I woke up this morning with a knot of nerves in my stomach, and simultaneously a jolt of excitement.

Today was officially the start of my 30-Day Brand Challenge to rebuild the Blue Cyclops brand completely in public and I could feel the anticipation coursing through me.

Originally, my plan was to tackle each major asset in 1-2 day sprints—brand mark & mascot in 1-2 days, wordmark and hand lettering in another 2 days, and badges in another. However as the hours ticked by, I realized that some assets deserved far more breathing room and I needed to come back to them later.

I decieded, starting with the logo system as a whole, I'm shifting to 1-week sprints. Why? Because in order to foster creativity we have to step away, take breaks, or jump between different design challenges—from mark and symbol exploration, to badge ideas, to sketching out mascot concepts.

Sometimes the context switching can be a negative, but for creativity it's sometimes needed.

‍

Morning: Sketches, Scribbles, and a Side of Nerves

I started work this morning at 5:30am in my home studio while my family slept. I started the day by first organizing my thoughts and recording a couple of videos outlining what I was going to tackle today and discussing the brand strategy I worked through the weekend before.

For the next couple of hours I was in planning mode. I spent time organzing inspiration based on the original mood board I crafted for the discovery.

My desk was a tornado of sketchbooks, half-scribbled index cards (more on those in a sec), inspiration (books, print outs) and half-formed thumbnail sketches all scattered across my desk.

During this time I revisited some big questions.

• What personality do we want our mark to convey?
• Can a single symbol hint at both our brand archtypes? (Creator & Magician)
• How can we capture the playful yet grounded Blue Cyclops spirit?

In this stage of the process, there is no such thing as a bad idea. Every time my pen touches paper or Apple Pencil touches screen, I'm formulating ideas and getting them out of my head.

Every time I though I had one good concept locked in, another question or thought popped into my mind.

• Should our mascot feel whimsical or authoritative?
• Will our mark or word mark stand out?

By the late morning I set my sketches aside. By now my family was awake and I could hear baby elephant feel running around upstairs.

After spending a few hours with them and watching a movie with my son, I headed into the office where the sketching continued.

‍

The Secret Weapon: Robert Rodriguez’s Index Card Method

This is a new tool in my ADHD and creative arsenal, bu over the last few days I've truly leaned into Robert Rodriguez's index card method. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Rodriguez (yes, the filmaker behind Despardo, Spy Kids, and Machete) he assembles dozens of index cards to help in his idea and script writing process.

I adapted the same practice for our brand strategy work as well as any type of information or idea forming exercises.

I even started lugging around a plastic container to the office and bag where I'm storing and organizing all of my index cards for safe keeping. It's cumbersome for sure, but 100 percent worth it.

‍

Afternoon: All Hands with My Team

Close to the end of my day, I spent time with my team on our weekly all-hands call.

We spent a solid hour walking through the brand strategy playbook I had drafted over the weekend—sharing our purpose, mission, vision, archetypes, audience personas and most importantly our brand story for our two biggest audiences (founders & marketers/ designers).

I fielded questions on the new brand strategy and how we could apply it to existing clients or how we will be utilizing it in the near future with any new clients that come on board.

It was great finally sharing the brand strategy with the team and hearing their thoughts on the matter.

‍

Wrapping Up Day 1: Reflections & What’s Ahead

By 6 PM, I closed my sketchbook and reflected on what we’d accomplished: a clear, unified playbook; team buy-in on our core brand foundations; and—most importantly—a sense of momentum. The first day was equal parts terror (“What if none of these logo ideas land?”) and exhilaration (“Maybe today I sketched the seed of something great.”).

Tomorrow, I’ll dive headfirst into logo explorations—sketching marks, symbols, and perhaps experimenting with hand-drawn badges. If one thing’s certain, it’s that the index card method will be glued to my side, reminding me which ideas deserve the spotlight and which need to be revisited later.

If you’d like to watch this roller coaster unfold in real time, follow along—Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, Linkedin, YouTube.

‍

Here’s to Day 2—where the sketches grow sharper, the questions get tougher, and the brand begins to take shape. I’m nervous, sure, but more than anything, I’m ready.

‍

—Rocky Roark
Blue Cyclops Founder & Design Nerd

‍

‍

‍