Where NOT to Go for Inspiration with Brandi Sea

LIVE on Wednesday, May 24, 2023 at 11:30am PT / 2:30pm ET / 7:30pm BST / 8:30am in Hawaii

This week we talk to Brandi Sea. She has been on my radar for years and finally we were able to connect and block out some time to talk about finding inspiration, finding her style, and embracing her visual voice. Brandi is based outside of Albuquerque, New Mexico and is passionate about sharing her design and idea process.

Brandi helps creatives to develop a reliable process to create inspired and unique design solutions instead of copying or expanding on what has already been done. We will talk about what first got her fired up and what led to her creating a course all about process. Brandi is also going to share how she uncovered her style and visual voice and gives insight into how you might do that too.

I hope you will join us for this conversation. You can be part of the conversation live with us. Simply join the Creatives Ignite Family by giving me your email and get a reminder email 30 min before the show: https://creativesignite.com/signup

You can also add it to your calendar so you don’t miss it. (Those links are in the emails). See you there, then you can type in the chat and ask questions live.

See you on Wed. May 24, 2023 at 11:30am PT / 2:30pm ET / 7:30pm BST / 8:30am in Hawaii

Questions

1. Brandi, can you tell everybody a little background about you, who you are, where you are, and what you do?
   
2. You share online and through your podcast a lot about creativity, where to get inspiration, and about the creative process. Can you share with them the story about how God showed you what you needed to be focusing on?
   
3. Does your faith play a role in your creative process and where you draw inspiration from?
   
4. When people are looking for their voice or style what is the first thing so many people do? Why is that the last place they should turn to?
   
5. When trying to find our style or voice, you suggest looking back to what we were attracted to as a kid, how far back should we go? (Can you share the story about the album you designed in school?)
   
6. Figuring out who you are, what interests you and being ok with some people not liking you because of that. Why is this step so critical to finding style and knowing where to look for inspiration?
   
7. Was it hard to embrace your visual voice or style?
   
8. What is one thing you’ve learned about yourself in the last year, that has been most impactful to your life or freelance business?
   
9. What is next?

Or Listen here

Connect with Brandi

Website: BrandiSea.com

SOCIAL MEDIA
Instagram: @brandisea https://www.instagram.com/brandisea/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandisea/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@brandisea

TikTok: @brandisea https://www.tiktok.com/@brandisea

Transcript

[00:00:00] diane: I was about to say happy birthday.

[00:00:05] Brandi Sea: That is not how we start normally. It’s my birthday. Wasn’t that my unbirthday

[00:00:10] diane: too? Hey everybody. Welcome to another episode of Creative Ignite. I’m really excited. I have been following Brandy for years and we talked years ago and we were supposed to get her on and then it just couldn’t work out.

[00:00:23] It didn’t work out and then whatever. So I think it was then the pandemic hit, right? And then we [00:00:30] finally caught back up and um, and she’s passionate about a lot of things. And there’s some things that I know that my friend Will and I have talked about in regards to teaching and not letting kids just go to Pinterest, you know, so Brandy is right there with us.

[00:00:46] So we’re gonna talk about some of those things about, um, finding your style, finding your visual voice, and if you want to not be. Uh, just repeating everything that [00:01:00] everybody else is doing. Then maybe Pinterest or just going on the internet isn’t the best place to do your research. And we’re gonna get into this deeper, but I would love for you to share a little bit about who you are, where you’re, I know you’re outside in, uh, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

[00:01:19] And then what you do, like, if you have, uh, your, I don’t know, ten second, 32nd spiel, if you could give that to us, that would be awesome.

[00:01:29] Brandi Sea: [00:01:30] Sure. So my name is Brandy c Heft. Sniffen C is actually my middle name. I am named Dr. A Song by the Looking Glass. Um, everyone probably knows it now cause Guardians of the Galaxy.

[00:01:39] My mom’s a drummer. Um, so I got a really cool name, but I feel like that shaped kind of, Who I am a bit my personality. I was always creative growing up. Um, I think most kids are, but I really gravitated towards wanting to do that as a career. Um, when I visited with my dad on Take Your [00:02:00] Daughter to Work Day, there was a place that he was remodeling.

[00:02:03] My dad’s a contractor, um, and above where he was working, he took me where they were making business cards. And I didn’t know at the time, but they were like a marketing and graphic design firm, small in Santa Fe, New Mexico where my, where I grew up. And from that moment on, I used to pretend to be a business card maker, not knowing what that actually meant.

[00:02:25] So I’ve always kind of wanted to. Do this [00:02:30] thing, even though I didn’t quite understand. Um, I went on to get a bachelor’s degree in graphic design, um, in 2007. It took me about seven years to get my, my actual degree, but I did it and after that I was able to get a job, um, as a creative director for a, uh, for calvary of Albuquerque here in New Mexico.

[00:02:55] I was the art and creative director, design director for three and a [00:03:00] half years, uh, there, and left there to do my own thing to really start doing more in the freelance area. And that was about 2011, 2012. And I’ve been running my own independent. Design studio. Since then, I am more of a creative director and art director.

[00:03:21] That is really where my heart is. Obviously I do graphic design, but I love creating the concepts and guiding the process and growing designers. [00:03:30] I decided to stay home. I had, uh, my second child in 2013, and it was very clear that God was telling me that like this was the time to be home and I love working in an office.

[00:03:42] That was very difficult for me, but he’s really been faithful in providing clients and letting me do work that I, that I love. Um, but right around 2015 I was, I was getting really frustrated because I felt like I wasn’t getting the work I wanted and I was feeling [00:04:00] like other designers that were doing things with bad design ethics, bad design skills, just bad design overall, were stealing my clients and.

[00:04:10] In talking with my husband, I was becoming really negative and he was, he was encouraging to me and saying like, you know, maybe they just don’t know. And so I, I really took that to heart and thought, you know what, maybe they don’t, and if they don’t know if I know, why can’t I tell them? You know, better ways of, of [00:04:30] doing this design thing, better ways of getting clients and better ways of finding their ideas.

[00:04:33] I started blogging in 2015. That led to a YouTube channel where I would just do quick design tips, like two or three minutes in 2016. Then 2017, I started a audio podcast with a co-host for a few years. I’ve been doing that since. 2017, it’s called Design Speaks. And so I’ve been able to use these insights and, and things that I really was frustrated with in the world of [00:05:00] design and turn it into a platform where I can really share and help grow other designers while I’m also growing and running my own business.

[00:05:07] And so right now I am doing client work for, I do a lot of work for musicians, uh, local musicians. I do podcast art and design. I love book cover design. Um, my bread and butter, like most designers, is brand visual, brand identity and creative and design strategy. [00:05:30] So I’m a design strategist, creative director.

[00:05:32] Those are the two things that I, that I do the most right now in addition to running this. Platform or whatever, of all the crazy content that I create on a regular basis, that’s as quick as I can do it. Diane, that’s good.

[00:05:44] diane: Hey, that’s good. That gives us a good, but you’ve also created a course you, uh, that does this.

[00:05:50] So, um, yes, and I’ll, I’ll share links to that. Uh, but really one of the things you, uh, I follow your podcast and [00:06:00] there’ve been some, um, you’ve taken, this is a new kind of thing for you to just do some solo episodes, which is, um, I know it can be very like, oh my gosh, the back and forth, you know, that people have, it’s like, ugh, you know, um, it, it can be really like, oh my goodness, it’s hard to do this alone.

