branding?

I'm not sure what it is. I don't know if my name is just hard to turn into a logo, if I'm going about this wrong or if I'm just plain bad at design.

I've been trying to create a kind of logo for myself/watermark/icon since I was in high school. And to this day I still can't come up with something good. I feel overwhelmed with the plethora of possibilities and it's the part of me that wishes I could use all of them. But I want to stay consistent so I need to come up with something I love. And I understand that there are no real rules when it comes to this kind of thing. People change their logos all the time. But I still want to keep to a kind of theme and have something I think is identifiable and appealing that I will feel OK with sticking to for years to come.

Some of the reason I decided to switch MOME was because I realized what a hard time I had with actually designing things. I remember I used to think that graphic design was fun and something I could totally do. And while it is fun, I find it rather frustrating too. That whole coming up with ideas thing I keep talking about... well I'm going to save the ramble and just not get into it right now.

I feel like I kind of lack that eye for design. I can always see a design I like and dislike, but when I'm trying to make my own, I get stumped.

I'm trying to be clever, thinking about negative space and puns. I'm trying to relate my initals with animation somehow or computer. I really like the geometric look, but at the same time I feel like it's been overdone.

I start trying to incorporate my favorite animals like cows or foxes. But then I start to question if it seems silly since it doesn't really relate to what I offer. People do it all the time and I think if I do it right it would look nice, but I don't know where to begin.

Also, I don't know whether to use my full name, my first and last, my first and middle, my initials, a combination of my name and initials, or just come up with a completely different name for myself; like a studio name. Should I make my name the studio name? Casey Studios? I kind of like the idea of keeping "Animations" in there rather than studio. If I do decide to ever go freelance, then it would make more sense to have "studio" in there. But I think for right now I should just stick with my name and "Animation".

I don't want my logo to be too girly or childish either. Perhaps it's too early to be making this and just unnecessary for me right now. But I was just thinking about how I feel like I want to put some kind of watermark on the things that I upload just for good measure and professionalism. And yes, I can very well just put my name on it for now, but that's boring. I'm not going to feel the need to go back in and put it all over everything I've ever made up to this point. Which is kind of a relief. My work isn't that good right now, so I think I'll just add the watermark once I have one and start adding it from then on out.

Whatever logo I make I'd like it to be pretty simple/minimalist. I'd like to be able to have it on a business card and my CV.

Maybe I should consult a designer for advice or keep googling blog posts and YouTube for now.