for ideas. However, going into these sites is almost a guaranteed way to break a difficult graphic designer’s block. Also, don’t go to the same inspirational sites all the time, but instead try to find new ones, as the process alone could spark the idea of what you were looking for. Here is a great list of 180+ of the top sites that list inspirational designs.
6. CREATE ART FOR PERSONAL USE
The key to staying sharp and up-to-date is to frequently produce art for just yourself. Practicing is really the key to perfection. Not only will you become more proficient with design software, but you will also come across new ways to do the same thing, in turn creating something entirely new and unique. Use these personal projects in your office to recreate those techniques for a client.
7. SPEAK WITH COLLEAGUES
Not everyone will be able to do this as many of the readers of this article are freelancers. But if you are in an office environment, speak to colleagues when time permits and if they’re not busy. Often you can have small quick brainstorming sessions that may help you to open your mind to a new focus. Colleagues can also help to relieve a lot of tension and stress built of from not being able to think about new designs ideas. If you don't work in an office environment, you probably have online peers who are also designers. Chat, skype, or email them to ask for help or to just talk.
8. WATCH A FUNNY MOVIE OR VIDEO
Laughter is truly the best medicine. Whether it is within a group or by yourself, laughter will help relax you and has been thought to stimulate current parts of the brain that control a person’s artistic and cognitive abilities. Use this fact to your advantage and don’t be afraid to really let it out. A few chuckles is good, but a real good “knee-slapping” laugh is even better.
9. DOODLE IN A SKETCHBOOK
All graphic designers doodle as it’s a habit that you have probably been doing since you were in school instead of listening to your teachers. Doodling can often help you focus and think freely. Instead of trying to create something with a purpose, you simply let your mind create something. Forcing creativity can often drain a graphic designer quickly of any good ideas they might have had. Sometimes it is just better to just let everything go and draw freely.
10. LISTEN TO MUSIC
Music is food for the soul, and also a graphic designer’s mind. You may find that listening to certain types of music may cause you to design a certain way, whether it be hard rock to create a grunge design, or acoustic jam for those soft elegant designs. Use the mental “flow” you get from music to your advantage and it will set up your entire session. Something even better is if you are a musician, step away and play some music. All the same rules apply except that it sparks a creative part of your brain and will help get rid of that nasty designer's block.
11. FIND A SEPARATE HOBBY
Being on the computer all day long, everyday, can be excruciating. Don’t let it happen to you. Instead, find a hobby that has absolutely nothing to do with graphic design or being creative or artistic. Hobbies such as fishing, camping, collecting, billiards, chess, or working out are great ways to relax your mind. Trying to be creative all day is too stressful and you will quickly burn-out as you need a way to completely step away sometimes.
12. TAKE A STEP OUTSIDE
Probably the most widely used method of trying to get rid of designer’s block is to just to take a quick stroll outside. The problem lies within us. Most graphic designers step outside expecting ideas to come out of them. In other words, by doing that, you are not taking a break. Just step outside, smells some fresh air, listen to the birds, and enjoy the feeling of just being with nature. Ignore everything except what you can see, smell, or hear. Then you can step back into your office and feel refreshed.
13. WRITE POETRY OR PROSE
Often as a graphic designer you run across an idea or phrase that gets stuck in your head. Use that, write a short poem about it. Flex those verbal muscles. Language is within a different part of the mind that thinks about words so you can work them hard and it will still let your design muscles rest. This is a way to get rid of designer’s block and plays very nicely into the next method.
14. LOOK UP SYNONYMS OR ANTONYMS
In your quest to write an amazing piece of literature, you may find that you lack a correct way to say something. When this happens, you should use a thesaurus. Finding related words will often help you look at the same thing with a different spin, and finding antonyms can help you narrow your ideas. Maybe buy a “word-a-day” calenda. This is a great way to keep your vocabulary fresh and they are also pretty good conversational pieces.
15. GO FOR A DRIVE
If weather permits, go out to your car, roll down the windows (or sunroof), and just take a cruise around the countryside or within the heart of the city. Just try to drive somewhere you don’t normally go, find new back roads, or get lost somewhere. Listen to some music while you are driving as well, it’s a win-win situation really, but just make sure you don’t get too lost, you’ll eventually have to come back to the office.