[00:06:23] And it can feel really, so the, see, I’m never alone because these people are always here. I always would say, well, at least my mom would joke, [00:06:30] but now I can’t even say that. So I’m really, um, heavily, uh, lean on y’all. So, um, Anyway, it, it’s good. It’s good to see everybody in the chat. I saw some more people pop in and, um, uh, we got Marilyn and another person from, uh, Vancouver, Washington, Patricia, so I’m just glad everybody is here.

[00:06:51] So Shelby, great to see you as well. You can always come on. Patricia saw me. Uh, you guys can always come live, which is, I [00:07:00] think is fun. So, um, one of the things that you were sharing, uh, the other day, that kind of is one the things that I wanted to talk about that wasn’t really on our sheet, um, that I had to ask you, but we talked, uh, talked about it before, was you had this, um, Instagram or TikTok or wherever post, and it was like, maybe they’re not really that many clients from hell, you know, maybe it’s us.

[00:07:27] And it, it’s really about a perspective shift, [00:07:30] which kind of goes back to what you were saying, um, We kind of get in our head and we can get in our way too much. And your husband helped kind of, um, have a perspective shift for you. Mm-hmm. And it, it’s kind of like that in the US thinking that our clients are, this one’s from hell and this one’s from hell.

[00:07:54] And, you know, just like throwing them kind of under the bus. And do you wanna kind of just, [00:08:00] uh, dive into that one just a little bit and share your perspective on that? Cause I thought it was pretty interesting.

[00:08:06] Brandi Sea: Sure. Yeah. I think, I think a lot of, uh, creative professionals tend to default to like a victim mentality, um, because it’s, you know, it’s easy to blame other people when we have this.

[00:08:21] Vision and this idea about something that we want to create for someone that has come to us. But I think what, what we fail to, to consider [00:08:30] a lot of the time is when there’s a major issue with a client project or with a client directly. I would say 80% of the time, in my experience of 20 plus years at this point, is it’s probably something that we failed in in the beginning.

[00:08:48] So either we didn’t set the expectations, we didn’t ask the right questions, we weren’t clear on what our process is and how we work and how we deliver things. [00:09:00] And um, you know, everything from this is how much what you are getting includes to these are the number of revisions to, um, you know, Our conversation matters more than a questionnaire, like, just however it is that you hope to run your, your creative business, or even if you’re working with a creative director and you’re like, gosh, he or she is the worst, and he or she never gives me good feedback, or, you [00:09:30] know, those things are like, okay, that could be true, but what are, what are you doing?

[00:09:36] What am I doing to have a conversation that’s going to actually figure out what’s happening here and not just be like, they’re just a dang jerk. Um, and I’ve been in both positions. I’ve obviously worked with clients directly and I’ve been the creative director. So I’ve seen both sides where it’s really easy to be like, well, gosh, they just didn’t like anything that I [00:10:00] presented.

[00:10:00] Okay, but did you set a precedent? Did you give them a clear concept that you are going for and explain why you used the certain colors and type faces and. Tie that back to something they gave you in the beginning that says like, Hey, I get it. Like maybe you don’t like this lime green, but here’s why it works.

[00:10:19] Here’s why it’s gonna resonate with your audience, and here’s how it solves the problem you came to me to solve. And if you can’t do those things, of course they’re all gonna be clients from hell because you can’t explain to them why you made your choices. [00:10:30] And nobody just wants to be dictated to, you will like this because I said, or because I felt like it today.

[00:10:36] diane: So I agree. I think that it is not just the photographer or the writer or the creative director mm-hmm. Or the client. Um, it does fall back. It, if we are blaming, then we are giving them our power, I think. Right? So what can you control? Um, I can only control me and so then I can only make it better as far as I’m willing to go, and that [00:11:00] means that I have to admit that I’m doing something.

[00:11:02] Incorrect or wrong, or it’s not working. It may work with, yeah, a whole bunch of other people, but it’s not working right now with, with this, um, in this situation or with this mm-hmm. This employee or client or whatever. So when you’re acting as creative director, do you just have a really good insight or, or a good pool that you pull from for designers or [00:11:30] illustrators or, or people that you’re working with?

[00:11:31] Or do you tend to do some of that also on your own? What it sounded like your preference was to have the idea and then collaborate. Is that kind of what you love?

[00:11:43] Brandi Sea: It is my preference. I will say that, um, I love, I love guiding things and having input and really helping from the strategy and art direction standpoint like that is really where my heart is.

[00:11:55] But more often than not, just because of the kinds of clients that I tend to get, [00:12:00] especially if they’re local. Um, I often do all of it from start to finish, and so that’s, that’s like a huge thing. But I do have a small, I have a small pool. I could have a large pool, but I have a few, um, you know, I have a kind of a core group.

[00:12:17] I have a person that I, that I work with on a regular basis who’s a story brand expert. That helps, um, helps me with that part of the strategy sessions that I do, um, where we figure out the [00:12:30] story brand framework for clients. Um, I have a couple of designers that I work with to put together the actual assets and actually design the things if I’m not going to do it, uh, more often than not, if it’s a branding project as opposed to like an advertising or, um, you know, something where their brand already exists.

[00:12:52] I will do the, the visual branding and then hand that off for the other assets and externals and things like that. So it, it really. [00:13:00] Because I kind of run this as like a, a studio of sorts. It, it just depends on the client and their needs and whether I have the bandwidth to do everything at the moment or whether I, I want to, like, if this is a client that I really feel like I will, you know, be able to dig into with the skills that I have and do the best job, then I will take all of it on if I have the time to do so.

[00:13:25] And if not, then I work with other designers when I can.

[00:13:28] diane: So, I love that it isn’t about, [00:13:30] Budget. It’s that a, it’s about your bandwidth. Although I’m sure budget comes in, but that’s how it’s like for me it’s like, oh, so there’s something to me that’s, that that shows that you have that confidence. And I think some of us are just building up to that and we get to a point for some things, we’re like, oh, I don’t wanna do that part.

[00:13:48] Um, we have John Engles do that for me, or I’m gonna have mm-hmm. Will do that for me. Cuz I, there are certain things Will, does that I’m sure I could learn how to do, but I don’t ever wanna do ’em. I’m just happy to pay will. Yeah. And [00:14:00] sometimes

[00:14:01] Brandi Sea: I don’t wanna do branding. Right. And I just don’t even take those clients because sometimes I get tired of doing branding and I’m just, I just don’t wanna do it.

[00:14:10] So. Yeah. But,

[00:14:12] diane: but I love that you have these parameters that’s not just budget, I guess. Mm-hmm. You know, it’s like, it’s

[00:14:17] Brandi Sea: For sure a one that is not the primary. Um, Decision maker of what I do or don’t do.

[00:14:25] diane: But I think a lot of us get to a point where I can’t hire anybody. I [00:14:30] didn’t allot for enough in the budget.

[00:14:33] And so that has to do with your confidence as the or, or you’re taking on too much because you’re trying to help them out. But really, it, it, um, it kind of goes to the whole thing of inspiration in a way because it’s like, well, they’re, it’s like they’re just regurgitating things in our industry, which can be like, oh, well, I’ll just do it on Canva.

