How to be creative. Tips & Streaks!
This post is so overdue, but you can’t blame us 😭. Yes, you can, but we’ve been busy on-site and making some amazing clients happy.
We’ve been reading our book of the month: The Art of Creative Thinking, by Rod Judkins, and decided to create a post on how you can be creative and how we’ve been able to deliver innovative solutions at Spazio.
Get ready! This is going to be a roller coaster.
One of the hallmarks of a great designer is their ability to creatively express their client’s brief. Creativity is so diverse, sometimes, it appears like it’s a gift that defies processes and systems. However, having to deliver creative design consistently isn’t something you leave to chance. There are proven ways you can be creative. We’ll be sharing some tips on how you can get your creative juices flowing.
What is Creativity?
Creativity is the use of imagination and original ideas to invent (or create something).
How can you be creative?
Like all things, creativity requires 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration.
What do I mean?
I’ll give an example:
At the early stage of our interior design firm Spazio Ideale, I created all the designs. However, as we started to grow, I had different young talented designers join our team, and it became challenging to produce creative work consistently.
So, what did I do? I thought through my process of creating concepts and penned it down. I then shared the process with my team.
I’ll be sharing some of these processes with you. However, note that creativity generally requires hard work and commitment.
Here are my seven ways you can be creative.
Be Curious — Research
You want to create something and you don’t know where to start? My first advice would be to research i.e. study other creative works, its results, and processes. While there’s an off-chance that what you’ve learned might shape your thought pattern, it is an excellent place to start. You want to avoid designing previously created pieces and be sure that what you’re creating is original. While you might not be able to research everything, having an idea of what’s out there is a good starting point to being creative.
Spazio Tip: When creating concepts for space, I research and find at least 100 ideas of the area in which I’m to design i.e. If I’m to space plan a meeting room, I find at least 100 meeting room concepts similar to my client’s brief.
Get inspiration from other designers
Inspiration from other interior designers can spark the imagination. Seeing the application of ideas you once might have discarded can help you see things differently.
That said, inspiration is not the same as imitation. Creative ideas can take inspiration but avoid emulation.
Spazio Tip: Merge two disparate ideas from other designers to create a unique piece; this reduces the risk of imitation. Take it a step further by deconstructing the concept.
Get inspiration from other industries
My personal favorite. There are a ton of ideas from other industries applied in the field of interior design. A specific example is project management. Initially from the construction industry, its application now covers any project related setting. Get fresh perspectives on ideas by taking inspiration from other creative industries such as fashion, applied art, theatre, fine art, graphic design, etc.
Spazio Tip: Our mural ideas take inspiration from the field of graphic design. I get color schemes from fashion design.
Read and Explore
I can’t overemphasize how important this is. The more we engage our mind, the more imaginative we become. There are different kinds of materials one can read, but the one sure to spark innovation is fiction-based novels. The more absurd it is, the better.
If you do not enjoy reading, watch imaginative stories. A few creatives and creative pieces I love are movies directed by Tim Burton and films such as Alice in Wonderland and Chronicles of Narnia.
Finally, explore. There’s a place for exposure in being creative. Travel, explore cultures; you’ll be surprised at the diverse use of nature’s elements. Being exposed to myriad ways of life can spark creativity. However, not everyone would have the chance to visit Asia or the Middle East. If you can’t travel, read about other cultures, what makes them unique, etc. Having a mix of diverse cultures or design styles in a space can birth a unique concept.
Spazio Tip: Alice in Wonderland, inspired the concept of the first Paystack office that was designed by Spazio Ideale. The motley of creative concepts in that story is one I admire.
Keep an open mind
You have to believe in the possibility of absurd ideas to be creative. An open mind is vital to the creative process. The most mundane task can spark the imagination.
One way to keep an open mind is to deal with biases. Try something you aren’t inclined to do, such as art, poetry, pottery, etc.
Spazio Tip: One way to generate creative ideas from things you aren’t naturally inclined to is to ask why. What don’t you like about this concept? What would you change? What can be done better?
Ask Questions
Have you ever seen a child ask questions? There is no fear of being labeled as unintelligent or stupid. Have you seen a child apply their imagination when playing? There is no fear of judgment.
I once saw my friend’s kid use their bookshelf as a “hideout”, it was laughable. I asked myself, what is this kid doing inside a place meant for books? It then occurred to me that this is what I do; we design bookshelves for companies and create nooks in them. This kid with no prior training on design reimagined the use of a common space. Children are imaginative, study them, and you might learn a thing or two.
Asides from asking “why?”, ask “why not?”.
Spazio Tip: There’s a lot you can learn from kids. It’s one of the reasons workplace design has evolved from being a rigid warehouse to being more diverse, colorful, and comfortable.
Don’t be afraid to make mistakes
Finally, in the bid to be creative, you will make mistakes. However, the fear of failure is the fastest way to kill creativity. Albert Einstein once said — “Show me a man who has never made a mistake and I will show you a man who has never tried anything”.
An interesting thing about creative ideas is the fact that it might not be accepted by all, at least not at first.
For example, at some point in history, the following celebrated pieces were considered trash:
- Eiffel Tower was once called the “ridiculous tower” by a group of 300 artists, sculptors, and architects.
- Vincent van Gogh died a starving artist and only sold one of his over 200 works of art. His work was considered amateur and disturbing, but now sells for millions of dollars and is widely accepted.
Failure is only a step in the creative process. The faster we fail in the creative process, the quicker we can harness an imaginative mind.
Spazio Tip: I cannot count the number of times we’ve tried to create unique DIY items that went awry. However, we would prefer to have tried and failed than not try at all. Prototypes are great ways to test an idea before implementing it.
Our tip: Learn to use prototypes to cushion the effects of failures.
There are no weird ideas, there are only different ideas.