16. VISIT THE LOCAL COFFEE SHOP
Yes, that means Starbucks too. Coffee has caffeine and as most people know, caffeine can help stimulate the brain (when used in small quantities). However, don’t sit inside the coffee shop, but rather sit outside and enjoy the weather and bring a pencil and paper as well. Use the sights and sounds to help sketch out ideas for your design and you will find that you can think better if you are not really trying to think at all. In addition to all of that the caffeine you are drinking, you should focus your mind on a particlar thought. Just don’t drink caffeine in excess as it can lead to addiction with many nasty side-effects.
17. WORK IN PUZZLE BOOKS
These little workbooks are great and using them will increase your focus and help you process thoughts and ideas more effeciently. Solving problems is the job of a graphic designer and anything you can use to help with your problem-solving abilities is a must. There are also puzzle books that will help with proof-reading and error-checking as graphic designers need to have the ability to check over their own work and notice small differences with shapes and colors.
18. SLEEP ON IT
Sleeping does many things, such as increases energy, enhances focus, and helps memorization (just to name a few). It helps graphic designers by allowing them to think about something without actually thinking about it. Most of the time, coming back to a design layout the next morning is the best way to look at something with fresh eyes. You will also find that you can judge your work much better with a fresh look at your design. It will also help you determine if it still portrays the message the way that you had wanted it to. Naps are also another way. Eat while you are working and use your lunchtime to take a nap in the car. You will find that this helps boost your creativity a noticeable amount.
19. LOOK FOR INTERESTING OR NEW FONTS
Finding fonts is a pretty fun thing for graphic designers as it creates this sense of “What can I use this for?” in their mind. Fonts spark ideas for layouts and sometimes designers actually base an entire design on a font that they have found. Also, most really creative fonts include design elements within the lettering and ligature that can be used in an entire layout as shapes and backgrounds. make sure sure you have a good font management program as well as your font collection can get pretty big. Here is a humongous list of free font sites.
20. STRAIGHTEN UP YOUR OFFICE
Having a clean environment is very conducive to your creativity. Clutter across a desk is the same as cluttering your thoughts. Organize your desk and your mind, file away old projects, put together doodles into one folder, keep hard-copies of all work on the wall or desk, and just get comfortable. Which brings up another point ... working in an ergonomic environment. Try not to sit too far away, above, or below your keyboard and monitor, make sure your monitor has the correct refresh rates and resolution, your chair should have proper lumbar support as well as plenty of cushion, and have lighting other than flourescent bulbs.
Remember this, if you are going to try any of these techniques, do not perform them expecting positive results every time. The trick is to really let your mind wander in different directions, because if you are trying too hard to be creative, then it will never work. If you have any suggestions or additions to these, please feel free to leave a comment and I will try and put it in the article. Here is another article about The Best Ways That Graphic Designers Can Overcome Their Creative Block.
As a designer everyone has experienced a point where they just can no longer think of anything worth while. It’s in these situations when you have to reevaluate your perception of what works and what doesn’t. Use the following 20 tips to avoid and get through a tough designer's block.
1. TAKE PHOTOGRAPHY
Almost all graphic designers have a camera with them, so why not use it? Can’t find that perfect texture or color? That’s fine, go out and take a picture of what you need. You may find inspiration in a very uncommon place. Be sure to take plenty of pictures, not just a few, then return to your office and review them to recall special feelings or smells from those memories.
Huge List of Free Stock Photography on the Net
2. CALL A FRIEND
Sometimes all it takes is a friend to say something worthwhile. Call your friend(s) and discuss past events to help you recall something enjoyable, being in the right set of mind is what it’s all about, and friends bring you out of the “working mode” and into a much more pleasant frame of mind. Remember not to call them and interrupt them when they are at work as it may work the opposite way in that case.
3. FLIP THROUGH DESIGN BOOKS
There are a ton of books out there that were made just for people that have designer’s block. The authors of most of these books have compiled huge amounts of graphi design work into one comprehensive picture book. These are often sorted to help you find a specific idea or theme. Just don’t underestimate the power of any ole' books, even novels, comic books, and short stories can also help get you out of slump. Here is a great list of graphic design books.
4. READ TUTORIALS
Most tutorials are out there for people who want to learn about design, layout, graphics and illustration software, but for graphic designers it can also be used to brush up on old techniques or to see the newest trends. These sites also often contain links to samples of how the tutorial was used in context of an actual design piece. With the latest design suites, it’s often impossible to learn every new feature of a new software and these tutorials can also help show you what it new and useful with a software update. Here is a huge list of Tutorial Sites.
