When you tackle creative problems every day, you get to know the workings of your brain pretty intimately. You understand - for better or worse - the path you must follow to find the best solutions and switch the creative light on.
My own process goes something like this...
1. Read a client's brief several times and mark out key instructions.
2. Have a rush of positive feeling. I can do this. Today, I will come up with something amazing.
3. Start reading relevant materials and research the subject matter. Bombard my brain with as much information as I can.
4. Brainstorm ideas and start to think of solutions.
5. Keep thinking.
6. Still thinking.
7. All these ideas are rubbish. I’m useless. I hate myself. I’ll never come up with a solution.
8. A lightbulb comes on - finally, a spark of inspiration. Where did that come from?
9. All that thinking I did before starts to feed into the idea. Wow, this is building into something pretty nice.
10. Yes, I’m on a roll.
11. Actually, I’m quite good.
12. Flipping heck, I’m brilliant.
13. Send idea, solution or finished content to client.
14. Doubt myself. Was it really that good? Why haven’t I heard anything? They must hate me.
15. A call or email from the client. They liked what I did.
16. Relief and joy.
17. New brief. The battle starts again.
When I read through this, it tells me a lot about myself. I’m a creature of habit. Even though this 17-point journey seems long-winded, I know it works, so I stick with it - like a trusty old Fiesta.
I think it also shows I’m focused and dedicated, but about as stable as a see-saw. But those low moments are necessary for me. Self-doubt makes me question everything and means I don’t settle for a sub-standard idea. I’ll polish it until it gleams. Question yourself and your ideas and you’re more likely to strike gold.
Electrify
Solving creative problems is rarely easy. But you can apply certain techniques that will electrify your grey matter, make you more productive and bring in more revenue.
1. Write down your own creative process and analyse it. Pick apart each step and think of ways you can do them more efficiently. Is the problem that the brief from your client is sometimes unclear? If so, pick up the phone and talk to them about it. Work out where the obstacles are and look at fresh ways of hurdling them.
2. Have heroes. I’m not condoning stalking, but it is to your advantage to have creative people that you're devoted to. Whether you love football and get excited when Sergio Aguero or Alexis Sanchez conjure some inspirational magic from within, or adore a certain band, musician or DJ who lifts your mood and touches your soul, these people can help you be more creative. Watch or listen to your heroes before you create. Feeling their inspiration helps you to be inspired.
3. Don’t sit and brood. If you’ve hit a creative brick wall, you need to get out of your office chair to climb over it. Einstein thought up Special Relativity after glimpsing at a clock tower. I’ve set the bar a bit too high there, but some of my best ideas are born when I’m making a coffee, sitting on the loo (sorry for sharing that) or going for a lunchtime run up the hill next to our house. Changing your environment stimulates your mind. It could save you minutes, if not hours of dead thinking time.
4. Relax. Creative breakthroughs are more likely to come knocking when you're relaxed. Your mind needs to be relatively focused, of course, but also at ease. Spend time on your research and then sit quietly in a chair - or even lie down somewhere - and revisit the problem. Talk it through in your brain and let your thoughts wander. Inspiration could well arrive.
5. Remove distractions. When the creative demons arrive and push you into a hole, it’s tempting to check your emails, Facebook or favourite showbiz-related website. Don’t do it. Without realising it, you could be wasting 10 minutes an hour. That’s at least an hour wasted every day, five hours a week - more than 200 hours over the course of a working year. If you’re a freelancer, that’s at least £4,000 that you could be billing for. There are programmes and apps you can download, including Freedom, which allow you to block the internet for however long you need to focus. Close the net and your Eureka moment will arrive much quicker.