3 thoughts for the week of February 15, 2010 (winter blues, jump start creativity & remote vendors)

1. So, it’s February. It’s cold. It’s wet. You’re feeling kind of blah. The holidays are over, and with the recent series of storms around these parts, it’s can be hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. For some, this can be a case of seasonal affective disorder which is medical condition and should be taken seriously. But for most of us, we just have a mild case of the winter blues. Just a little less active, a little less motivated and a little less “go-get-em” attitude. What do we do to get a little more pep in our step and infuse a little more positivity into our work? Stand up and step away from the computer for one. Get active. Exercise. Raise those endorphin levels. Eat nutrient-rich foods – like oranges, not Ho Hos and Ding Dongs. Get out of the house and see the sun. And of course, make sure you are getting enough sleep. This always makes everything better.For more tips on dealing with the winter blues:
   • How to Get Rid of the Winter Blues by eHow
   • the winter blues and 10 ways to get rid of them
   • How to Banish the Winter Blues
2. So, you’ve eaten a healthy breakfast, burned a few calories and now you are ready to get down to business. It’s time to get the creative juices flowing. But what if they just aren’t flowing? What do you do when you are coming up dry? For those of us who work in the creative field this can be an ongoing battle. But being able to think creatively is a necessity in almost any job. We come across a lot of tips about how to stimulate creativity. Most are centered around the principle of getting your brain to stop using the standard pathways and start thinking about things from a new direction. Anything that gets you out of your own head is usually a good place to start. Try reading, or going to a movie, or even household chores that puts you on autopilot and allows your sub-conscience thoughts to wonder. You can also try creative exercises that force you to work in a different way. One idea that we particularly liked was to tap into your inner child and draw with crayons. You would definitely start to see things from a different perspective than the one presented by your computer screen.Here are some more articles with ideas on stirring up some creativity:
   • 10 Great Ways to Jumpstart Your Creativity
   • 10 Tactics to Jumpstart Creativity in Your Work
3. Technology has revolutionized not only how we do our work, but also how we work with others. Try to imagine working in a company without email. Yeah, it hurts a little. Email, the web, virtual meetings, video conferencing, and numerous other things have made it possible for us to collaborate with people all over the world. We’re fortunate to have the ability to work with clients who aren’t in our time zone, let alone our state (one of our favorite clients is in Utah). We have a great working relationship via the phone and email. Yet, as we have recently been working to expand our network of strategic partners, we still feel a little hesitant to work with a vendor we can’t drive to. Is the ability to shake hands really necessary when 9 times out of 10 you won’t see their face again after the project begins? So, we’d like to ask about other’s experience working with local vs. long distance vendors. How do you think location has affected your choice to hire a vendor? How do you think it has affected projects in the long run? We’d love to hear some of your thoughts.

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