[00:14:58] There’s a plat, you know, there’s [00:15:00] something there, or whatever. And so it, it degrades our industry or degrades the. Idea of creativity because they think, oh, we are just gonna go on Pinterest and hunt for some, you know? Mm-hmm. Design layouts. And that’s not how I know most of the people here. Um, and I, I know most of them and I know that they don’t do that, but I know that there are times when either budget doesn’t allow and you’re like, yeah, I’m gonna use a template, or, or, um, you just are so, [00:15:30] so dead, like you can’t think of anything.

[00:15:33] And I love some of the pictures that you shared, uh, with me. It was like you laying down on the ground shooting all these domes when you were overseas and um, uh, cathedral domes or something, right? And then you’re getting down or you’re taking an angle from somewhere that’s, uh, un um, uncommon or, uh, not uhhuh.

[00:15:54] Uh, just a typical perspective. And it’s really like you [00:16:00] go and you use your camera. To be your eyes or you, um, to, to be your inspiration. And I, I just think that, that we just need that reminder. And actually it’s really helpful to just get up from our desk or our place in the church or wherever we are and get up and go for a walk in maybe a new place or go to a new, um, if you are working remote, then instead of working in your home office, go to a, a co-working space or just [00:16:30] to get out and, and do some of that.

[00:16:32] So, um, you share a lot on your podcast and in your social media, you’re have a really, and I just really don’t know how you have time to do everything, which is really inspiring. But you talk about creativity, you talk about where to get inspiration and about just the creative process, and you are super passionate about the creative process.

[00:16:54] And can you share with them that story? Um, It, it, it’s kind of maybe [00:17:00] elaborating a little bit more, uh, onto, and maybe there’s, you’ve already shared it. You’re like, I’m done, Diane, with that story, just tell me, but like, remind me which story you told. So you had told it in the beginning already today about how your husband kind of pointed you, but you also said that, um, God kind of revealed something to you about the, your process and that really one of the things was if, if they don’t know it, if other people mm-hmm.

[00:17:28] And they’re keeping [00:17:30] regurgitating and I, I do believe that they don’t, a lot of people don’t know. They think that’s what we do. We go to Pinterest, we look, here’s a design, I’m gonna do it in my own way or something. Sometimes there are these desert places where you’re like, these people are taking, I, I’m bidding for this job and they’re taking it and they’re getting it and I’m not.

[00:17:49] And so that’s that desert place. But then from that desert place, you, it was like clear that you were supposed to be doing this because maybe they don’t know. [00:18:00] I don’t know if there’s more to elaborate on that. You did give a really good, um, thing, but in the beginning, but

[00:18:06] Brandi Sea: if there is, there’s not a whole lot more.

[00:18:08] But I mean, I think ultimately it was, it was like, you know, if I know all this stuff, if I have the experience and I am keeping it to myself and just being mad at other people for not knowing it, that I’m doing them a disservice. And I know how that could come across like, well, I have something to give to the world and I’m [00:18:30] depriving them if I don’t share it.

[00:18:31] But like more in a, like, I really truly want designers of the world to be better and. You know, not that I’m the only person, but especially at the time, which 2015, like there wasn’t this hu, there wasn’t TikTok, there wasn’t a lot of people on YouTube. There wasn’t all this content out there for designers just starting out, or designers just in general to learn skills, to learn design thinking, to learn all of this stuff outside of going to [00:19:00] conferences and things.

[00:19:01] And I really felt like, you know, I could be this voice. I’m kind of a voice of dissent, even, even amongst my peers of design educators because I just have a, a very different outlook on a lot of ways in approaching design problems and design inspiration. And so, um, there wasn’t a whole lot more to add to that, that it was just like very.

[00:19:23] I still have to remind myself of that perspective when I get into these moments of just like, [00:19:30] uh, well, so-and-so on Instagram or so-and-so on. TikTok has like 107,000 followers. Like, who even cares about what I have to say? Except, you know what? I say it different. And people that follow me may learn something different from what they’re following.

[00:19:45] Other people. I don’t do design tutorials. I don’t do stuff like that. And so just coming back to that perspective of like, what has God given to me that I can share with people to help them grow and be better designers?

[00:19:59] diane: So, [00:20:00] so in this, um, what was the first thing you were doing? You were making Instagram, making YouTubes, or.

[00:20:07] And, and then the podcast and then the course or how, what was the order of this? Because sometimes we’re like, eh, I don’t know if this is anything. Sometimes people are like, oh, this has gotta be a course before you do anything else. You start the course. What was the order for you?

[00:20:24] Brandi Sea: It started with blogging.

[00:20:26] Um, it was blogging and it started, I don’t know if anybody in [00:20:30] this group knows John, John ak, but he, he did this 30 day challenge, um, to choose something that you want to do for 30 days and, you know, just kind of see where it goes. And it was any number of things for every person, like lose weight or get a new job or whatever.

[00:20:46] And because I was in this space of not knowing how to share what I knew with people, I decided to use that challenge as a blogging challenge to have to write about things. [00:21:00] And they were not great. And they’re still probably up on my website somewhere so far back that no one can find them. But, You know, writing about why a concept matters, what is design thinking?

[00:21:12] Why should you care about typography? Like stuff that I really felt people weren’t talking about and things that I was also frustrated with, like non designers asking me. Um, which kind of led to, um, so it was blogging first. Uh, people started reading my blog and I [00:21:30] had not a lot, but like half a dozen people ask me, like, I love your design tips.

[00:21:36] Would you, have you ever thought about making videos? And I was like, eh, I don’t think so. My husband’s a video producer, but that, I don’t, I don’t think so. I’m a good writer. Like I, I can write and just hide behind my keyboard and I don’t need to do any of that. I’m not like a shy person, but it just was so foreign to me.

[00:21:53] So my husband was like, we can shoot stuff. You’ve already got stuff written. We’ll just turn it into videos and we’ll just shoot a whole bunch in a [00:22:00] day and it won’t be a big deal. So, That’s when I started the YouTube channel. It was just Design Tip Tuesdays. And from there I was really starting to get more irritated with this idea of non designers not understanding the value of what I do.

[00:22:14] I was repeatedly getting, you know, asked to lower my prices and I don’t really know why it costs so much. And those questions had already led me earlier, before I started blogging, when I first started my business, to really write down my process [00:22:30] and really iron it out so that I could share it with clients so that they understand what I do.

[00:22:35] Like so much of where I am now has come from a point of like, why are you frustrating me and how can I resolve this? And so really ironing out my design process that I teach now was a result of, of clients being like, I don’t know what you do anyway. And the podcast originally was Design Speaks because it was like, [00:23:00] I want to show people that design speaks in these different ways and here’s why it matters.

[00:23:04] And so my original co-host, who is my, um, my adopted sister, she was a non-designer. She wasn’t a creative at the time. Now she works with my husband on his video team. So she doesn’t qualify as a non-designer anymore. Um, not a creative human, but at that time, I wanted her to be the voice of the quote, unquote frustrating person in the world that doesn’t understand what I do.

[00:23:28] And so that’s how Design speaks got [00:23:30] started. It was like, okay, I want you to come in and ask me why should you care about X, Y, Z? And I wanna tell you why. So that this can be something that non designers can go, okay, well, why does design cost so much? Why do I care about not using, you know, the wrong typeface?

