You might have noticed that I have a lot of ideas. I recently made a list of them all, and calculated that if I needed a year to get each of my ideas off the ground, I would still not be able to do them all before I died. But they just keep coming.
But what drives me nuts is WHEN they come. I can be sitting on my sofa, looking at the clouds pass by from my bay window, and my mind will be a complete blank. You know how some people ask, "what are you thinking?" in those quiet times. Well that question seems so weird to me because usually I'm thinking about absolutely nothing. Seriously. Nothing. No mind. I do this a lot.
But the second I get into a situation where I have to focus on something and can't take 5 minutes to sketch out an idea, the ideas come bursting forth. Like in the middle of teaching a yoga class. Or when I'm working hard for a deadline. Or at a fancy restaurant.
I don't know why this happens. There must be some sort of valve that gets loose in my brain when the other parts of my brain are doing something else, and all this random stuff spills out. But it's frustrating how many ideas I lose like this. You think I'd remember that idea that would make my next million dollars, but by the time I'm able to sit down and think properly it's usually gone.
I've gotten so sick of this that I made this little contraption for the one thing I always have with me, my wallet.
The idea book is actually chained on there. I used pliers and actually shaped the metal so that it can't come off. Also I bought that little micro-pen that fits into the change purse pocket so there's always something to write with. So my keys, money, and ideas are always with me. When I have a brainstorm I try to get to my wallet as fast as possible and get the idea down on paper.
It works!
8 comments:
Yes! That happens to me too. The time with an empty mind conditions us to be receptive when we gear the mind back up and into action. I always have my little note book with me too.
As for too many ideas, some of them I pass on to others better suited to complete them.
the ideas always come to me when im about to fall asleep, when NO book is near me, damn it!
Patrick,
I have the opposite problem. Too few ideas. I'm going to chain a notebook to my wallet and see if it helps. ;)
Actually, if I did have lots of ideas, I'd use the voice notes recording functionality on my BlackBerry. I've fallen in love with audio "notes" lately. I especially love them for directions. I'm at an office in another province today and recorded the directions from the hotel to the office in an audio note based on what Google maps told me. Then I successively played and paused it as I made progress through the waypoints. It worked great. Poor man's GPS.
Cheers,
Dean
Dean, you probably have more ideas than you think, and they just slip by you. Once you start capturing them consistently you'll find yourself at the end of the month with quite a list!
Hey Patrick,
I'll give it a shot. There are certainly plenty of _thoughts_ floating around....2 minutes meditating and I could fill the book or the BlackBerry.
Cheers.
Ideas that don't change can so easily become obsessions. A steady flow of ideas, on the other hand, can be like a rinse for the mind. Ideas in -- obsessions out. Of course, if the "rinse" becomes a torrent that's not good. I've noticed that the quickening flow feels good at first but then turns on me. It becomes irritating. Then it's a quick trip to agitation, worry, doubt. I think this is where mental skill comes in, i.e., one of those much taught though slowly learned truths. To flow is human. Don't fear it, but remember your limits, and have your torrent-alleviation contingency plans and your shutoff valve at the ready.
I like writing on paper. I need to have my ideas, todo's and calendar where I can see them and get to them in a flash. A computer, no matter how portable, doesn't do it for me. Nothing beats the feel of a good pen (Pilot G2). Crossing something off a page is satisfying, unlike highlight and delete.
me too. I'm thinking I need a mini recorder to capture thoughts for later review. My smart phone sucks for recording - I guess I need an upgrade.
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