First part of any project is to define what is its’ purpose. What does the employer or customer want and why do they need it? Do they have have ideas or are they starting with a completely blank canvas? Do they have any requirements that must be met?
Starting with these questions can help construct a strategy and foundation on where to start.

I like to start by doing small doodles and sketches. Nothing big and nothing that takes more then a couple minutes. After making a bunch of these I usually start to come up with ideas that stand out. Then I will branch off on the different ideas with longer sketches or bigger more defined drawings.
I will then take a few of these out to the intended audience and see what responses I get back.
Questions I’ll ask someone is if they feel that drawn concept relates to the intended topic. I find that asking someone with no artistic background will give you the best and most honest answers.

With a somewhat defined idea I then move on to the computer are start creating in what ever type of software that would be best. Usually this is a group of programs. I may start in Photoshop and then finish in Illustrator. Sometimes I may need or want to try something in 3D to get a different perspective. To me computer software is no different then pens and pencils. It really doesn’t matter what you use as long as you move further along in your project.

At one point I may need to modify a project for something else or transfer it to a different software so the output is better for printing or maybe even the web. A design for a 4×4 sticker may need to be part of a 6 foot tall banner for a convention.

The last process is getting to the point to where the client is %100 happy with the project. There may be some tweaks needed or some slight variations but usually at this point it is just a matter of fine tuning little parts.

From the beginning the plan should have taken in consideration what the project will be output to. This could be for printing, the web, clothing, or a bit of everything. I keep this in mind when saving files and moving between software in case I need to go back and output the file with different parameters.