[00:23:47] Or why don’t I use my favorite color and my logo just because it’s my favorite color? And so that’s where the podcast came in and it, it evolved because over time, Michelle became educated [00:24:00] because she was learning and she didn’t really have very many more questions. And, um, she ended up getting a job as a creative on the creative team at our church where my husband works, and the questions were becoming more difficult, and then her job was becoming more demanding, and so then I had to get a new co-host and like things have just kind of grown from that.

[00:24:20] Um, in the midst of that, I did a, I think it was a seven or eight part series of the podcast, and you probably know this as a follower of my [00:24:30] process and one episode per step explaining how I work and why it works and the word map and all of those things. And during the pandemic I had over, over a couple of years, I had been thinking about a course, but my husband was working from home over the pandemic and he helped me actually film my process a sort of a.

[00:24:52] A condensed essentials of my process into a course. So that’s when we did the [00:25:00] course and I launched it, um, during the pandemic. And it is learning my design process, the design strategy that I use in, in like a 20 something hour course I think maybe. Um, so that’s kind of how it has gone for me.

[00:25:19] diane: Okay, cool.

[00:25:20] So it, um, sometimes things evolve a and change as. Um, as the industry changes, sometimes other [00:25:30] things come up. And I think it’s really interesting, uh, and bridged it as well that, um, it was a clever approach, the q and a with a non-designer. She also had a question. She loved your U C D A talk, um, university, college Design Association.

[00:25:44] Um, and she was great on the subject and she’s just overwhelmed with zillions of photos to get them organized. So, um, you do take a lot of photos. There is this going out and exploring and actually making sure that there’s time. So [00:26:00] I love that when we started talking about budget, it’s budget isn’t just money, it’s also time.

[00:26:06] You’re a mom, you have kids, you have a husband, you have a life, you have other things. And so we’re also budgeting our time, but you take your photos in little spurts. It’s not like you’re, I mean, I’m sure you do sometimes the like a. Uh, I’m going walking and I’m going to be thinking about this client, uh, and I’m going to go to this place and [00:26:30] walk here and shoot pictures that are hopefully will inspire me, or, or something like that.

[00:26:35] But oftentimes we’re, you’re taking these tiny little bits, slices of your day and you’re using it. So you probably do have this archive of images. How do you organize those?

[00:26:49] Brandi Sea: Uh, the easy way, like just folders on my iPhone, I, I have multiple folders. Um, so there’s folders for shapes, [00:27:00] there’s folders, there’s a folder for shadows.

[00:27:04] Um, there’s a folder for every color. I have a folder for. Um, gosh, I mean, that’s, those are the basic categories, I guess, but, I keep like one just generic inspiration that like, if I don’t know where to put it and I don’t know why it’s inspiring, I also make a folder, especially for each [00:27:30] client. Um, so I actually don’t often have a client and then go out to find inspiration.

[00:27:40] Um, and that is something that you can do and that is something that I have told people is possible to do. Um, I kind of operate more on a preparing yourself to be inspired and it, it should operate. Like, you know, there’s this, the cliche thing of like, oh, I always [00:28:00] get ideas in the shower. Um, except it’s more intentional than that.

[00:28:05] You have your client, you have your concept, you know what kind of images you want to find for said client, and you know, sort of a color palette that you have in mind. And then you just live your life out in the world. But because those things are now front of mind, you will notice those things. And when I notice those things, I take pictures of those things.

[00:28:28] And if I don’t see any of those [00:28:30] things, um, a part, huge part of my process is going back through these folders that I have. Say I found that the colors are like a, like light blue, dark blue and gray. I can go into my folder of blues and pull out some pictures of some blue things that I found. Um, the same goes for the other colors.

[00:28:51] And then I can drag those into, um, my creative direction board that I have in Illustrator or, um, [00:29:00] in design and make what most people would call a mood board. But it’s not a mood board. It is a very intentionally crafted visual design strategy. Um, And so pulling those from the folders is, is really easy.

[00:29:14] You know, you can export ’em. I’m, I’m an Apple person, so it’s super easy to just like, export outta here, make these folders, and then when it comes time to like sharing these, the projects, which I’m still not great at, this is where I fail. Like, I don’t celebrate when I’m done. I’m just like, okay, done.

[00:29:28] What’s next though? [00:29:30] But I could, and I do, I have these folders, so when the work is done, pictures and JPEGs and all the things that go into the final product, I also put into these folders. So it becomes an, you know, a project folder so I can track like, what was my inspiration, what was, you know, The project’s gonna be like in the end.

[00:29:50] I take pictures of the process when I’m sketching and all of those things go also into that folder for the client. But as far as just capturing inspiration, um, [00:30:00] that is an ongoing thing. I may not even have a client at the moment that I’m working on, but I’m constantly just taking pictures of things that I find interesting.

[00:30:09] And the best way to not let that get away from you is to try your best to like, at the end of a day or a week to go back through your pictures and like sort things if you can. It’s a lot for me. I have, I don’t even know I have way too many photos. Like it is, it is a thing. So

[00:30:28] diane: what if you have a [00:30:30] photo that you want it to be in two folders?

[00:30:32] Because if on my iPhone, maybe I’m just. Uh, not very good. I’d still just have like favorites and then I don’t even know if I have other folders, so it would be helpful if I did. Um, but you just lit, it’s an album, right? And I it’s an album. Mm-hmm. Okay. Okay. Yeah. Okay, so now I’m, I just wanna make sure I know I’m gonna do this

[00:30:52] Brandi Sea: later.

[00:30:53] Yes.

[00:30:53] diane: Because it is on incredibly, I just have to scroll and scroll so I can see how this mm-hmm. What if you had something, an [00:31:00] image that you want it to be in the green folder, but you also it can be in multiple. Oh, it can uhhuh.

[00:31:07] Brandi Sea: Yeah. Well, that’s how I can drag a folder, like, uh, a green color picture that I think would be great for a color palette into a client folder.

[00:31:14] It just, it will just make a copy. Oh. Oh, and it’s still in all of your, it still goes in all of your, all photos as well. Okay. So it’s just there. Um, something that I’m, I keep reading that Apple is, is in the process of doing is like [00:31:30] you should be able to, in the future, search like the color green. And it will show you all, like right now, the cap, the capability is pretty limited.

[00:31:39] Like it’ll mostly show you grass and if you search blue, it’ll mostly show you sky. But you know, there’s the, the capabilities are becoming better and better. So that like if I need the color blue, I shouldn’t have to go through and organize those all. I can just hunt for it. So that’s something that I’m looking forward [00:32:00] to.

[00:32:00] diane: One thing that you said that I, I think a lot of people struggle with is taking pictures during the process cuz they’re just so wrapped up. How was that ever a problem for you? Or how did you break yourself then to be able to start like, ah, I need to take pictures?

[00:32:19] Brandi Sea: It’s, it’s, honestly, it’s still a struggle and it does, it does take a little bit away from like doing it sometimes.

[00:32:29] But [00:32:30] because of how I teach my process, and because it is not feelings driven, it’s not like, oh my gosh, I feel inspired, I better get to work. Mm-hmm. And then if I, oh, if I need to set up my camera, I’m gonna ruin my, my flow. Mm-hmm. Because, you know, I don’t, I, I’m gonna be honest as much as like, this is my heart.

