Procrastination vs. Inspiration

Let’s face it, we as designers and artists need inspiration, it is that vital necessity that inspires us to create works of our own creative originality. But where do we get it from? Well it all depends on who you are and what you like mostly. Gamers get inspired from playing video games, movie buffs from going to the theaters and so on and so forth. When looking for true inspiration, just focus on what you like and surround your self with it. The only catch is, how much is too much, when does getting inspired become procrastinating and putting off the topic at hand?

Quite often we say to our selves, “Just one more…” one more level, one more movie, one more TV show, one more chapter, but the very moment we even think of the words; one more, we start putting off the task at hand for that one more lot of enjoyment, and more often than not as soon as we finish that one more, we give ourselves another one more an yet another and before you know it, it’s one o’clock in the morning and we have absolutely nothing accomplished.

The trick is to get inspired and then say no to that one more, for as soon as we partake in that one more, then we won’t ever stop asking for one more. When we say one more, that inspiration becomes a necessity, or so we think for in truth, the moment we say one more, it all becomes nothing more than a hindrance. It keeps us from tackling the task at hand and becomes an irremovable obstacle. The truth is, when seeking inspiration, it is best to do it in moderation.

Find some inspiration for yourself, but only take the necessary amount to get you in a good mood, but don’t spend more free time than you have and if you don’t have any free time then get the project done first and seek inspiration afterword. That way you don’t end up wasting time and you motivate yourself to get the work done so you can relax and enjoy yourself afterword and feel good knowing that you got your work done.

For us artists and designers, what we see and hear and how we interact with the world around us makes all the difference to our styles and our designs. Partially because everything we incorporate into our designs and style we at one point in our lives saw or experienced, and partly because we change with what we see. We don’t always change to match what we see, but what we see changes us on some level in one way or another. One huge (and obvious) example is today’s media.

Whether you agree with it or are fully and totally against it, today’s media affects us all. We see it, we hear about it, we live it and we breathe it. It is said that even one man’s existence can change his environment and the same is true conversely. The environment in which we live negates how we live our lives.
For example a man who lives in a cardboard box is going to feel, think, and see things differently than a man who lives in the Presidential suite of the Trump hotel. The real question is whether or not we notice how what we see changes us. For every person it works differently, in some people its how they grew up, and for others it is what they choose that makes the difference. But the simple matter of fact is that you can not live in this world without being influenced by it.

But at the same time, inspiration is not always directly linked with the media or the environment, some times it comes from within. From our very beliefs and ideals, from what makes us all individuals. This is also the core of inspiration. The trick is to trigger this inspiration. Some times it’s as easy as sitting down and thinking; What do I stand for? What do I want? Who am I? Why am I here? and then quickly thinking up an answer that fits. This can provide great motivation and give you a starting point to launch from or a focal point to center the artwork around. And to tell you the truth, it’s where we should find our inspiration more often.

Don’t get me wrong, artwork is wonderful in all its many forms and there is nothing wrong with rummaging through a couple magazines or sketches to find some thing to get you started. But what I mean is that not often enough do we look at who we are or why it is we do the things we do. When designing something, well a lot of the times the design should be about you the designer, or at least reflect your beliefs in some way or form and by looking at what you believe you can better portray such things.

That and well, these days there are just way too many places that you shouldn’t be looking for inspiration, just because of how sidetracked one can get and how we can waste so much of our time just putting things off. But don’t fret, there are many, many ways to stay focused in today’s world despite how fast paced it has become.

The first and foremost (and the hardest to do) is to just tune everything else out. Get what you need to do the job, and then do it. Another way to stay on the job is to set your self a schedule and to stick to it. Also you can set up a reward system for yourself, just promise your self a reward once you’re done your work, and before you know it the project will be done!

The truth is that there are no tricks or special needs to activate the processes of your brain. All you have to do is just do it. No amount of extra curricular activities are going to increase or decrease your ability to functionally do what it is you do. You’ll find most often that if you just sit down and make your self do it, that it will get done. All you have to do is get the focus and determination to just sit down and do it. Don’t get me wrong, inspiration and motivation help a great deal, but whether you feel like a million bucks, or whether you feel like crap, if you have the ability then you can do it.

Sure it will probably come out better if you’re in a much better mood, but mood or not, if you have the ability then you can do it. Now by ability I mean if you know how to ride a bike per say, then whether you are half dead because you lack your daily dose of caffeine or whether you’re zipping along with six cups of coffee in your gut, you can still ride that bike. Believe it or not, the same is true for drawing, sculpting and everything else. The only real trick is to just sit down and get started on it all. Now what mood does do though, is make the difference between half ass and extraordinary. It can also effect what feelings the piece of art or design reflects, but that comes latter. The important thing though, is to get started on the work whether you’re in the mood or not. Sometimes while working on a piece, one’s mood can greatly improve even if they had no interest what so ever in the project at hand. In the end it all comes down to how you feel about your work.

If you feel like you’ve accomplished something, then most likely the outcome will be quite the positive one, but then if you feel like you’ve just wasted curtail time from your life that you will never get back, well that’s where the half ass crap mostly shows up. The only real thing to worry about is over thinking it all, in the end we all have to know when to stop.