Design From the Source of Your Inspiration

 
Your web design has to come from
somewhere, quite possibly from
deep inside you. You need to
stay in touch with this source.

One thing I do to get myself in
touch with the source of all life
is that I sing HU. I sing HU as
a love song to God. That is to say,
I sing it to be more aware of my
connection to God.

Here are directions for singing
HU:

HU: A Love Song to God

You have your own way of getting
connected to a higher source. That's
precisely my point. In showing you
how I connect myself to a higher source
of information flow, I'm encouraging you
to do the same. Find your connection.
Find your way of getting connected to a
higher information flow.

For example, some people find a walk on
a beach or watching a sunset connects them
to a higher source. I'm sure you can
think of many many examples of how people
plug into a greater source of inspiration
and a better idea.

Back to web design. As I started to say,
web design needs a source. It needs to
come from someplace.

Ultimately, everything that is creative
within you comes from God. That's one
source.

However, there are also more down-to-earth
sources of inspiration too. One thing that
is helpful is to write the advertising copy
before you do a design. Or at least write
some of it.

It's hard to design something if you have
no idea what you are going to say. Having
a message is essential to a web design that
sings consistently through and through.

Decide what your message is before even
attempting a design. Otherwise, your design
will be an orphan design without a source.

We've all seen that kind of design. It looks
impressive but it doesn't mean anything. It's
just a jumble of impressive things that don't
really go together.

Trying to impress others is a bad starting
place. That's a source, but not a particularly
good one. It's better to start with something
more than just the desire to be impressive.

That's where some kind of pre-written advertising
copy can be so very helpful. If your advertising
copy is going in one direction and your design
is going in another, you will instinctively feel
it.

Good advertising copy will rein you in. It will
help you determine what is in good taste and what
is in bad taste. If the design does not fit hand-
in-glove with the advertising copy, it is in
poor taste. For example, advertising copy that
sells baby shoes will inspire a design that is
vastly different from advertising copy that
sells the services of an auto mechanic.

However, if you have no advertising copy and no
idea what the feelings and values of the website
are, then anything goes. An anything-goes web
design is not a whole lot of fun to look at. It's
all about everything in general but not about
anything in particular.

So start with a source. On the physical level,
start by knowing what you wish to say. On the
spiritual level, make your appeal, your connection,
to that from which all ideas flow.

Oftentimes, our best ideas come to us when we
are in a deep state of relaxation. When we are
relaxed, ideas flow better.

Also, it is easier to have a good idea after a
night's rest. My ideas often come to me upon
awakening.

Whatever your source of inspiration is, recognize
it and respect it and plug into it the next time
you design a website.

Ed Abbott