[00:32:50] Like, I have friends who have said, I bleed design. Like this is what I do, but I don’t always feel like doing it. And so the process [00:33:00] that I develop, the way that I work is like, look, you just sit down and you do a word map. So now part of that process is you sit down and do a word map and you put your camera up.

[00:33:11] And if I forget to do a time lapse of the word map, which is something I really love to do, I just take a picture of it when I’m done. Um, because it also allows me. You know, we talked about, I think when we, you and I talked beforehand, like that it allows you to have like an actual map to [00:33:30] something. Then if I have a picture of it and I’m able to share that with a client, if they ask questions, I can go back and say, here’s, here’s how this thought process came about.

[00:33:40] Here’s where your concept was coming from. Here’s how the colors came into this process and this creative strategy and, you know, the creative direction for this came from X, Y, Z. And so the filming your process is, you know, such a bonus to showing your [00:34:00] expertise. Especially, you know, the most important part that of, of having, you know, my process as part of what I do and what I hope to teach people is it is reliable and it is repeatable and you don’t have to feel like doing it for it to work.

[00:34:15] And so, When that happens, that shows a client that you are not just operating on some creative whim, that you are gonna be there, that you are gonna have the stuff that you are going to know what the heck you’re doing when you [00:34:30] talk to them about it. And so, um, designers that just kind of pretend they’re fine artists and expect clients to just go with what they’ve got when they feel like it and you know, things like that.

[00:34:43] That’s why, to go back to your first question, that’s why there’s clients from hell cuz you’re just acting like you are the artist and they are your patron. And that is not how design work.

[00:34:54] diane: Right. Right. Okay. So, um, doc says he invested in some desk cls and [00:35:00] a phone holder, and that he can leave it set up for just helping mm-hmm.

[00:35:04] To make mm-hmm. That capturing easy and sometimes they’re, the setup is huge. You know, we think of it’s like, oh, it’s this big arm and this thing, and it’s in the way, and I have to have these lights. But maybe there’s a way to make it so that it’s really pretty minimal and that you could clip it to your desk and just plop your phone on something.

[00:35:23] Yeah. And if you forget then, but it’s about maybe getting in that habit of, Hey, here I am. Mm-hmm. In the process. And I do think that [00:35:30] that’s a, I think it’s really important to document that because it does give value and it does give, um, a thought path, a pa pattern or a thought, I don’t know, thoughtful endeavors, uh, to your client instead of it’s, it does feel like very magic to them.

[00:35:49] Um, Or it is whim or um, like mm-hmm. It’s just this, oh, you did it in dark brown cuz you were having a bra bad day today. [00:36:00] Mm-hmm. I mean, de wouldn’t think that’s her favorite color brown. Anyway. Okay, so I wanna ask you this and um, uh, does your faith play a role in your creative process? And where do you draw, where do you most often draw inspiration from?

[00:36:16] Is it mostly photography?

[00:36:20] Brandi Sea: Um, so as far as like my faith and my creative process, like, I, I mean my faith is just a part of who I am. Like, it’s just a part of how I operate. [00:36:30] And I feel like if I had to kind of find a place where it comes in, it’s, you know, I talked on my first episode, um, of the podcast back in over a year about, you know, the roots of the word inspiration is breathing in and.

[00:36:49] You know, when you breathe in, you have to breathe out and inspiration should work the same way. You, you will breathe in everything around you. Keep what you need and exhale the [00:37:00] stuff you don’t need. And I think that, I’ve thought before about how, you know, God breathed into us like he breathed in, breathed air, into, you know, humanity.

[00:37:15] And he is a creative God. We are, I believe everybody is creative. We’re not all creative in the same way. And so as far as the, the general like creative process, I feel like that’s just an inherent thing that I [00:37:30] think about. Um, but as far as the design process, I mean, I can’t really say that like my faith plays a direct co.

[00:37:37] There’s not like a direct correlation into like the design process outside of just like, this is who God made me. These are the ideas he gave me. He is the one that revealed through my husband over the years, like, This perspective shift? Um, as far as where I find my inspiration, I wouldn’t say it is actually necessarily photography.

[00:37:57] I think I, [00:38:00] this is the question I get asked the most often in every single interview. I just, where, well, where do you find I everywhere? And as tried as that sounds like I have found inspiration and cracks in the sidewalk. I have found inspiration in film, in all sorts of books, book covers to, I’ve watched documentaries on completely non-creative, quote unquote non-creative topics and really saw something interesting.[00:38:30]

[00:38:30] I have found inspiration and the apple screensaver on my tv. Um, it’s just being prepared and open to seeing inspiration everywhere. But not only like being generically inspired, I call it being specifically inspired, which requires you asking questions. If I look at, I have posters all over, but I have some like Vintage Vogue cover posters that my dad bought me from like the 1930s.

[00:38:57] They’re illustrated. And I [00:39:00] could just say, I love these posters. They’re just really cool. But if I step back for a second and ask myself, why do I like them? What do I like about them? And what might that, what might I be able to use that for later? Um, so one of them is, has a, you know, 1930s flapper looking girl sitting on a moon, and it’s on this stark black background, and it’s just got vogue at the top.

[00:39:29] [00:39:30] And I, I could say, you know, I know that I love that because I’ve always loved black and white. Um, I love that it looks whimsical. Which speaks to what I know about myself and my own visual voice. I also love that it’s clean, which is something that I do, I’ve tried many times to do like, like messy maximalist, and it’s hard to do that for me because I [00:40:00] operate on design, math.

[00:40:01] What can I take away? Um, and so when you know why, and you can ask why and do a little bit more digging into why it’s inspiring to you or even just interesting, oh, that’s an interesting, uh, set of tiles in that bathroom. I’m gonna take a picture of it. I don’t know why it’s, it’s interesting to me, but I’m gonna think about that.

[00:40:24] Think about when you were younger. Like, I have a stack of children’s books that I stole from my mom and dad’s house [00:40:30] that I used to read over and over and over again, and I can look through them and see, oh, there’s a common thread here. They’re whimsical. There’s some hand drawn elements to a lot of it, like dark outlines with like soft watercolor ish stuff.

[00:40:45] Um, and here’s just a little insight for those of you who are here, I’m working on a children’s book with an illustrator friend of mine, and I’m going to lean into those things when I’m directing her in these illustrations, looking at the things that I have found [00:41:00] inspiring. So when I am out at the, we tr my husband and I and my kids travel a lot.

[00:41:03] We’ve gone to the Met, we’ve gone to tons of museums and I can look at all sorts of things, take pictures of these paintings, but then like, what am I taking from this that Diane might not take from this? We could all be in the same room and look at all of the same things, not in like a super inspiring place.

[00:41:20] Maybe it’s just like a office boardroom and I could tell you, I want you to list five things in here that are interesting to you, and we would probably not all list the same things, and that’s [00:41:30] where this comes in. So where I find my inspiration is everywhere, because I can see. Something interesting virtually everywhere.

[00:41:38] That was a really long answer. No,

[00:41:40] diane: I love that. And I love that we all are gonna see something else interesting or it inspires us because it’s not just flat. It, um, we can break it down and see details or, or you may see the details and I may see the bigger, um, uh, composition or something. So I love that.

