On the heels of yesterday's announcement of BlissBomb, our application for the second-generation Sifteo Cubes, we were reminded of this time last year, when we submitted our first Sifteo application, LoopLoop, to the Interaction Design Association's inaugural Interaction Design Awards. Stimulant and Sifteo were lucky enough to share the honor of being selected for two awards that year, including Best in Show, and the submission process was pretty easy...heck, it was even fun!Awards are like weight loss. We'd all like the benefits, we know it could be great for us, and yet the process scares us off... even though it's usually far simpler than we think. I'm here to tell you that there's no need for procrastination, and that submitting your work for the 2013 Interaction Design Awards is not just easy, but like weight loss, it's good exercise.

First, we shot a video of our project. It was a great exercise: How does one showcase the project in the simplest, most concise way? Might fancy post-production or elaborate production value get in the way? Finding that balance really brings one face to face with the purest essence of one's project, clarifies its value proposition, and underscore the most important ways in which its interaction was differentiated.

Next, we had to fill out the entry form, which didn't take long at all. Shooting the video had already led us to the hardest questions about positioning our project. The award form is like talking shop with another interaction designer over a cocktail: Natural storytelling that you don't need to simplify or gloss over. Tell the story of your challenges, your solutions, what worked, and what obstacles you overcame. Whether it becomes the tale of a hero's journey or a simple report-out of your process, use your own honest, genuine voice!

In fact, the hardest part about submitting to the Interaction Design Awards isn't actually submitting... it's waiting for the results! You have zero to lose and everything to gain by submitting your work to the 2013 Interaction Design Awards. Do it today - the deadline is October 1!