5. VISIT INSPIRATIONAL WEBSITES
It’s almost a given that you know about a whole range of inspirational sites that you frequent for ideas. However, going into these sites is almost a guaranteed way to break a difficult graphic designer’s block. Also, don’t go to the same inspirational sites all the time, but instead try to find new ones, as the process alone could spark the idea of what you were looking for. Here is a great list of 180+ of the top sites that list inspirational designs.
6. CREATE ART FOR PERSONAL USE
The key to staying sharp and up-to-date is to frequently produce art for just yourself. Practicing is really the key to perfection. Not only will you become more proficient with design software, but you will also come across new ways to do the same thing, in turn creating something entirely new and unique. Use these personal projects in your office to recreate those techniques for a client.
7. SPEAK WITH COLLEAGUES
Not everyone will be able to do this as many of the readers of this article are freelancers. But if you are in an office environment, speak to colleagues when time permits and if they’re not busy. Often you can have small quick brainstorming sessions that may help you to open your mind to a new focus. Colleagues can also help to relieve a lot of tension and stress built of from not being able to think about new designs ideas. If you don't work in an office environment, you probably have online peers who are also designers. Chat, skype, or email them to ask for help or to just talk.
8. WATCH A FUNNY MOVIE OR VIDEO
Laughter is truly the best medicine. Whether it is within a group or by yourself, laughter will help relax you and has been thought to stimulate current parts of the brain that control a person’s artistic and cognitive abilities. Use this fact to your advantage and don’t be afraid to really let it out. A few chuckles is good, but a real good “knee-slapping” laugh is even better.
9. DOODLE IN A SKETCHBOOK
All graphic designers doodle as it’s a habit that you have probably been doing since you were in school instead of listening to your teachers. Doodling can often help you focus and think freely. Instead of trying to create something with a purpose, you simply let your mind create something. Forcing creativity can often drain a graphic designer quickly of any good ideas they might have had. Sometimes it is just better to just let everything go and draw freely.
10. LISTEN TO MUSIC
Music is food for the soul, and also a graphic designer’s mind. You may find that listening to certain types of music may cause you to design a certain way, whether it be hard rock to create a grunge design, or acoustic jam for those soft elegant designs. Use the mental “flow” you get from music to your advantage and it will set up your entire session. Something even better is if you are a musician, step away and play some music. All the same rules apply except that it sparks a creative part of your brain and will help get rid of that nasty designer's block.
11. FIND A SEPARATE HOBBY
Being on the computer all day long, everyday, can be excruciating. Don’t let it happen to you. Instead, find a hobby that has absolutely nothing to do with graphic design or being creative or artistic. Hobbies such as fishing, camping, collecting, billiards, chess, or working out are great ways to relax your mind. Trying to be creative all day is too stressful and you will quickly burn-out as you need a way to completely step away sometimes.
12. TAKE A STEP OUTSIDE
Probably the most widely used method of trying to get rid of designer’s block is to just to take a quick stroll outside. The problem lies within us. Most graphic designers step outside expecting ideas to come out of them. In other words, by doing that, you are not taking a break. Just step outside, smells some fresh air, listen to the birds, and enjoy the feeling of just being with nature. Ignore everything except what you can see, smell, or hear. Then you can step back into your office and feel refreshed.
13. WRITE POETRY OR PROSE
Often as a graphic designer you run across an idea or phrase that gets stuck in your head. Use that, write a short poem about it. Flex those verbal muscles. Language is within a different part of the mind that thinks about words so you can work them hard and it will still let your design muscles rest. This is a way to get rid of designer’s block and plays very nicely into the next method.
14. LOOK UP SYNONYMS OR ANTONYMS
In your quest to write an amazing piece of literature, you may find that you lack a correct way to say something. When this happens, you should use a thesaurus. Finding related words will often help you look at the same thing with a different spin, and finding antonyms can help you narrow your ideas. Maybe buy a “word-a-day” calenda. This is a great way to keep your vocabulary fresh and they are also pretty good conversational pieces.
