1. Andy J. Miller answers my question on “how to focus”! Read below: innod: 5 Ways To Get Motivated and Get Creative Work Done! I’m starting to work through some of these great post ideas that you have all been submitting! This one caught my eye: idea-obscura answered: how about “how to focus”? i feel like that’s the first step to any creative process but i have yet to expert in it. Focus is tough, but for me, focus is a question of motivation. I intentionally monitor my motivation because it makes or breaks my day.Here are 5 ways to stay motivated:1. Have a mantra about getting things done! (or steal one!)Changing your thinking about getting things done really helps you stay motivated to ‘do’. It helps me to remember these types of things: “One finished project is better than a thousand great ideas” - Nathan Johnson, Composer of the Brick Soundtrack “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration” - Thomas Edison Also visit,http://99u.com/ , a great place to find motivation!2. Do nothing motivation neutralI want to do things that are either storing up motivation and energy or using my motivation / energy productively. I try to avoid doing anything neutral.If I am depleted of energy, instead of being unaware that I feel empty and being unproductive, i.e. youtube, facebook, ‘surfing’ etc. I try to take notice when I feel drained and start doing the things that motivate me. Then while I’m doing the downtime stuff that motivates me, I don’t feel guilty for wasted time either (see number 4.)I try to take notice of when I am motivated too and take advantage of it as much as I can by doing things that take the most motivation (intense creative demands and demands I really don’t want to do).3. Find what motivates you, repeatWhen I started thinking this way, I kind of mentally flagged when I was feeling motivated. I have a huge mental list now, and when I am depleted I choose one based on time I have and how I feel. Examples of these: buy a coffee or nice drink, take a bath (embarrassing, but don’t worry it’s not my only sanitizing solution, I shower every morning!), get some time alone and read and think, spend some one on one time with the select few people who energize me, etc.4. Don’t waste time with guilt! I work for myself so guilt is a struggle! You always feel like you have to be working, and as a husband and father, I really shouldn’t be always working! If I get up later than I hoped for sometimes I’ll let guilt get the best of me, but what I have realized is, it’s actually completely counterproductive! When I get up too late I feel guilty for wasted time, then I waste my time by being unmotivated due to guilt. Nowadays I try to notice my guilt and actively seek to end that line of thought.5. To Do lists (duh!)This is a no brainer but my dad still has to remind me when I’m getting stressed. I spend a lot of lunches with him going through my troubles, and so many of them end with, “Well maybe you should just make a list…” It’s obvious but in the moment easy to forget. When everything you need to do is swirling in your brain it’s so much more overwhelming than when you get it out on paper. Nothing motivates me more than crossing things off that list which I have been dreading doing.What keeps you motivated?

    Andy J. Miller answers my question on “how to focus”! Read below:

    innod:

    5 Ways To Get Motivated and Get Creative Work Done!


    I’m starting to work through some of these great post ideas that you have all been submitting! This one caught my eye:

    idea-obscura answered: how about “how to focus”? i feel like that’s the first step to any creative process but i have yet to expert in it.

    Focus is tough, but for me, focus is a question of motivation.

    I intentionally monitor my motivation because it makes or breaks my day.

    Here are 5 ways to stay motivated:

    1. Have a mantra about getting things done! (or steal one!)
    Changing your thinking about getting things done really helps you stay motivated to ‘do’. It helps me to remember these types of things:


    “One finished project is better than a thousand great ideas”

    - Nathan Johnson, Composer of the Brick Soundtrack

    “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration”

    - Thomas Edison

    Also visit,http://99u.com/ , a great place to find motivation!

    2. Do nothing motivation neutral
    I want to do things that are either storing up motivation and energy or using my motivation / energy productively. I try to avoid doing anything neutral.
    If I am depleted of energy, instead of being unaware that I feel empty and being unproductive, i.e. youtube, facebook, ‘surfing’ etc. I try to take notice when I feel drained and start doing the things that motivate me. Then while I’m doing the downtime stuff that motivates me, I don’t feel guilty for wasted time either (see number 4.)
    I try to take notice of when I am motivated too and take advantage of it as much as I can by doing things that take the most motivation (intense creative demands and demands I really don’t want to do).

    3. Find what motivates you, repeat
    When I started thinking this way, I kind of mentally flagged when I was feeling motivated. I have a huge mental list now, and when I am depleted I choose one based on time I have and how I feel. Examples of these: buy a coffee or nice drink, take a bath (embarrassing, but don’t worry it’s not my only sanitizing solution, I shower every morning!), get some time alone and read and think, spend some one on one time with the select few people who energize me, etc.

    4. Don’t waste time with guilt!
    I work for myself so guilt is a struggle! You always feel like you have to be working, and as a husband and father, I really shouldn’t be always working! If I get up later than I hoped for sometimes I’ll let guilt get the best of me, but what I have realized is, it’s actually completely counterproductive! When I get up too late I feel guilty for wasted time, then I waste my time by being unmotivated due to guilt. Nowadays I try to notice my guilt and actively seek to end that line of thought.

    5. To Do lists (duh!)
    This is a no brainer but my dad still has to remind me when I’m getting stressed. I spend a lot of lunches with him going through my troubles, and so many of them end with, “Well maybe you should just make a list…” It’s obvious but in the moment easy to forget. When everything you need to do is swirling in your brain it’s so much more overwhelming than when you get it out on paper. Nothing motivates me more than crossing things off that list which I have been dreading doing.

    What keeps you motivated?

    (Source: artdirections)

    2. 10 months ago  Notes (201) / creativity
  2. The first thing you buy when you begin to make money isn’t a house or car, it’s the luxury to say “no” to projects that don’t resonate with you.
    10 Pieces of Advice from Student Awards Week
    3. 10 months ago  Notes (13) / creativity hard work wurds
  3. nevver: Make things every day

    nevver:

    Make things every day

    4. 10 months ago  Notes (2156) / wurds creativity remember this

  4. whenever you have all this pent up energy and you don’t know what to do with it, put it into something creative. i don’t care if you’ve never made anything with clay before, or if you want to make mountains out of the soap suds in the sink, or if you’re intimidated by watercolor and paint, but it is important that you do it. it’s a common misconception but creativity is not exclusive only to artists. creativity is borne out of the human need to express. do this when you’re bored, before you have to resort to watching something useless on TV, or whatever cultivates more idleness. i think you’ll feel good knowing that you just created something that wasn’t there before.

    5. 10 months ago  Notes (9) / creativity thoughts
  5. nevver: GO!

    nevver:

    GO!

    6. 1 year ago  Notes (248) / remember this creativity typography
  6. Tim Brown: The powerful link between creativity and play

    At the 2008 Serious Play conference, designer Tim Brown talks about the powerful relationship between creative thinking and play — with many examples you can try at home (and one that maybe you shouldn’t).

    i conclude that my future design firm will be in a tree house. with a huge slide. and robots. thanks, precipice for showing me this video :)

    7. 1 year ago  Notes (8) / inspirational talks creativity
  7. ok.

    ok.

    8. 2 years ago  Notes (122) / remember this wurds creativity
  8. The important thing is that no matter what, you mustn’t stop trying. More important, you must look at rejections as opportunities to do something better than what you did the first time. Or reasons to drink more. Or in my case both.
    Chip Kidd
    9. 2 years ago  Notes (53) / graphic design remember this creativity