How Do You Keep Up With the New Web Design Trends?
There is no denying the fact that being creative all the time can leave you tired and stressed and make you feel unmotivated at times. For the graphic designers out there, it is actually pretty difficult to keep up with the new web design trends and also keep learning the latest styles and experiment so as to stay on the top. It might seem a bit difficult in the beginning, but with a bit of practice, you will be able to master it. Also, there are several ways to help you stay motivated.
Whether you an aspiring designer or an experienced one, the following tips would help you in getting your daily dose of motivation and help you in staying on top of your game.
1. Do not Ever Stop Learning
You might feel like you know everything about designing but honestly you can never learn all there is to know regarding designing. As mentioned earlier, the designing world is evolving constantly. To be able to understand the direction in which the industry is headed, you would need to actually know where it has been. There is a lot that you can learn from the people who have been here for years. They have worked for a really long time and have therefore been able to gather a vast amount of experience. Talk to them, listen to their interviews. By hearing and reading their anecdotes and stories, you would be able to learn way more than you could ever imagine.
2. Use Social Media as a Tool
You can literally access any information on the web today including the current developments in the field of designing. Indulge in research and find RSS feeds, blogs, social media profiles or anything that shares information regarding web design and make sure to follow them. You could also search for online galleries which showcase the designs of designers who are very similar like you. The search might seem tedious but is honestly worth all the effort. You would be able to find some inspiration and motivation for your new project from these online resources.
You might also consider joining design forums online. If you come across a similar blog or site like yours, comment there and share your opinions. You would soon get positive feedback which can help in revolutionizing your ideas and help you in staying ahead.
3. Create for Yourself
Rather than trying to impress others all the time, try and start setting up a website for yourself. Most designers do not understand the fact that they do need creative experiences outside their client engagements. You do need such opportunities where you create for no one but just to satisfy yourself. This way you would also start becoming more and more confident and also would begin to listen more to your clients. This would just bring out your inner true self which is very important when you are in the designing field and are in need of some motivation.
4. Take a Break
When you feel that everything is just a bit too much, take a break and do something very different from what you usually do. Staying away from the computer is necessary and helps in brainstorming and generating great ideas. Maybe go for a walk or go on a trip to a place that you never have visited before. Listen to music, sketch, and dance, do whatever that makes you happy and makes you feel relaxed.
Once your mind is relaxed, you would be able to generate more amazing ideas. Indulging in your hobbies would help in recharging your creative batteries and would help you in seeing the little things. As a designer, you ought to be curious and have eyes wide open at every place that you visit. This would help you in getting more creative and seeing your designs with a fresh perspective.
You might just find inspiration in the color of the sun to the pattern of a tiled floor to the beautiful and mesmerizing colors of the rainbow.
5. Join Pinterest or Tumblr
If you aren’t already on Pinterest or Tumblr, you definitely are missing out a great deal of wonderful things. With Pinterest, you get the chance to pin everything into separate boards and this is especially beneficial if you are an organized freak. You could save anything and everything from colors, patterns, layouts, typography, abstract designs, new website design trends and styles etc. When you save all of these things, you can come back later when you feel you need a bit of inspiration to keep moving ahead.
These resources are also great for following the new web design trends and newer techniques that you can be implemented in your design projects. Also, you would be able to know the talented and wonderful people out there with whom you might collaborate later on.
6. Never Compare Your Work
You have put in a lot of hard work and effort into creating a particular design and it is very stupid to compare it with other’s work and feel your work isn’t good enough. You can definitely follow other’s work and maybe get some inspiration from them, but it just doesn’t make any sense to compare your work with them. Everybody has a different style of working and your own style is what makes you unique. Don’t just change it because you feel their work is better. It might be better but you should take it in a positive way and get inspired from it.
Be unique, get inspired from others’ work but never make the mistake of comparing your work with theirs.
Summing up:
Other than all of the above, what you really need to do is find the right balance of everything in your life. With balance, you will be able to put life into perspective. With this balance, you will be able to maintain your passion and get inspired through experience. You’ll be excited and motivated to keep up with new web design trends. You also need to look back into the past and see what you have been able to achieve as a designer up until now. Take the journey back in time and dig out some of your earliest design projects. You could then compare them with your present-day designs. This way you would be able to judge your progress and that would inspire and motivate you to work even harder.
Author:
Catherrine Garcia is an experienced web developer, currently working as a freelance web developer at WPCodingDev. She enjoys her writing and always on the lookout for high quality blogs.