15. GO FOR A DRIVE
If weather permits, go out to your car, roll down the windows (or sunroof), and just take a cruise around the countryside or within the heart of the city. Just try to drive somewhere you don’t normally go, find new back roads, or get lost somewhere. Listen to some music while you are driving as well, it’s a win-win situation really, but just make sure you don’t get too lost, you’ll eventually have to come back to the office.
16. VISIT THE LOCAL COFFEE SHOP
Yes, that means Starbucks too. Coffee has caffeine and as most people know, caffeine can help stimulate the brain (when used in small quantities). However, don’t sit inside the coffee shop, but rather sit outside and enjoy the weather and bring a pencil and paper as well. Use the sights and sounds to help sketch out ideas for your design and you will find that you can think better if you are not really trying to think at all. In addition to all of that the caffeine you are drinking, you should focus your mind on a particlar thought. Just don’t drink caffeine in excess as it can lead to addiction with many nasty side-effects.
17. WORK IN PUZZLE BOOKS
These little workbooks are great and using them will increase your focus and help you process thoughts and ideas more effeciently. Solving problems is the job of a graphic designer and anything you can use to help with your problem-solving abilities is a must. There are also puzzle books that will help with proof-reading and error-checking as graphic designers need to have the ability to check over their own work and notice small differences with shapes and colors.
18. SLEEP ON IT
Sleeping does many things, such as increases energy, enhances focus, and helps memorization (just to name a few). It helps graphic designers by allowing them to think about something without actually thinking about it. Most of the time, coming back to a design layout the next morning is the best way to look at something with fresh eyes. You will also find that you can judge your work much better with a fresh look at your design. It will also help you determine if it still portrays the message the way that you had wanted it to. Naps are also another way. Eat while you are working and use your lunchtime to take a nap in the car. You will find that this helps boost your creativity a noticeable amount.
19. LOOK FOR INTERESTING OR NEW FONTS
Finding fonts is a pretty fun thing for graphic designers as it creates this sense of “What can I use this for?” in their mind. Fonts spark ideas for layouts and sometimes designers actually base an entire design on a font that they have found. Also, most really creative fonts include design elements within the lettering and ligature that can be used in an entire layout as shapes and backgrounds. make sure sure you have a good font management program as well as your font collection can get pretty big. Here is a humongous list of free font sites.
20. STRAIGHTEN UP YOUR OFFICE
Having a clean environment is very conducive to your creativity. Clutter across a desk is the same as cluttering your thoughts. Organize your desk and your mind, file away old projects, put together doodles into one folder, keep hard-copies of all work on the wall or desk, and just get comfortable. Which brings up another point ... working in an ergonomic environment. Try not to sit too far away, above, or below your keyboard and monitor, make sure your monitor has the correct refresh rates and resolution, your chair should have proper lumbar support as well as plenty of cushion, and have lighting other than flourescent bulbs.
Remember this, if you are going to try any of these techniques, do not perform them expecting positive results every time. The trick is to really let your mind wander in different directions, because if you are trying too hard to be creative, then it will never work. If you have any suggestions or additions to these, please feel free to leave a comment and I will try and put it in the article. Here is another article about The Best Ways That Graphic Designers Can Overcome Their Creative Block.
Sunday, July 06, 2008
Reasons Why Your Blog Probably Sucks
by Raj Dash on October 10, 2007
Originally there are 41 reason but I've only listed 10 if you want to see the rest of the article the link below.
No blogger makes all of these mistakes, of course, but the list serves to help those of you who are still establishing your name in the blogosphere, and to remind you that you're not alone.
Design, Platform, Architecture, Hosting
1. No banner/ header graphic. Having a header graphic on your blog gives you a brand, even if it's simple. Not having one makes a page look odd and makes your site less memorable.
2. Choosing a poor blogging platform. It's important to choose the right platform. This will be hotly contested, but I believe the best blogging platform is WordPress. It's readily available, has literally thousands of free themes, hundreds of plugins, and is available for automatic installation with most popular hosting plans.
3. Poor blending of ads. I've seen evidence that even a targeted article in a high-CPC niche getting 3,000+ pageviews in a single day is no guarantee of getting high ad clicks. Especially if the ads on the page are poorly placed and/or not color-blended into the theme. (Keep in mind, too, that with some ad networks, high pageviews and no clicks reduces the CPC of those ads on your other sites - if you have others.)