[00:41:58] And it,

[00:41:59] Brandi Sea: and that’s uncommon. [00:42:00] That’s the uncommon inspiration that is you are, as a human being, you are uncommon. You are not like any other human being. So finding your inspiration and pairing that with the process is where your own unique visual voice comes from. Because you are looking at other places and not just getting on Pinterest and seeing what everybody else sees and trying, hoping to pull something new out of that.

[00:42:23] You are literally looking. Everywhere and finding things

[00:42:26] diane: there. Yeah. Well, I love, uh, when we were [00:42:30] talking last week, um, you were talking about when you found, and I think we’ve all probably got this or we, you will get to this place where, um, just doing what you’ve been doing isn’t working. It doesn’t, uh, cl I don’t know, it doesn’t scratch that itch the way you want it to.

[00:42:47] It doesn’t feel like you found your voice, your visual voice. So when you were looking, or when you’re telling someone who’s looking for their visual voice or their style, um, a lot of people will just go [00:43:00] to Pinterest or something. But you, you’re, you gave us insight into what you did or what you do, that you looked at the things that you really liked and you started analyzing it instead of just taking it as, um, Like the vogue thing.

[00:43:15] I like that. The end. Right. Um, you really were analyzing it more and you actually went back to childhood, but you also told me about, um, a time when you were in college, you were doing some, uh, work and you were like, I actually had my [00:43:30] voice then. Um, you didn’t know it and you, but you were playing. Right.

[00:43:35] And I do think it, it’s a lot about play, but, um, what would be the first place that you would tell somebody who is struggling with finding their voice, their visual voice or their style?

[00:43:49] Brandi Sea: Well, asking questions is the biggest, like the number one first thing asking what what do I like and why do I like it?

[00:43:55] And if you ha like often it’s really good to go back to your childhood because that was when like you were at [00:44:00] your, your purist. Like, I just like this. You weren’t asking questions, you just knew you liked it and you kept liking it. And if that is true, How does that impact me now? Like, was my favorite color purple and I still like purple?

[00:44:16] Why? Why do I like purple? What is it about purple? What does color, what does the color purple mean? Um, what does the color purple mean in the US versus other countries? And how, how is that interesting to me? Where did I first see the color purple? Like, there’s so many things you could get [00:44:30] from a very simple observation.

[00:44:32] Um, outside of that, something that I, I think I didn’t truly embrace. Um, and this goes back to that project and I’ll, I’ll talk about that in a second. But, um, I, all of you probably know James Victoria. He has become a design friend of mine after I went to a creative retreat with him in 2017, um, at his ranch.

[00:44:52] And something that I was really struggling with at the time was like, I know the kind of things I want to do, but I don’t [00:45:00] really know how to express that. I don’t, you know, I was taught all through college and I think many, many designers are still taught this, that like, your voice doesn’t matter. You have to morph into the voice of the client and become that instead.

[00:45:15] And I was really struggling with that because I had been taught that I was teach, I was teaching that. And it was, it became very apparent to me that like, look, if if they don’t want you as a person, they’re gonna hire the other person. Instead you, [00:45:30] if you want to be hired for you, be you. And not to a, not in a bullying way, right?

[00:45:37] I’m not gonna be like, look, if you don’t like handwritten elements, I’m not gonna work with you. I could, and some designers do that because that is their style. Um, but I think for me, I land somewhere in the middle of finance is understanding what things you are drawn to and where you get your inspiration from.

[00:45:56] I like to insert hand drawn elements, [00:46:00] um, more so on typography where it’s my actual handwriting on things when it’s appropriate to do so for projects. Um, and that is something that I learned from James Victoria, was he, he’s obviously a little bit more on the, uh, bold side of his vocabulary. Um, but something that will never go away for me is, um, he wanted us to just do something.

[00:46:25] He’s like, just make a gosh darn mark. Like make a [00:46:30] mark on the paper. It’s your name. Write it. Like, and it was like, okay. What he was getting at is like, your mark matters. And for me, and in talking with him over the weekend that I spent there, it was actually try using your own handwriting. That is like the most direct link to your voice is your handwriting.

[00:46:54] And so that is something that I think I have taken, um, not only in a literal [00:47:00] way to try and use in things. I use it on my social media content. I use it in various designs that I’ve done. But also pulling that into the process. In doing a word map, you are using your own handwriting, bringing things out of your own brain onto the paper and developing your word map based on your own experiences, your own inspiration.

[00:47:26] Um, you know, obviously you probably need to get out of thesaurus when you hit [00:47:30] the end, which is another small tip that I do. But finding your voice can start with something as simple as understanding that like, making my mark matters. And if that means signing your work, you know, James Victoria’s like, why shouldn’t you sign your designs?

[00:47:49] And it’s not always appropriate. This design up here is one of his, um, it’s a poster for 12th Night that he made for, um, the Shakespeare in the park in New York, [00:48:00] which I love. I’m a big Shakespeare geek, but he signed it. His signature’s there. You know, and it can be as, as small as that. So I think finding your visual voice is very introspective.

[00:48:14] It is not simply choosing a style and saying like, this is what I want to look like. And if you’re copying things off of Pinterest, when you are early on in your design career, you’re copying the masters. That’s how we all learn. But then you have to understand, okay, what am I gonna [00:48:30] take from Saba that feels like me?

[00:48:33] What am I gonna take from James Victoria that feels like me? And using those things and inserting your specific interests into that, it’s how to do it. And I know it doesn’t. It’s not like a simple do X, Y, then Z. And you’ll find your visual voice like it’s a process of understanding yourself first and foremost.

[00:48:55] diane: Yeah. Yeah. I, and I think it’s that questioning, [00:49:00] why do I like this? What attracts me? What connects this to this? Why would I use this for this client? I think that’s, uh, pretty interesting. And it, and even if it’s not a way that somebody feels comfortable, it is good to ask those questions, um, to just shock you into something else.

[00:49:18] You know? Especially if you’re hitting a roadblock, then that’s when you do, just like he was saying, make a mark when you’re like, mm-hmm. I don’t, I don’t do that. I just type everything and everything’s really clean and [00:49:30] nice, but it’s like sometimes you have to do the opposite. And last summer was a big, make a lot of messes summer for me, which is really difficult to do, but I, I.

[00:49:41] I think that for me, and I, and you kind of alluded to this, was when you looked back at the college work Oh, yes. I forgot you were like, um, it it, you realize now looking back that you had it. Mm-hmm. Can you kind of Yes, because I, for me, I look back at old sketchbooks and I’m like, these [00:50:00] weren’t that bad.

[00:50:00] And, and at the time I would’ve scratched something out and then I had to make a, a pack with myself that I wasn’t gonna erase or scratch anything else. I was just gonna move on because in time I actually saw value to that. But you looked back at something you were making from college.

[00:50:17] Brandi Sea: Can you tell them that story?

[00:50:19] Yeah. So, um, I was in one of my later years in college and they wanted, it was a, a CD package project. Nobody does those anymore. [00:50:30] Sad. Um, um, and it was, I got to choose the client and so I chose this band, the Rocket Summer, and I. Did it all with my own handwriting because it felt appropriate to the concept.

[00:50:44] I wrote all of the lyrics on the booklet. Um, I, the cover was a pair of tennis shoes that were my shoes. That was a picture that I took that I, you know, manipulated in Photoshop and did, and the cover was very [00:51:00] clean, but also had a lot of interesting lines because of the hand drawn elements that I had used.

