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Inspiration is key in any design activity. Coming up with ideas for anything is a natural process for most creative people. We use life experiences, influences and the world around us to get inspiration. There isn’t a recipe or a magic potion, it just comes when and how it wants to. That is what sets a creative apart from other, normal people. We can pull something seemingly out of the air and turn it into something useful and interesting.

The internet is a great place for inspiration. You have to be careful not to steal other people’s ideas, but there is plenty out there to get the creative juices flowing. Even if it’s a font, or a swirl or a vector somewhere, they can trigger a creative flash in your brain which, as long as you remember where you found it, can be key in producing your end result. Getting out into the world and travelling around is a great way to get ideas for projects. Just make sure you have a camera or pad and pencil with you to make notes or keep a record.

My recent trip to Rome filled me with ideas for articles, a brochure and even a whole website! My ideas book was a lot fuller after just four days in the Italian capital. The book is my version of a camera for recording ideas and inspiration while out and about. The last thing I want to do is have a great idea only to have forgotten it by the time I arrived home.

Sometimes just playing around with a graphics editor or design package can create some excellent results. Similar to dawdling on paper without thinking to let your imagination roam free without interference. This seems to remove the day to day preoccupations that we all carry around with us, and allows your brain to float as free as a bird. It’s better than drinking during the day or doing drugs to get inspiration that’s for sure!

Some of my best business card ideas have come from just playing around with Illustrator and letting my mind wander in between projects. Downtime can disappear very quickly when spending time like this, but even though you aren’t working, the results can soon turn into something work related. Either as a basis for another project or as a conversation piece.

That eureka moment of inspiration is one of the most rewarding feelings I know. There is an immensely satisfying emotion that comes with it, you feel positive, confident and happy. You mind then starts racing as it tries to make sense of what you want to do with the idea, and I don’t know about others, but I get a big smile on my face while I’m working it all out in my head.

Ideas of any kind are the life and soul of any creative person. Inspiration is something to be treasured as you have no control over it whatsoever. You may be able to influence or cajole it into appearing, but it has a mind and a set of rules all of its own.