Need a Great Idea? Feed Your Brain
BY MICHELE PARIZA WACEK
A lot of great ideas happen when two or
more other ideas collide to form something completely new.
Think of this like those old chemistry
movies we used to watch in school. You had all of those atoms floating
around and when two collided — bam! A chemical reaction. Maybe something
new was created. Maybe something exploded. Or maybe it all fizzled out
and nothing happened.
Well, a similar reaction is going on
inside your brain or muse. Except instead of atoms floating around
they're pieces of information or other ideas. As they drift about, they
occasionally bump into each other. When that happens, you may get a new,
third idea. Or a big explosion. Or absolutely nothing at all.
Now, if you have lots of atoms, or
information and ideas, you're going to get lots of reactions. Some will
fail. Some will be so-so. And some will be hot — so hot, so full of
energy, they'll have the power to change the trajectory of a business.
Or even a life.
The problem occurs when you don't have
lots of random information and ideas. Fewer atoms mean fewer reactions.
On top of that, you still have to weed through the invariable duds. So
the odds of landing that one amazing idea drop considerably.
But not to worry — there's good news.
You can increase your odds of getting those great ideas. Better yet,
it's fairly easy and painless. Below are three ways to get started.
1. Read, read and read some more.
I know, I know, I can hear the groans already. "But I already have too
much to read. How can I fit more reading in?" Never fear, there are ways
to do this. (Remember I did say this was painless.)
The key is to keep it wide and shallow.
What does that mean? Well, read lots and lots of different things, but
keep it general. Read about sheep farming, finances, yoga, cooking,
traveling, dog training, etc. But keep it general — don't read deeply.
You can even skim if that's all you have time for.
Start by subscribing to a couple of
different magazines and ezines. General interest magazines are really
good for this — Walt Disney used to read Reader's Digest. Scatter them
around the house — by the bed, the couch, even the bathroom. I'd put a
few in your car as well for those times when you have to wait for an
appointment.
When you have a few moments, flip
through them. Skim a few paragraphs. See what catches your eye.
You can also buy or rent audio books
and CDs and listen while you exercise, drive, do the dishes, etc.
Whatever you do, DON'T read
publications related to your industry. That's for another time. This is
brain-feeding time, not keeping up in your profession time.
2. Travel the world. Traveling
has so many fabulous benefits for your creative soul I could write an
article just about that, but for now I'll limit my comments to brain
food.
When you travel, you open yourself up
to lots of new and exciting experiences. New sights, new sounds, new
smells, new tastes, new textures. And they all have the ability to form
a reaction with something else.
Don't have time to hop on a plane to
India? Take a day trip to a town you've never visited. Or, if you can
only spare a few hours, seek out a park you've never been to or a museum
you've been meaning to see or even that new cute little shop that just
opened. You can always find somewhere new to visit no matter how long
you've lived in the same city. And if you're truly desperate, try
walking around your neighborhood on the opposite side of the street in
the opposite direction you normally walk. (It can help jolt you out of
rut.)
3. Open yourself up to new things.
Of all of these, this one is probably the scariest. But, it also has the
potential to be the most powerful.
Take the time to try new things. Meet
people outside your normal circle of friends. Attend associations,
nonprofits, hobby groups outside of the ones you usually go to. Listen
to speakers on topics you know nothing about. Take a class at a
community college about something outside your scope of knowledge. Or
even have dinner at an ethnic restaurant you've never tried.
Now I'm not just talking about
"typical" creative things, like taking an art class or learning to belly
dance. If you're a creative professional, take a class on doing your own
taxes or budgeting your finances or repairing your car. (Oooh, I bet all
you creative folk felt a chill when I mentioned that.) The point is to
really stretch yourself past your comfort zone. Make yourself
uncomfortable. It's not only a great way to grow, but it's a fabulous
way to keep your muse fat and happy.
And that helps keep the ideas flowing.
Creativity Exercises — Prepare the Banquet
Over the next month, I want you do to
at least one tactic from each of the above three techniques.
1. Read something you know nothing
about. Even if you only spend five minutes skimming an article about
quilting when the last time you tried to sew a button on a shirt you
stabbed yourself with the needle and got blood all over the material.
2. Travel somewhere you've never
been before. Even if it's an antique shop and the most antique piece
of furniture in your house is a bookshelf your parents bought from Sears
when you were a little kid.
3. Stretch yourself in a different
and potentially scary way. Even if it's attending one of those Home
Depot gardening workshops despite every plant you've tried to grow
didn't and if your thumb was any blacker it would fall off.
You know how you work better when
you're not hungry, see how well your muse starts churning out ideas
after a good meal.
Copyright © 2005 Michele Pariza Wacek
Michele Pariza Wacek is the
author of Got Ideas? Unleash Your Creativity and Make More Money.
She offers two free ezines that help subscribers combine their
creativity with hard-hitting marketing and copywriting principles to
become more successful at attracting new clients, selling products and
services and boosting business. Visit
her website.
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