How to Get Ideas

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From: Early to Rise <support@earlytorise.com>
Date: Thu, Dec 20, 2012 at 7:21 PM
Subject: How to Get Ideas

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2012

This is How I Do It The other week I wrote an article that was well received by ETR readers. "Where did you come up with this idea?" one person asked in the comments section. "I'd love to hear more about your creative process." Ask, and you shall receive. Today I'll explain my creative process and where I get those slippery little fishes otherwise known as good ideas. Craig Ballantyne Never give up on something that is truly important to you. How to Get Ideas By Craig Ballantyne When I need an idea, I go for a walk, a workout, or take a shower. Then the answers flow freely. It's that simple. The end. Just kidding, of course. There's so much more to generating ideas, but the steps are simple. Alas, you have to write the good ideas down quickly, otherwise, like slippery little fishes they can escape from your grasp, and the idea that was as good as gold is now gone like the wind. Of course, generating ideas is not as easy as just stepping into the shower every time you have a creative block. The hard work in idea generation is done long before this. It starts with being an expert in the field and that takes years of study. This is not what anyone likely wants to hear, but it's true. If you've ever done a presentation as an amateur (say as a college student doing your first presentation on a given topic), you know how hard it is to find enough worthwhile things to say. But fast-forward five years later after you've finished your studies and developed some work experience in that same field, and you'll find that you can now talk for hours - with ease - on that topic. It's the same for generating ideas. The more you know, the more you've experienced, the easier it is to identify opportunities and solutions - to generate ideas. The next step in generating good ideas is to communicate about your topic as much as you can. That means giving more presentations, explaining your current ideas to others, writing about what you know now, and coaching others in your areas of expertise. I find that the more I do this, the more the new ideas come to me. You don't want to hold back and keep your current ideas to yourself because it is only by sharing your ideas that this action will spawn new ideas. As I deliver my presentations and film my videos, eventually I'll say something and realize, "Whoa, that actually makes sense. I need to write that down and share it." (It's my version of the one million monkeys typing on one million typewriters will eventually re-create the works of Shakespeare. Although in my case it's just one silly monkey rambling and rambling and eventually stumbling across a coherent thought.) Those are the major action steps you must take. First, become an expert, and second, communicate your ideas often so that this will spawn new idea generation. And one corollary to becoming an expert is that it will really help if you have broad experience in your field. Try new things out. Talk to other experts in your field. Be curious. Learn as much as you can about how others are doing things in your niche. "Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people." -Leo Burnett Finally, to borrow the title of a book, "Be So Good They Can't Ignore You" (or your ideas). Build your skills, become an expert, get a wide range of experience, and you should never lack for ideas. And certainly not if you use the bonus tips below. Here are two little tricks and tips to generate even more ideas faster once you've taken care of your idea foundation.  First, you need to identify your "Idea Magic Time" and "Idea Magic Activities". The funny thing about great ideas is that they rarely show up when you are trying to find them. Few brilliant ideas have come to pass while we toil away at our desks. Instead, the idea often arrives like a flash of lightening when we are far away from our desks - often absent recording devices, too. But over time you'll come to realize that your idea generation has a pattern. Perhaps it's while you walk your dog, go for a morning run, take a leisurely bath (I'm sure at least one ETR reader still takes a bath, don't you?), meditate at dawn, or ruminate with a nightcap and cigar on your patio. Research has shown time and time again that getting out of our regular work areas allows our brain to work in more creative ways. That's when ideas come. So keep an idea journal handy at all times. And when you find your Magic Idea Time, foster and protect it as ruthlessly as you do your Magic Productivity Time (the time of day where you get more work done than at any other). Finally, "Teach your subconscious to do the work," suggests Dan Kennedy. Give it "work orders" before you go to bed each night, and over time you'll be surprised that your brain will actually work in mysterious ways to generate ideas while you sleep. Just make sure to have that idea journal handy at your bedside so that you can record your potential million dollar breakthroughs. Rate today's article [Ed. Note: Craig Ballantyne is the editor of Early to Rise and author of Financial Independence Monthly and Turbulence Training. He is also the co-creator of the Early to Rise $100,000 Transformation Contest that will launch in early 2013. This 90-day contest is FREE for you to enter, and you'll have a chance to win up to $25,000 in prizes in four categories: Healthy, Wealthy, Wise, and Overall. To get an idea of the changes you can make in a 90-Day Transformation Contest, please read Craig's article about Curing Your Bad Habits here.] This is How I Do It How to Get Ideas Enjoy today's essay? With 5 being the best, tell us what you think and we'll do our best to bring you more of it. Rate today's article A New American Dream There I was, dripping in sweat, quads burning, grinding out rep after rep, struggling in the middle of my workout, when the Big Idea slapped me across the face. As soon as my set was over, I scribbled it down - a $10,000 Transformation Contest for our Virtual Mastermind Members. However, as it turned out, that idea was not enough. And so eventually this idea grew and grew with the input of ETR Publisher, Matt Smith, and that brings us to today where we are on the verge of launching not just a $10,000 Transformation Contest, but an even bigger idea of a $100,000 Transformation Contest for all areas of your life, and best of all, it's FREE to enter. The ETR $100,000 Transformation Contest begins next Wednesday, December 26th. That's right, the day after Christmas. There's no need to wait around until January 1st to change your life. You can begin devouring the free content from our Health, Wealth, and Wisdom category experts (all of whom have made FREE webinars just for you and the ETR Contest). Then you can get started immediately on your life transformation and start working towards your chance to win part of the $100,000 in prizes that we are giving away. Stay tuned for more exciting updates on the biggest project ETR has ever delivered to you. Thank you so much for being an ETR reader, and I look forward to seeing you make 2013 your best year ever.

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