Even Creative Directors suffer from block...

Posted by: Greg Smith | 09 February 2007

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was asked today to contribute to our blog by Matt, our chairman and instantly got creative block! When put on the spot it's often difficult to come up with an idea out-of-the-blue. Yet that's my job, it's what I have to do day-in-day-out so how do I over come it?

One way is probably what i consider the best creative tool, no its not Photoshop its Google.

Try putting in a random term or phrase, i have used the number 37:

1.  We kick off with a Paradox of Choice; there are 37 search engines in one interface at 37.com
2. 37 Signals, yep know all about them
3. 37.com is offering you free email
4. Wikipedia has an entry on 37 for instance did you know that: is the natural number following 36 and preceding 38? There is a bunch of other cool maths and cultural stuff here about 37 though...
5. Ariadne: Issue 37  has a fascinating, engaging quote that is now embedded in my subconscious: Monocultures Threaten More Than Species I’ll come back to that one day.
6. The Class 37 Locomotive Group is looking for people to donate to their cause...
7. Did you know that there are 37 million Americans living below the poverty line?
8. The number 37 bus runs Mondays to Fridays only to the Queens Medical Centre on Derby Road...
9. There is a gallery in Birmingham called number 37
10. BBC news talks in the present tense about the 7/7 London attacks 37 dead
11. BBC again, fascinating story about one of their journalists, the very brave Ivan Nobel who died aged 37. He wrote a diary to educate the world about what he was going through and feeling after he was diagnosed with brain cancer. Read his final column here:  'I have not been defeated' how can you not be moved or inspired by that?
12. Page 37 of: dcs.gla.ac.uk is a continuation of: AUTOMATIC CLASSIFICATION as a subject.
13. 37 Heaven contains 37-centric factoids from Tom Magliery...
14. More trains by the Scottish 37 Group
15.  Novacon37 is the UK's longest-established regional science fiction convention, held every autumn since 1971. This year it’s being held (as usual) The Quality Hotel in Bentley (near Walsall, just off Junction 10 of the M6) Reasonable room rates. I bet there are a few of our tech team off to this event ;)
16. cb37.co.uk for all your communication needs! If you are interested in CB Radios, Scanners and antennas
17. croquet.org.uk the official Australian LAWS OF ASSOCIATION CROQUET gives you the definition of BISQUES!
18. The British Films Catalogue offers up 37 Uses For A Dead Sheep
19. Another fascinating fact from the guardian: The figures, compiled using Home Office statistics and census data, show that 37% of black men have their DNA profile on the database compared with 13% of ... sorry that’s all you get, not a subscriber!
20. 2-Carb-37.1. Oligosaccharides without a free hemiacetal group. Trisaccharides (for example) are named as glycosylglycosyl glycosides or glycosyl glycosylglycosides as appropriate. A choice between the two residues linked through their anomeric positions for citation as the 'glycoside' portion can be made on the basis of 2-Carb-2.1. Alternatively, a sequential (end-to-end) naming approach may be used, regardless of 2-Carb-2.1. The names are formed by the preferred method of naming disaccharides (see 2-Carb-36.3): the locant of the anomeric carbon atom, an arrow, and the locant of the connecting oxygen of the next monosaccharide unit are set in parentheses between the names of the residues concerned. Aparently!
21. 37 signals again: A design and usability blog: Signal vs. Noise
22. What is it with trains and the number 37? rail37.co.uk
23. Page 37 of the London the pock pitted trail reaches the Tate
24.  Dr David Pillsbury offers up lots of downloads in lots of different formats to do with The HEFCE’s fundamental review of research policy and funding
25. If you're ever in Turo, Cornwall and are struck down by toothache then 37dental is the place to visit. They provide high quality dental treatment utilising the latest dental technology and dental techniques.
26. Obscure page reference ta037 refers to Lymphoma (follicular non-Hodgkin's) - rituximaB
27. Insights given to HyperGUIDE to the Mental Health Act: SECTION 37
28. I was wondering when this would pop up: phentermine 37 yep you will have all seen this in your inbox Viagra
29. Communities, very topical but I bet you haven’t read ONTOCOPI: Methods and Tools for Identifying Communities of Practice Deposited By:Alani, Harith
30. SmallBizPod #37 - Wednesday 10 January 2007 (with correct mp3 file).
31. Super bowl 37, the one with Janet Jackson controversy
32. Does TENS work? [Mar 1997; 37-3] join the debate…
33. RISKS DIGEST: Volume 20: Issue 37 Tuesday 4 May 1999 Forum on Risks to the Public in Computers and Related Systems Mike Martin debates Revisiting the USS Yorktown dead in the water amongst other things
34. Toshiba 37WLT66 37 inch LCD TV Review
35. Comment on JSR 37: Mobile Information Device Profile for the J2METM Platform
36. Page 03-037.htm of the metropolitan police has a press release on Independent Custody Visitors - their dedicated word acknowledged by the MPA
37. Class 37/4 Project: Home of the Class 37/4 Project. Launched to preserve a member of the class 37/4 sub-class for future generations.

And that’s your lot. How could you not find anything inspirational to break the block in that lot?
PS: The reason I picked ‘37’ is because today’s my birthday and that’s my age…

Posted in: Creative