Doctor’s Notes
There are a lot of ways to be creative, some of which could get you incarcerated, but being creative requires adequate amounts of stimulus. One way to shock your body back into creative-health is to get inspired. I find inspiration all over the place through a variety of mediums and outlets. Every month I am going to highlight the newest things I’ve come across that I think will make your creativity more effective, more satisfying, and more butt tingly.
1.) Check out Frightened Rabbit’s new album – “Pedestrian Verse”
This is an awesome upgrade for these Tartan rockers! Scottish accents are really cool and help emotionally-fraught lyrics more weighty. Dig into their old stuff, it’s great. I’m also a big fan of when a band starts to really mature their sound without reinventing themselves. Their music always has a sense of intensity without having to go overboard. If you’re not familiar with Frightened Rabbit, you could compare them to Mumford & Sons but they aren’t as Scottish or overplayed on the radio.
2.) Use subtlepatterns.com
When it comes to design, little things add up to WOW! I mean when a designer really takes their time and thinks of little ways to make a rectangle a little less rectangly, it’s a beautiful thing. By making a handful of small subtle additions, the power of wow slowly builds across a design. A clean white backgrounds has a place but clean white with a really subtle non-distracting pattern really has some oomph. To make a joke that’s 8 years played-out, kick your designs up a notch- BAM!
3.) Wear tighter fitting color pants
My wife bought new color pants for me. They make me feel more interesting and that ounce of confidence feeds into my psyche. Because we’re located about 100ft from an Urban Outfitters I see more of color pants walking around. Apparently color pants are in for 2013. The take away… If one feels “cool and confident” then creative ideas are likely to fall out of your skull a little more frequently.
4.) Sip some “Dripping Springs” vodka
Personally I like beer, or beers, from blonde ales to thick chocolatey stouts. Every once in awhile I like to try new things. The latest foray into the local dispensary had me trying some Dripping Springs vodka for the first time. This is a Texas distilled spirit that is premium stuff (side note: find a solid happy hour special – this vodka goes toe to toe with grey goose). Served at 32º, this vodka drinks like bottled water. Keep it to two ounces, sip sparingly and relax after staring at the Photoshop list of fonts for hours on end. Drink responsibly. Don’t drink and drive.
Here’s my prognosis. You’ve hit a plateau. You need some help. This short list is my prescriptions for you for February. Soon you’ll be back on the path to ultimo-creativitas. If these four silver bullets don’t hit the mark, come see the Doctor in March… Doctor’s Orders.
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