What do you do when you hit a wall with a project?
Your first ideas are always shit.
I was working on a new project.
I had reached my limits of experimentation and exhausted all my options.
I’d hit a wall.
Logo design was the task.
Parameters were in place.
With only small iterations allowed.
Trying to blend two ideas into one mark.
I’d put down on the page all I could muster for that day.
But I think it was just one of those days.
Then,
yesterday I was on a call, getting feedback from someone much wiser than me.
Listening with open ears, she mutters the words;
“It’s a process.
You put out your most obvious ideas.
Then over time, you chip away
And chip away some more.
It takes time.
But keep iterating and chipping away.
Eventually, you will reach something that just needed that last hit of the hammer and chisel.
Good things take time.
Just keep chipping.”
Not much more needs to be said.
Exhaust your ideas.
Put the tools down for the day.
Then come at it tomorrow.
And keep chipping.
Replies9
- @Darren Higginbottom i like that dont hear that enough. doin f@ck all
- @Darren Higginbottom Beautifully simple
- Also ... look up this page via my favourite ever consultancy. Take note of the quote.They have summed it up quite easily for 35 years ...https://thechase.co.uk/philosophy/
- As a man with two decades at the top, my honest answer is this ...Go for a walk, go to the pub, or to the football, play some pool, go for a swim, cook a meal.Forget about it for a bit. Literally anything but the project.As a designer - the best advice I ever got was this: Sometimes, you need to be doing absolutely f@ck all.Your best ideas will manifest when you aren't busting a gut over it. Give yourself a refreshed pair of eyes.It sounds like trite bullshit - but trust in the organic process
- I think it's part of a process of creating and when you know that it's less dramatic. Brief > excitement > ideas, ideas, ideas > drain > look for inspiration > less ideas > hit the wall > you want to move in the country and raise sheep > go out, see people, watch something, do housework > ideas but with more focus. Distancing yourself from what you're doing helps.
- Hi JoshI live by the thought that if I had an hour to cut down a tree I’d spend 50 minutes sharpening the saw and 10 minutes cutting the tree.Find what you need to sharpen your saw.Time in fresh air.A walk.Listening to music.Speaking to mates.Having a coffee.Simply writing down thoughts without editing.Whatever it is, focus on sharpening rather than cutting and see if it makes a difference.Stay Boom!
- I think the best thing is to take a break from the said project, go for a walk, meet a friend, go to an exhibition. Come back at it with a fresh mind. Call the client, ask a couple more questions, all this can unlock the project :)
- I always return to my fundamentals. Generally, if I'm hitting a brick wall it's because a client hasn't liked concepts or is pushing a certain idea to which they're attached. So, as a typographer, I tend to take a day off and then regardless of the brief develop a purely typographic concept to get me restarted.
- Well it depends on the project. Is it personal or for a client? If personal do more research. If its for a client get some feed back from them. You say its a logo. What is their brand? What is their sector? Do they want to go with the flow of what others have for that sector or do they want to be different? Maybe breaking the rules of what they want is another way to go.
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