4. Poor hosting. Good content and poor hosting makes for negative results if you become popular. Think Digg effect: if someone submits your content to a popular voting site and the story goes popular, expect your site to crash if your hosting sucks.
5. Using a really bad theme. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but there are some truly bad themes out there. Having a nice theme has a psychological effect on visitors and increases the quality of your blog - at least in a perceived sense.
6. Cluttered themes. Keep your theme at least semi-attractive and uncluttered enough that it's easy to find things - such feed subscription buttons.
7. Not emphasizing your best content. Do what you have to highlight your best articles, including plugins to show the most popular posts, those with the most comments, links to similar posts, lists of recent posts, etc.
Of course, design isn't everything. You've heard the saying "content is king"...
Content + Schedule
8. Too personal. Unless there's some lesson in your very personal discussions, don't include them. John Chow gets away with restaurant reviews in his blog about making money online, but you won't. If you want a diary blog, fine - but don't expect to make money on it. If you want to discuss personal issues, structure your articles in terms of personal lessons, like Steve Pavlina does.
9. Lack of topical focus. Even if you leave the personal stuff out, have you focused on a topic? What is your blog really about? Lack of focus confuses readers and does nothing to help you rank your site in search engines.
10. Lack of keywords. Lack of appropriate keywords in the title and first paragraph, and lack of variations and synonyms in the rest of the article. Many new bloggers also start their first paragraph off as a single sentence, but with no keyword or keyphrase. This is "unfriendly" to RSS subscribers that view feeds in partial-text modes, and might lose you subscribers (if you get them in the first place due to poor intro paragraphs).
For more of this article click here
Originally there are 41 reason but I've only listed 10 if you want to see the rest of the article the link below.
No blogger makes all of these mistakes, of course, but the list serves to help those of you who are still establishing your name in the blogosphere, and to remind you that you're not alone.
Design, Platform, Architecture, Hosting
1. No banner/ header graphic. Having a header graphic on your blog gives you a brand, even if it's simple. Not having one makes a page look odd and makes your site less memorable.
2. Choosing a poor blogging platform. It's important to choose the right platform. This will be hotly contested, but I believe the best blogging platform is WordPress. It's readily available, has literally thousands of free themes, hundreds of plugins, and is available for automatic installation with most popular hosting plans.
3. Poor blending of ads. I've seen evidence that even a targeted article in a high-CPC niche getting 3,000+ pageviews in a single day is no guarantee of getting high ad clicks. Especially if the ads on the page are poorly placed and/or not color-blended into the theme. (Keep in mind, too, that with some ad networks, high pageviews and no clicks reduces the CPC of those ads on your other sites - if you have others.)
4. Poor hosting. Good content and poor hosting makes for negative results if you become popular. Think Digg effect: if someone submits your content to a popular voting site and the story goes popular, expect your site to crash if your hosting sucks.
5. Using a really bad theme. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but there are some truly bad themes out there. Having a nice theme has a psychological effect on visitors and increases the quality of your blog - at least in a perceived sense.
6. Cluttered themes. Keep your theme at least semi-attractive and uncluttered enough that it's easy to find things - such feed subscription buttons.
7. Not emphasizing your best content. Do what you have to highlight your best articles, including plugins to show the most popular posts, those with the most comments, links to similar posts, lists of recent posts, etc.
Of course, design isn't everything. You've heard the saying "content is king"...
Content + Schedule
8. Too personal. Unless there's some lesson in your very personal discussions, don't include them. John Chow gets away with restaurant reviews in his blog about making money online, but you won't. If you want a diary blog, fine - but don't expect to make money on it. If you want to discuss personal issues, structure your articles in terms of personal lessons, like Steve Pavlina does.
9. Lack of topical focus. Even if you leave the personal stuff out, have you focused on a topic? What is your blog really about? Lack of focus confuses readers and does nothing to help you rank your site in search engines.
10. Lack of keywords. Lack of appropriate keywords in the title and first paragraph, and lack of variations and synonyms in the rest of the article. Many new bloggers also start their first paragraph off as a single sentence, but with no keyword or keyphrase. This is "unfriendly" to RSS subscribers that view feeds in partial-text modes, and might lose you subscribers (if you get them in the first place due to poor intro paragraphs).
