Inspiration Tips for Designers

Establish An Exploration Habit

Every designer needs inspiration to feed and fuel their creativity! Make exploring for inspiration a habit and open your mind. Take a challenge for yourself and provide yourself with a timeline and objectives. Each day, set aside some time, so that you can brainstorm, collect new ideas, and explore for inspiration. 

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Look Beyond Your Design Community 

It is easy to get stuck in the routine of always looking at other designer's works to draw inspiration from. Try to look beyond your community and try to find inspiration from other industries. Look to what other industries or genres are doing, such as art, film, music and photography etc.

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Follow Influencers

Nowadays, there are a lot of influencers out there in the world. Follow them to stay updated with all the current trends, development, and innovations in the design industry. You’ll find many design-related influencers out there on the internet, like bloggers, YouTubers, industry gurus and mentors, who influence and contribute to the design industry. 

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Take a Creative Challenge

For a fresh wave of inspiration, try taking on creative challenges. Need a challenge? Try to design something new in 30 minutes - for example, create a poster for a hypothetical event, or design a logo for a pretend company. This type of exercise can help re-energize stale creative ideas. 

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Look to Nature 

For many generations, humans have been inspired by the beauty of nature. So rekindle that connection and explore nature for inspiration. Take a walk to a nearby park or take a hike to a nature reserve. Take your time to appreciate the beauty and details of everything around you. 

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Observe the Surroundings 

Take some time out of your day and just observe the things happening around you. People-watch and find out how they interact with each other. Observe the lights and shadows that come together to make unique patterns. All these observations can be gathered together to make masterpieces. 

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Brainstorm on Paper

Put pen to paper, or finger to keyboard, and start to brainstorm. Freely explore and experiment with everything that comes to your mind and just let the creativity come out. This could be as detailed as making a complete sketch or design, with annotations and notes for every element. 

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Never Give Up 

The most important part of drawing inspiration is never settling and never giving up. With experimentation, exploration, and practice, creativity and inspiration can happen at any time. This can be a slow process, so be patient and never doubt yourself.