Well howdy Reader!
As Sofia* so often said: "Picture it...": It's late, you're tired, you've been scrolling someone else's beautifully cohesive content, and suddenly your own brand looks…meh. The colours feel wrong...the logo feels dated. That font you picked just six months ago and LOVED now just looks too 'normal'.
So what do we do? We open Canva. We start fiddling. Maybe a new palette this time. Maybe a softer serif. Maybe (gods help us 😜) it's time for a whole new visual direction.
Sound familiar? 😅
Here's the thing I have found over the years: often when we want to redesign our brand, it's not because the brand is broken. It's because WE feel stuck. And redesigning feels like progress. It feels like doing something. It scratches the same itch as reorganising your desk when you can't face the actual work. Anyone? 🤨 <Wayne raises hand sheepishly>
I have seen the power of a brand refresh...but here's the tea: a fresh colour palette won't make the content easier. A new logo won't make the next launch land. And changing your fonts for the fourth time this year won't fix the fact that you're worried nobody's listening.
I say this with love because I've BEEN there. More than once.🖤
So consider this your permission slip: you're allowed to stop redesigning for a while. You're allowed to take a breath, be ok with your brand where it is for now and go do the actual scary thing instead.
As I said earlier - don't get me wrong, your branding matters...genuinely. But re-branding for the sake of it is not the right reason. It's worth considering that maybe, just maybe...what REALLY needs your attention is probably sitting in a different tab entirely (metaphorically & literally). And it's highly likely that getting to know your audience, building a connection, testing marketing ideas, putting yourself out there... will actually help you get clearer on what genuinely DOES need to evolve in your brand.
So if you're feeling that urge anytime, try this little check-in with yourself before you open Canva 😁:
- Has anything actually changed about who I serve or what I sell? If no, the brand probably doesn't need to change either.
- Am I avoiding something? Be honest with yourself here. A launch you're scared of, a piece of content you don't want to write, a decision you've been putting off.
- Would my audience notice the change? If the answer is probably not, that's a clue this is for us, not them.
- Is there ONE small refinement that would genuinely help? Sometimes the answer is yes! A tidier template, a clearer headline style, a more consistent colour for CTAs. That's different from a full rebrand.
The goal isn't to never touch your brand again. It's to touch it with purpose and clear direction, not as a procrastination strategy dressed up as creative work. (And let me tell you, nobody does that more than designers themselves! 🤣)
And if you do decide a small refinement is genuinely needed, set some constraints: One hour only, or just the one small change that will move you forward. But then save the file, close the tab, and move on. The fiddling expands to fill whatever time we give it, so give it less. 😉
When 1 becomes 4**
In the past I have been guilty of publishing a post on IG (that probably took me WAAAY too long to create) and then just...moving on. Because there's a never ending to-do list and repurposing content just always feels like it will take too long.
But the truth is that I'm actually missing an opportunity. This week on YouTube, I took one of my own Instagram posts and experimented with using Canva AI 2.0 to turn it into a full content suite - a carousel, a Facebook ad, a LinkedIn post, and a Reel - captions and all, sitting right there in one place. And y'know, the whole thing took maybe 10 minutes with simple language prompts - real conversational design.
In this video I walk you through every step so you can try the same with your own content. I started with one simple post that I designed (and I was confident reflected my brand style) and I've put the simple prompts I used together in a free cheat sheet if you want a starting point to just copy & paste with your own chosen content piece.
Check out the process and results using just CanvaAI for layout and captions on my channel now.
Meaningful Creations
Narciso Jiménez García (Narciso JG) is an illustrator based in Murcia, Spain - and I just though you may enjoy his work (especially if you are a gamer!).😊
You know I love a bit of whimsey - and his illustrations sit somewhere between a dream and a fable: Tiny human figures dwarfed by vast, hazy landscapes; strange creatures rendered with a kind of elegance, and scenes that feel like they're from a story you can't quite remember. Even his colour palette is dreamlike.
And then there are the animations. Narciso takes his finished illustrations and brings them to life with the most delicate, subtle motion - a gentle sway, a slow drift, the tiniest suggestion of a breeze. As always it's what he DOESN'T do that elevates it. It would be so easy to over-animate but instead the intentional softness is what makes it work.
Illustrators like Narciso remind me that often the smallest creative decision is the one that transforms something good into something you can't forget.
Check out his Instagram, and tell him I sent ya.😉
Have a fantastic rest of your week. Stay awesome. 🖤
*If you don't get this reference, you're missing out. 😊
**With apologies to the Spice Girls