For more of this article click here
Refocusing Your Business With an "I Am No Good At" List
Written by Samuel in Online Business
Living in a world of instant information is a two-edged sword. On one hand, you can find help on nearly any subject, from learning HTML to setting up an LLC. On the other hand, a little knowledge can be dangerous, convincing people that they know more than they actually do about a ceratin subject. We've all heard someone or other refer to the necessity of "meta tags" for search engines or try to confidently explain that they need more "RAM" so that their computer can hold more photos. Most people tend to think themselves "pretty good at" most subjects and tasks.
This self-sufficiency is common among freelancers and entrepreneurs, driving them to do too many things themselves. Granted, an entrepreneur often has no choice but to do many things himself, and as helpful as this may be at times starting out, it is more likely that the "do-everything" attitude will hurt the growth of your business. Many freelancers, entrepreneurs, and even small firms never reach their full potential because they continue to fill roles in which they are either inexperienced or unskilled, whether it be their service/product offering or important tasks like accounting, marketing, or simple efficiency.
For more of this article click here
Living in a world of instant information is a two-edged sword. On one hand, you can find help on nearly any subject, from learning HTML to setting up an LLC. On the other hand, a little knowledge can be dangerous, convincing people that they know more than they actually do about a ceratin subject. We've all heard someone or other refer to the necessity of "meta tags" for search engines or try to confidently explain that they need more "RAM" so that their computer can hold more photos. Most people tend to think themselves "pretty good at" most subjects and tasks.
This self-sufficiency is common among freelancers and entrepreneurs, driving them to do too many things themselves. Granted, an entrepreneur often has no choice but to do many things himself, and as helpful as this may be at times starting out, it is more likely that the "do-everything" attitude will hurt the growth of your business. Many freelancers, entrepreneurs, and even small firms never reach their full potential because they continue to fill roles in which they are either inexperienced or unskilled, whether it be their service/product offering or important tasks like accounting, marketing, or simple efficiency.
For more of this article click here
Opening Randall Scott Gallery
eight photographers
four 2-person, 2-week exhibitions
July 11 through September 5, 2008
Artists reception: July 11, 2008 7-9pm
Peter Van Agtmael, Alison Brady, Alexandra Catiere, Jessica Dimmock, Kyoko Hamada, Tema Stauffer, Ryoko Suzuki, Shen Wei
Randall Scott Gallery
1326 14th Street NW
Washington, D.C. 20005 See Map
202-332-0806 phone 202-332-0807 fax / info@randallscottgallery.com / www.randallscottgallery.com
Hours: 11AM-6PM Wed-Sat
Location: 1/2 block south of Rhode Island at 14th Street NW, 2nd floor above Thai Tanic Restaurant
four 2-person, 2-week exhibitions
July 11 through September 5, 2008
Artists reception: July 11, 2008 7-9pm
Peter Van Agtmael, Alison Brady, Alexandra Catiere, Jessica Dimmock, Kyoko Hamada, Tema Stauffer, Ryoko Suzuki, Shen Wei
Randall Scott Gallery
1326 14th Street NW
Washington, D.C. 20005 See Map
202-332-0806 phone 202-332-0807 fax / info@randallscottgallery.com / www.randallscottgallery.com
Hours: 11AM-6PM Wed-Sat
Location: 1/2 block south of Rhode Island at 14th Street NW, 2nd floor above Thai Tanic Restaurant
Saturday, July 05, 2008
1460 WALLMOUNTABLES 2008!
Show Your Art | Sell Your Art
DCAC's Annual Open Exhibit!
July 18 - August 31
Installation: July 16 3-8pm, July 17 3-8pm, July 18 3-6pm
Opening Reception: July 18, 7-9pm
Deinstallation: September 3 - 7, 2-7pm
general rules/regulations:
-$100 will be awarded to the artist for best use of space.
-DCAC members receive one free space. Additional spaces are available for $10 (maximum 4)
-Become a DCAC member at the event and receive three free spaces for a total of 4!
(regular membership starts at $30)
-Each 2' x 2' space is $15 for non-members (maximum 4)
-Each artist can purchase up to 4 spaces.
-Art must be 2' x 2' or smaller. Spaces may not be combined to accommodate larger pieces
(larger pieces can be divided and placed in adjacent squares)
-All art must be wall mountable.
- No painting or writing directly onto the wall
-No adhesive materials can be used for hanging (i.e.- spraymount, adhesive velcro, 2-sided tape or wallpaper glue)
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