[00:51:06] And this was in 2006. So like getting things digitized and doing stuff like that was really hard. Still scanning stuff in and, but I s I see, and I, I realized honestly just very recently thinking randomly about that project because the Rocket Summer’s gonna be coming to Albuquerque soon and I really wanted to go see him play live.

[00:51:26] And I was like, I forgot. I did that project [00:51:30] and I told my husband, I was like, do you remember that thing I showed you in like my old box of like the college work? I already had my voice done. Like, and I didn’t realize that it was there. And so using my handwriting and doing hand drawn type elements and more organic feeling things and customized type, um, has always been a part of how I do things.

[00:51:56] It’s just that now I understand why, and [00:52:00] I have been able to embrace that more and find ways that I can incorporate things like that into projects. And they’re not always, I just did a complete brand strategy, visual rebrand for a tech company, and there’s not gonna be hand drawn elements on that. Like I drew the logo elements, right?

[00:52:24] But every line is clean, ev, you know, so it’s not like I just [00:52:30] found my voice and everything I do is in that voice now. My voice comes out in different ways and where I find my inspiration for certain projects. And so it, it’s a balance.

[00:52:42] diane: I love that. And I have a new idea for, um, uh, uh, an exercise for my students.

[00:52:51] Anyway. I’m writing it down so I don’t forget. No, what’s the idea there? I just think that, um, I think that if [00:53:00] I had a whole, you know, there are lots of photos on Unsplash and stuff that are somebody else’s concept they’ve already done. They took the photo, like the shoes, right? And then they put it together with other things.

[00:53:13] So I want to teach my students that that was somebody else’s concept. Uh, yes, you could use it cuz it’s on Unsplash. But what does that say about you? It says nothing. It says nothing about you that you can download a [00:53:30] photo. Mm-hmm. So, um, this is where maybe the mid journey stuff can really help people who don’t have the ability to draw it.

[00:53:38] They have the idea, they have the concept. Mm-hmm. Well then work with mid journey to make the thing that you are wanting to make. Mm-hmm. And I think that there is, um, there’s really. Excitement. And so I had this, uh, situation with a kid in the spring and I was like, you need to find a [00:54:00] different photo. And he’s like, wow, this was the concept I like.

[00:54:02] And I was like, yeah, but it was, it’s somebody else’s. All you did was add type to this. Like this is not Mm. And and they couldn’t get it. So I think if I start earlier and say, what’s the concept of this? And then show them, Hey, this is how you could build something like this, but you don’t need to use somebody else’s concept.

[00:54:20] Cuz then you’re just kind of doing the same thing. The inspiration you’re letting someone else inspire you to make. And I’ve, I’ve done projects where it was like a [00:54:30] weird, just an image of something, say shoes, and then you put text. That was weird that now because you have these shoes and you have this text, it’s, it makes a different story that wasn’t there.

[00:54:45] And because of that combination, it becomes a concept. And I think that stuff’s okay, but. Maybe it’s just pushing them on their concepts a little bit. But we are, yeah, we’re the, we have two. Go ahead.

[00:54:57] Brandi Sea: No, I was just gonna say that one of the other things that, that [00:55:00] I talk a lot about that I, that kind of drives me bonkers about, um, the design world is the definition of like, the word concept.

[00:55:07] And it’s like a concept is, is, is should not just be like a vague idea. It like, if you can’t give it like a two or three word name, like my concept is enchanted old Victorian or something. Like, it’s, it’s not, it’s also like not an execution. Well this is, this is my, I have seven concepts. [00:55:30] You shouldn’t have seven concepts.

[00:55:31] If you think something’s going to work for your client, you should have one concept and like three variations of said concept, the same color, palette, the same, you know, done in different ways. But then when you show a client three versions, completely different. They think you don’t know what you’re doing either.

[00:55:49] So why did they even like come to you to begin with? If you are showing them three things that could or could not work, instead of going, look, I have this. I know it will work [00:56:00] because this, this, this, here you go.

[00:56:03] diane: And maybe it’s determining, well, I think maybe sometimes people jump into the concept without getting it approved first or, and so I think you can, that’s where maybe mood boards or style scapes can come in before you spend all this time.

[00:56:22] Like, I have this idea. This is a little bit more uncomfortable, but I still think even with. Style escapees. That’s really hard for [00:56:30] me to say. It’s really just a hot, medium and mild kind of, uh, of one concept. But if you’re really confused on direction, then maybe there, there’s some, uh, tools that you can use to get them on board with that concept.

[00:56:45] But I like that you’re giving them options. Yeah,

[00:56:47] Brandi Sea: and I don’t do any of that. I don’t do any of that. Well, I do one, one concept method, one execution, one concept. Um, and this is where I get, like, I, I am like the polar opposite [00:57:00] of how most of the design world works. Like I never show clients, uh, concept boards or anything until things are done because I’m then, but this is established before in the conversations, right?

[00:57:12] It’s, look, you’re not gonna see anything from me. Like I will communicate that I’m working on things, but you’re not gonna see anything till I give you the final presentation, because if I show them th a couple of, you know, concept board style scapes or mood boards or anything like that, Um, they are going to come up with in [00:57:30] their mind immediately what they think that’s going to look like.

[00:57:32] And there’s no way that I can execute what they’re doing in their brain. So it will, nine times out of 10 disappoint and they won’t know why and they won’t know how to explain it. And that’s where it gets really frustrating. So I establish the concept, I establish all of those things. I have my reasons. I have my word map, I have all the things so that when I present it to them, they say, oh, I get it.

[00:57:56] It makes sense.

[00:57:58] diane: Yeah. Oh, [00:58:00] that’s, I think, I think it’s good to really know what your process processes and, and, and e everybody might not have the same process that, but that’s what makes us good. So, um, I this really quick, uh, was it hard for you to embrace as you’re looking back, you see this and you’re like, What, or you go to the James Victoria Ranch and he’s telling you to make your mark.

[00:58:26] Was that hard for you to embrace or did you [00:58:30] need that validation from someone to say, Hey, your voice is, your marks

[00:58:34] Brandi Sea: are important? I think it was somewhere in the middle because I didn’t, I don’t think I, I knew that I needed the validation until I got the validation. Um, but it was very difficult because I, I want there to be really clear, like ex like expectations on something and what am I supposed to do?

[00:58:58] Um, and finding, you know, [00:59:00] digging deep into myself to find my voice didn’t feel right. It felt like, well, if, if I’m just doing things for me, this goes against everything I’ve been teaching where it’s objective, it’s not feelings based, but it’s not, it is a balance. It is, there are parts of this that are non-negotiable.

[00:59:18] You don’t get to just do what you want. But you can insert your voice with your inspiration and just you being you and sometimes your handwriting, if [00:59:30] that’s something that you want. Um, so I think it was somewhere in the middle, but it was hard. It was hard. I, I didn’t think I needed it until I needed it.

[00:59:40] diane: Yeah. Yeah. I, I think that even how we talk about who we are and what we’re doing, especially if we’re trying something new, it just feels like new shoes. And you’re like, Hey, I don’t wanna walk too far in these, you know, like, I’ll go to the grocery store, but that’s it. If we’re going somewhere else, I’m gonna, I’m gonna wear, you know, I’m not committing to [01:00:00] this because I’m not sure that it’s gonna feel right.

