Create Outside the Lines
By
Crystal Jonas
See Reprint Permissions Below
Want to kick creativity into high
gear? Think "in the round"
Need to get those ideas
flowing? Try this exercise to stimulate your creative juices.
One of the main problems that keeps your
brilliant ideas from flowing from your mind
to paper may be the paper itself.
Yes, that's right. Look at the paper
on which you're taking notes. Is it
lined? Ok, this also applies to high
tech people who transcribe directly on to a
computer of some sort. Here is a huge
tip to jump start your mind.
Get rid of the lined paper. Do not
use it when you're trying to generate ideas,
brainstorm, or break out of writer's
block.
Here's why. Our minds do not think
linearly. We don't logically follow one
idea with another, leading to another,
etc. Thoughts jump around; one idea
seemingly unconnected with the next.
Think of lined paper as a mental straight
jacket, imposing order when that step isn't
necessary until your ideas are collected and
start to take shape. The early stages
of creative brainstorming are significantly
restricted with traditional, lined notebook
paper. Your thoughts aren't coming to
your conscious that way, so don't be
concerned with "listing" them in
that manner.
Thy this. Use unlined paper, and put
your main question for the moment in the
center. Careful of how you word
it. (If you want to know more about how
to phrase questions, see the Tap Your Genius,
Inc. article: "Ask the Right
Question.")
Circle the question or main concept that
is in the center of your page, now, as ideas
start to percolate, jot them down
quickly. Capture keywords only, no need
to write in complete sentences. Circle
each ideas as you finish, and draw a line
between that circled idea and the circled
main focus in the center of your paper.
When the next idea comes up, write,
circle, and connect it to the center
circle. If an idea arises from one of
your thoughts that's already connected to the
main idea, just "branch" the idea
outward from the previous thought, and draw a
line between these two. What you're
doing is just letting your brain
"radiate" ideas outward, connected
related concepts as you brainstorm.
This process is roughly related to Mind
Mapping, and has been called
"clustering" since like ideas
emerge clustered together.
Not only will you find yourself opening up
to great new ideas you normally would have
missed if you'd limited yourself with lined
paper, you'll also find your ideas end up
more organized than if you'd written them
down in the usual way!
Have fun with this process. Practice
it often, and you'll be great at it very
soon.
©2006 Copyright Crystal Jonas
|
