We all want to come up with truly awesome ideas, but sometimes it seems the inspiration is just not striking. Next time you find yourself in an idea rut why not try one of these 10 ways to inspire ideas that are truly awesome.
1. Surround Yourself With Greatness
There’s the old adage that you are the sum of the five closest people to you. If you want to be inspired with truly awesome ideas then surround yourself with great thinkers. They will inspire you and bring out your best ideas.
2. Explore Your Creativity
We’re all creative in our own unique way. Whether your thing is drawing, painting, poetry, crafting or something completely different, get creative and see where it leads you. You don’t need a master plan to get started, just take out your materials and start playing around. You might be surprised at how quickly inspiration strikes.
3. Listen and Observe
It’s easy to get caught up in your own thoughts when you’re looking for an awesome idea. Take some time to sit back, listen to others and observe the world around you. The world and everyone in it are an endless source of inspiration if only you’ll take in what they have to offer.
4. Mix Up Your Environment
Your ideas can get stale if you stay in the same place for too long. Get out of the house this weekend or go on a walk in your lunch break at work. Mix up your environment and get inspired by everything new about it.
5. Collaborate With a Friend
Two minds are better than one, and new people bring their own unique experiences and perspective to the table. Two different ways of thinking coming together can inspire ideas outside the reach of any one person alone. Collaborate with a friend to tap into the amazing creative potential of two people working together.
6. Do Something New
If you always do the same things, you’re likely to keep getting the same results. To inspire ideas that are truly great, you’re going to need to do something different. Fill your days with new experiences like new places, new music, new people and new books.
7. Examine the Anatomy of Great Ideas
You can learn a lot from the great thinkers of our time, so start studying their great ideas and their origins. How did Einstein come across his best ideas? What was Steve Jobs approach? How did Beethoven compose his best work? Study the greats and learn all you can from them.
8. Take a New Perspective
Take a new perspective by looking at things from a different angle. It can be tough to do this since we are often so set in our ways of approaching situations but it’s a powerful tool if you can. If you’re struggling to look at things from a different angle, get a friend to help you out by questioning your current assumptions. By taking a new perspective, you’ll be seeing things with fresh eyes and ready to soak up the inspiration.
9. Silence Your Internal Chatter
Your inner mind chatter is rushing through your head at a million miles an hour, forever distracting you from the real gold – the truly awesome ideas. By silencing your inner mind chatter, you’ll make room for inspiration to flow in and inspire ideas. A great way to do this is through a daily meditation practice.
10. Take the Pressure Off Yourself
Last but not least, take the pressure off! Sometimes you can push yourself so hard for an amazing idea that you move into a creatively blocked zone where nothing seems to be flowing. Take the pressure off yourself by taking your time and accepting that truly awesome ideas don’t always happen overnight. How do you inspire great ideas? And what’s one thing you’ll do today to get inspired?