Do you look at coming up with ideas as a mystical process? In fact, inspiration is all around you.
Step one is to consciously think about the kind of idea you want. Maybe you need ideas for blog posts, or a new product, or a way around an obstacle. Plant a seed in your mind by thinking about what problem you want to solve. Don’t be too limiting here by restricting how you want to solve the problem. For example, if you want to create a new product, don’t limit yourself to thinking about topics for an ebook. Be open to any and all possibilities. If you are looking for a blog post idea, don’t be too narrowly focused. If you have a tech blog you can write about hardware and software and new technology, but your readers may also be interested in posts about how to be more organized, how to get more done in less time, the importance of “unplugging” sometimes and other topics that might be considered personal development or self-improvement. In fact, no matter what your blog is about you may be able to use personal development topics.
Next, as you go through your day, look for clues. When I am actively looking for ideas for blog posts I find inspiration everywhere I look. Anything can become fodder for a post. Did you run into some kind of problem? How did you solve it? What did you learn today?
Look at your inbox. Did you get a question from a reader? There are probably many other people with that same question. Answer it in a blog post. Read the email newsletters to which you subscribe. Don’t copy what others are writing, but be inspired by it. Did someone just publish an article with 12 ways to do something your readers would want to do? What if you take one of those ways and explore it in depth. Or link to their post and comment on it, adding your own ideas and experience.
Actively seek out ideas. Go to news sites, photo sites and other places where you may see an article or an image that will spark an idea. Look at infographics for great topic ideas. Done-for-You (DFY) content can be a very useful source of ideas. Even though I typically make a lot of changes to DFY (or PLR) content before hitting publish, it gives me a place to start. It is often easier to revise, add and modify an existing article than it is to start with a blank page and create content from nothing.
When inspiration comes, recognize it and act. Don’t dismiss the ideas you get before trying them on for size. They won’t all be winners, but you may be amazed at how creative you can be!
Leave a Reply