The Elusive Muse

The muse doesn’t wait by the phone. She’s not on standby for your 10 am brainstorm or your color-coded spreadsheet. She’s a cruel mistress. She shows up when she wants, and only if you’ve been paying attention. Because inspiration doesn’t live in your calendar. It lives in your life.

I’m lucky that I get to spend a lot of time with students, interns, and young professionals, and occasionally I get asked: “How do I get better at concepting?”

Most people expect a list of books, tools, frameworks.
Instead, I usually say:

“Pay attention to your life. All of it.”

Not just the briefs. Not just the case studies.
I mean the bad dates. The oddly satisfying TikToks. The movie that made you cry for no reason.

That’s where your instincts live. Your taste. Your point of view.
Which, by the way, is all you really have when it comes to ideas.

“You are the universe experiencing itself.”
– Alan Watts

(And sometimes the universe is tired, hungover, and bingeing The Office. That still counts.)

So yes, consume everything. But do it with your brain on.
Ask why something worked, or why it didn’t. Steal shamelessly. Rebuild honestly.
Write it down.

Because when a brand says, “We want to feel elevated but relatable. Bold but minimal,”
your brain has to go somewhere.

And no, the muse won’t magically appear when you open a blank doc.
She’s not a lightning bolt.
She’s more like a campfire you’ve been gathering wood for.
All those moments? They’re kindling. And eventually, something catches.

You don’t wait for the muse. You build a life that invites her in.

Michael is the Creative Director and co-founder of FoxFuel Creative. He loves British music, vintage German cars, and American history, and his sarcasm knows no bounds. #DreamBig