Sleep. An essential part of life. It’s also a really important part of our creative process.

How does that work? I’ll try to explain.

Very often Jo and I will sit down together to talk through all the new projects we have on in the studio. We’ll discuss the brief, chat through our ideas and we’ll make some notes on each. Occasionally we’ll put pencil/sharpie to paper at that point and sketch some quick ideas. Then, for at least 24 hours we do nothing.

This may seem counter-productive, or maybe odd to some people, but we have both learnt from years of experience that good ideas won’t always come straight away. We also know that it’s no cause for concern. The brain is an amazing organ, absorbing and processing information all the time, and, a lot of this happens when we’re at rest. Learning to trust this is a skill that takes practice, and confidence.

Even when we think we’ve had a good idea, it needs to pass the ‘sleep test’. If it still feels like a good idea the next day, it goes forward to be developed. If not, then no time has been wasted developing an idea that has no worth.

There is also evidence that suggests it’s almost impossible for the brain to multi-task. So letting your brain rest and filter out the information it doesn’t need is very important. The right-side of the brain will be busy doing its thing whilst the left-side takes a break. I personally find that I need to complete smaller tasks before my brain is able to focus on the larger ones, especially when there is a lot of creative thinking to be done.

So, are we getting paid to sleep? Not really. There is no additional time passed on to the client for thinking time when we’re not at our desks. We also time our meetings carefully so as to not put ourselves under unnecessary pressure or hinder any promised deadlines.

I’ve lost count of the amount of times Jo has come into studio in the morning saying “So, I had a great idea this morning in the shower…..” We could actually say our most valuable time, is free-time!

If you would like to come in and see us to see how we could help you, then give us a call on 01270 626624. Just remember to bring your slippers. P.S Check out The National Geographic who have written this amazing article about the journey our mind goes on while we sleep.

Nicki Francomb
Senior Designer
Nicki@jg-creative.co.uk