Remember the Island of Misfit Toys? To this day, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer remains one of my favorite movies to watch during the holiday season. Fun fact: my mother’s maiden name is Rudolph. How neat is that? Anyway, the holiday season is well behind us and spring will be here soon.

So, in the spirit of leaving things—like the holiday season—behind, I started thinking: What happens to the reject logos during the creative process? The ones we put so much time into and the client doesn’t choose? Do they have an island? I hope so. I sure would like to visit it because there are some damn good ones chillin’ there. They get to relax and sunbathe with a cocktail. Yes, I put them on a tropical island because I clearly have something on my mind.

But really, it’s not like the unchosen ones are terrible. They simply weren’t the right fit. One brand achieved the goal better than the other; it represented the personality of the client’s organization or company more accurately. Everyone has their own taste, and at the end of the day, we have to trust that the client knows what’s best for them (it is their baby, after all).

So there the logos sit. All alone. On our server.

Which makes me kinda sad. However, we did make a cool poster for the boss lady one time with all of the leftovers. She dug it.

What’s awesome is that while some of the marks weren’t picked to represent a cause or a company, it doesn’t discredit the growth that happened during their creation. We still had to go through a creative process to get to what the client would choose as the final answer. Knowledge was gained. Exploration occurred. Now, that is neat.

So instead of me sitting here being sad about the misfits, I changed my perspective. I grew as a designer. And, ideally, what I learned through the process will impact the next brand we work on. It all works together. Every part of the creative process is important and valuable.