I tried something a little new this year. I’ve always heard about inspiration boards and all of the different benefits they can have for both businesses and individuals. And since I’m working to change up my branding and business stuff this year, I thought it would be worth a shot.

So I created a really rough inspiration board, with the intention of displaying it at my workspace and adding to it throughout the year. And I wanted to share a bit about my experience and why I think it’s a worthwhile practice for other creative boss ladies as well!

The benefits of creating an inspiration board

• it’s a way to get out some creative energy
• it can impact how you choose to brand your business
• it helps you come up with some of the design elements that you’re naturally drawn to
• and of course, it can serve as a constant source of inspiration

How to create an inspiration board

There’s really not one way to do this. I simply went through some magazines and cut out images that I was really naturally drawn to. I tried really hard not to think much about what I chose, because I wanted to get a really good idea of the colors and types of images that naturally caught my eye.

Then, once I had a pretty good stack of images, I tried organizing them in different ways. I put them into color categories, subject matter, texture, and probably a couple of other things too. I think this is an important part of the process because it helps you get a really clear view of exactly how much you are drawn to certain things.

Then it’s time to put it together. I chose to keep my images in general color categories, because I’m just really drawn to things that are organized by color. But you can choose to sort of mix them up or organize them in different ways if that’s more your style.

Then, I sort of just randomly fit all of the images together and taped them in place. There are certainly more organized ways of doing this. You can use a cork board or even a frame if you want to keep them all within a set area. But my style is just a bit more all-over-the-place. Plus, I wanted to be able to add to it throughout the year.

So you really just need to find a format that works for you. Here are a few ideas.

• create a random collage like the one I made
• display your collage in a frame or cork board
• create an art journal or scrapbook format
• choose photos that are all the same dimensions for a more organized look

What I learned

So since I’m a newbie to this whole process, I wanted to share a bit about what I learned from creating my first inspiration board. Some of it was not really surprising, while a few things sort of caught me off guard.

1. I like color. This was definitely not a big surprise. If you follow me on Instagram or know me in real life, you know that I’m drawn to bright colors in pretty much all areas. What was a surprise was the sort of muted nature of some of the colors. When I looked at my completed inspiration board, I saw a lot of colors that weren’t super bright. There were a lot of medium purples, very light yellows and blues, and earthy greens.
2. I like moderate amounts of “white” space. A lot of the photos I chose depicted a subject with some “white” space around it. I put that in quotation marks because I wasn’t drawn to photos with backgrounds that were actually white. Instead they had light pink or yellow or blue backgrounds. But I still liked seeing that sort of negative space in photos.
3. I like metallics. This isn’t surprising at all. I like sparkles and gold and all that good stuff.
4. I like photos of food. Also not a surprise. Because yum.
5. I like portraits of cool women. This wasn’t exactly surprising. Because who doesn’t love surrounding themselves with cool powerful women. But it isn’t something I include a lot in my own photos on Instagram and stuff. So it’s definitely something to consider.
6. I like patterns. Also not super surprising, but not something I’ve put a lot of thought into before. I particularly liked photos that used patterns as a background, like a piece of floral fabric or something instead of plain white.

How do you use an inspiration board?

Okay, so now it’s time for the million dollar question. How exactly do you use this thing? Because if you don’t use it or learn anything from it, it isn’t any good is it?

So the obvious answer here is that you should display your inspiration board somewhere near your workspace so you can constantly draw inspiration from it and make sure you always keep that general design/aesthetic in all of your work. It can help you stay on-brand if you decide to build your branding around some of the elements in your inspiration board.

The other answer is that you can take those things that you learned about your own aesthetic preferences and include them in your own images. I’m a firm believer that the stuff you post online, particularly on platforms like Instagram, are part of your branding. And if you’re a creative entrepreneur, those branding elements should reflect your personal style and aesthetic.

So for example, I’ve decided to try and incorporate some of the elements I included in my inspiration board in more of my own images. For example, I’m going to try and include more awesome ladies, metallics, and patterned backgrounds. And I want to include some of those design elements and colors into my blog redesign when I finally get around to doing that as well.

TL:DR – I think creating an inspiration board is a really worthwhile exercise for any creative entrepreneur. I feel like I learned a lot about my own aesthetic and preferences. And I plan to include a lot of those elements in my own branding moving forward.

Do you have any other tips or experience with creating an inspiration board and using it to grow your brand?