Do you ever face a mental blank at the drawing board? If so, it might be time to explore new ways to come up with creative ideas. After all, today’s entrepreneur is under attack not only from domestic competitors but from foreign ones as well. And what’s the best competitive weapon in a rapidly commoditizing world? Fresh ideas that will distinguish your products and services. Over the years I’ve discovered that many entrepreneurs who become successful idea generators follow a routine. By learning their brainstorming patterns, you can demystify your creative thought processes and generate better ideas with more regularity.Daydream. Muse. Visualize. Mull. Doodle. Those activities are considered by many to be a waste of time, but they’re actually invaluable pieces of the creativity puzzle. You should loiter in your brain whenever you can. I usually go fishing for ideas when I’m exercising in the morning. The increased blood flow and endorphin rush seem to stimulate my brain, coaxing all my ideas, even the ones that might at first seem loopy, out of my subconscious and into the open. One time a few years back while exercising I saw a Hemingway look-alike contest on TV. At the time I was trying to find some way to leverage my collection of pirate cutlasses, a treasure chest, blunderbusses, and a Jolly Roger flag. The TV contest was in Key West, and when I saw the crowds and the Hemingway feel of the island and realized that pirates had been part of that scene, I knew I had the location for my new pirate museum.
When ideas come to you, write them down without worrying about their value–what may seem a lark today could spark a brilliant idea tomorrow. I fill memo pads with scribbled notes, far-out doodles, and crazy ideas that eventually grow into keynote speeches, unusual marketing strategies, and new business opportunities. I adhere to the Chinese philosophy that reminds us that the weakest ink is better than the strongest mind.
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