[01:00:03] And I feel like, you know, we can reinvent ourselves all the time, but I do think that that voice feels awkward and it should, because we’re just finally saying that this may be is us, and instead of trying to be something else or. Where it’s like, this is just who it is. I think the reason James has such strength is because he’s had good validation from, I’m sure he is had bad as well, but [01:00:30] he’s had, uh, more good, he’s gotten the good when he needed it, that it really mattered.

[01:00:36] And that’s the, um, the feedback that we need to keep going or that, that push that is like, oh yeah, we really do love this. So, um, I just kind of wanna wrap it up at, with two last questions. What’s one thing that you’ve learned, um, about yourself in this last year that has been the most impactful [01:01:00] to your life or your freelance business

[01:01:03] Brandi Sea: this past year?

[01:01:06] Um, I had some major personal things happen last year that I had to take time off from the podcast for an entire year. Um, I think. Between that and some other things that were going on. I think something that, two things that I learned, um, one was it’s okay, like I am millennia gram three and I’m a, I am very [01:01:30] performance driven.

[01:01:31] Um, and so to be able to let it go, because it was good for me mentally and emotionally, um, was a very hard lesson because I felt like I was letting people down. And on the flip side, if I wasn’t letting them down, maybe they didn’t care to begin with. Like it’s a real weird internal battle. Like, are they even gonna notice that the podcast went away?

[01:01:51] And if so, then why am I even doing it? So embracing the, the being okay with like, just because I took a year off doesn’t mean [01:02:00] it has to be done, because that was kind of the thought initially. Um, and the other thing is, uh, I need, and this is another, my husband’s very, he is very objective and very good for me.

[01:02:12] We balance each other out perfectly. It was. A reminder from him, like, why aren’t you sharing your design work? Um, you talk a lot about design. You do a lot of design, but when you’re done with projects, you just say, I’m super glad I did that. It was very [01:02:30] fulfilling. And, you know, I haven’t added new work to my portfolio in ages, and I hardly ever show it on Instagram or anywhere because I just wanna talk about design things.

[01:02:39] I don’t always want to share my work. And so being okay and trying and I’m, I’m getting there. I, I’m not good at it yet. I’m learning that it, I need to be okay with sharing the work, not just the process, because I love the process so much. For me, the work is like, okay, I [01:03:00] did it. Like I achieved the thing and the client was happy.

[01:03:04] But like, it’s the process that matters and not showing what the process led to is probably not the best. Um, so learning to. Celebrate my work and not feel like I am too self promotional in doing so because Hello. That’s how you get more business.

[01:03:23] diane: Right? Right. That’s exactly it. I think that that’s one of the things that I have bound [01:03:30] with mastermind groups is that.

[01:03:33] If you’re doing something for yourself and that’s what you’re coming to this project with, uh, this group with, you need just your feet held to the fire cuz you will, I know I will always do the client work before I do my work. And then when I’m having a block, it’s like, what’s really going on? But I usually just don’t take time to figure that out and it just, my stuff goes down.

[01:03:58] Doc says we’re all too busy [01:04:00] making to update our sites or to take that course we spent the money on or to, to finish the course or to start more of a marketing arm to your business so that you continue to do this or, Hey, have this dream of doing this, but you’re never even taking the, the road to this thing.

[01:04:19] Mm-hmm. And so that’s where, for me, that’s what, um, the. My mastermind. That’s what we do. And that’s, that is a really, um, it’s, it is [01:04:30] really hard. It’s these things that, you know, you should be doing that will really impact your business, but you’re not doing. And so anyway, that’s hopefully you’ll see some of those like starting next week about from, from me.

[01:04:43] Um, but, so I love the, the things that you’ve learned. What can we expect next from you as I share your links and just everybody will know that they, um, uh, be able to go to YouTube if you’re watching on YouTube or [01:05:00] in on the, the page on my site, which I’ll also share. But all those links, all of Brandy’s links so that you can, uh, connect with her are right there.

[01:05:10] And it’s Brandy with an i b r a n d i s e a.com, and pretty much brandy C on everything. So

[01:05:20] Brandi Sea: the only one in the world as far as I know. What’s

[01:05:23] diane: next.

[01:05:25] Brandi Sea: Oh, so there will be a children’s book at some point in the future. That is, [01:05:30] that is like a super back burner, but also something that I’ve actually started working on.

[01:05:34] Um, I’ve been trying to write a book, um, for, I was approached by a publisher in 2020, um, but because my stuff always come to last, like we said, it’s, it’s been a very long process. Um, so that book is going to be, well, very likely [01:06:00] called, uh, title is Possibly Changing, but the Creative Concepts Cookbook. Um, and so that’s going to be coming at some point.

[01:06:11] And I’m also working on a workbook ish thing. Not sure the format of that just yet, but for, uh, finding. Finding inspiration in the world, like something you can take with you, um, out when you are doing things [01:06:30] to some, figure out how to find inspiration, uncommon inspiration for you.

[01:06:36] diane: So do you think that’s something that you’ll get to this year and then it’ll come out next year, or you’re gonna be working on it this year and next year and coming out in the next few years?

[01:06:48] Brandi Sea: Um, probably realistically, uh, probably the next few years, um, I’ve got about a quarter of the book, book written that is, um, I’m kind of working on that in conjunction with [01:07:00] the workbook. Um, the workbook is less intensive, uh, so that may come out first or it may come. Together. It kind of just depends on how I decide to release that into the world and the children’s book.

[01:07:12] Um, I’m wanting to be a little more official. Um, so gonna need to ha figure out, you know, book publisher and, um, a different kind of book publisher than the one that I was approached, um, by. So, uh, that is, uh, that’s, [01:07:30] you know, it’s, God gave these ideas to me. Um, but I also know that my family is my one number one priority.

[01:07:38] Um, and my daughter only has three years left of high school. My son is in going into fifth grade. And so while those things are fun and like I really want to do them and me and my selfishness could easily, uh, work on this stuff and ignore other things, um, what [01:08:00] that looks like is, you know, I’m just gonna pull the God card.

[01:08:02] Like that’s really. It just depends on, on those priorities and what life throws my way. In the meanwhile, I’ve learned to stop making too many plans cuz I tend to disappoint myself when I can’t achieve those things. So trying to be a little bit more, uh, flexible on times for things while also setting realistic time goals.[01:08:30]

[01:08:31] diane: Yeah, I think that’s awesome. That’s great. I am looking forward to seeing all of that. So I thank you so much for, for finally being on the show. Thank you guys for staying a little late and just Brandy, thank you so much. And um, next week, uh, it’s uh, the back to the we are the Now series with Bethany Heck, somebody who is always busting up, um, type rules, which I love.

[01:08:58] And you get to see where [01:09:00] she is now and what she’s up to. So I hope that you guys will join me back for Bethany Hack and, you know, you’ll learn something about type cuz she always teaches us something about what she’s doing. So Brandy, thank you so much. Um, you guys make sure you, thank you. Uh, Follow her and uh, if you’re not already at just Brandy, b r a n d i s e a.com.

[01:09:23] All right, Brandy, thank you so

[01:09:24] Brandi Sea: much. Thank you.[01:09:30]