When I overthink, I lose #2. My way of solving this problem is take a break from the project and let it breathe. I do something else like read, play my piano, or watch tv. Then when I come back, my mind is fresh and have more ideas to implement.

I’m stuck right in the middle of an overthinking crises right now with my own website design. Let’s see… I am on my 3rd redesign right now, and I still think it sucks. But yesterday I woke up early, grabbed some breakfast, sat down on my couch and decided to catch up on a few articles.

One in particular that really caught my attention was written by Andy Rutledge, titled “On Inspiration” (you can read it here: http://www.andyrutledge.com/on-inspiration.php). In the essay Andy makes some bold statements about what inspiration “is” and what it “isn’t”. It was refreshing to read, simply because of the rut I’ve been in with my own design work. But I think it’s a vital topic no matter where you are.

On a professional level, I’ve seen firsthand the side-effects of “overthinking” in the work place. It just leads to more and more useless work which could’ve been avoided in the first place if things were kept simple. Also, I think a big reason people tend to over think things is because they aren’t sure of what they want to say. And that to me is what I would consider the root cause, indecisive direction.

Im 50/50 on this one. I agree that over thinking a problem, will sometimes make you miss the answer entirely. However, when it comes to design problems, I find myself thinking to conceptually, and not detailed. I think in the process of pushing a design out, it is easier to think about the project as a whole rather than the nitty gritty details. On the contrary, I believe there is a huge value in actually “doing” and not thinking. You can only think about a project or problem for so long. I have found that the more I actually start doing, the more the thinking get easier. You can’t plan out every problem…and most of the time, problems will have changed and evolved by the time you have figured out answer.

Much Love!

I absolutely think over-thinking is the enemy. In my case, anyway, my design gets worse and worse the more I over analyze it. I add elements that don’t need to be there, color that doesn’t match the layout, and images that are just unnecessary. I find that using that thinking time into the thumbnails are absolutely necessary, but once I start doing it while creating my PSD.. it starts looking scattered.

Awesome post man!

Oh man, I completely agree with you on this. There is definitely a fine line between paying attention to the details and over-thinking the unimportant.

I don’t think the actual analyzing of the little details is necessarily the issue but the lack of perspective that surfaces when you dwell yourself too far into them. When you focus too much on the nitty gritty details you can lose the overall focus and intended function of what needs to be accomplished.

I agree with nOeL about stepping away from the project for a while. Get your mind refreshed!

Great post!

Over-thinking is not good. It wastes precious time. There obviously needs to be meetings and discussions about key project information, but when these meetings get out of hand, you can’t be afraid to call a time out and real everyone back into focus.

We are visual people, use these skill to your advantage. My clients over-think EVERYTHING. What works for me is to start sketching (or discussing) the design solution right there in the meeting. Big white boards are good for large meeting, if not just your note pad. Start laying things out right in front of them. Get them involved. Work with them to organize the important info and assure them that the other details will be dealt with at a later date.

Take control of the project and lead it in the right direction.

I think overthinking can also be called procrastination. I know I’ve procrastinated on starting a project in the past by “thinking about everything” - when in reality, I just wasn’t wanting to start.

And yes, I think it’s the enemy. Attention to detail is one thing, overanalizing things is another.

Nice Read Josh,
I would say that as in most situations balance is key… most projects do need a solid amount of thought at the start.

As you get into the project and hit designers block, or progress starts to slow it is often a result of over thinking things. This is where I would say “less talk, more rock” just go with your gut, you are going to see revisions no matter what so get the work out there, and let the thinking comes at the beginning, and revision process where it fits nicely.

~ Aaron I