If you train yourself to look you’ll find great ideas are all around. The practice of generating ideas is a skill that can be crafted. The challenge is to open up, break out of routine patterns and typical ways of seeing things, being curious and (re)kindle the spark.
Ask any creative thinker and they will likely share that their really great ideas have rarely been the product of just one mind or a single, one-size-fits-all process. So if you don’t rely solely on your own comfortable habits and about how to become inspired you may find ideas everywhere you go.
Here’s a list of tips to help get you started, and open to new possible sources for inspiration:
- Ask more questions. Use open ended questions are “door openers” and a powerful tool.
- Commit time to specifically go out in to the world to observe and people watch.
- Leverage your LinkedIn connections. Reach out of your professional comfort zone to meet new people and have face-to-face conversations.
- Place a specific hold on your calendar (i.e., one hour a week) to just wander and idea surf through books, online, or your own personal journal notes.
- Discover how to creatively stimulate your brain into thinking differently.
- Tap your interest outside of work — find, learn and cultivate a new hobby.
- Sleep on it! (Literally.) Start jotting down your dreams.
- Locate and spend time with an Idea Muse. Creative professionals are trained to solve problems. Ask them specifics about their problem solving process.
- Looking for a much deeper dive to study creativity? Pick up Walter Isaacson’s (#1 NYT) biography about Leonardo da Vinci. It covers his life, work and passion for creativity. Some consider it an in depth study in creativity — how to define and achieve it!
How will you practice taking action to invite new, better ideas? Like most things in life generating ideas isn’t about a single moment. Elect to embrace the adventure. Find and commit to your own process of trials and errors to grow and get better outcome. As always, if you want to get fresh outsights on how to fuel your professional and personal growth via our coaching services reach out to us and let’s set time to talk.
Sources: For more inspiration and ideas visit Better Ideas (The Muse) and Generate Great Ideas (Inc.)
