It’s a question almost every writer hears at some point in their lives. And for people who work in creative-driven industries like advertising and marketing, you can’t escape it.
How did they come up with The Most Interesting Man in the World for Dos Equis? What made them think of doing Left vs. Right for Twix? Whose bright idea was Flo at Progressive?
“Where do you get your ideas?!”
As a writer and an “idea guy,” I’m going to break the silence at last and let you in on the secret to truly innovative creativity. Where exactly DO we get these ideas?
The answer will shock you.
PREPARE TO BE STUNNED
The answer will also disappoint you.
Author Neil Gaiman gave the most succinct, accurate answer possible. When asked where he gets his ideas, he said, “I think them up.”
We think them up.
There you have it. That’s the answer.
It is that simple.
It is that complicated.
It is that frustrating.
Because here’s the catch – there is no catch. No trick, either. There’s no magic. You can’t ask Siri or Alexa. Wikipedia doesn’t have the answer. There is no button you can press. No “idea generator” to turn on. (Although that would be sweet. Sign me up for an idea generator.) We aren’t withholding the secret from you because we met at our secret club to take a cryptic vow of creative silence. (Not that we have a secret club either – forget I mentioned it.)
Creative people – writers, artists, strategists, inventors, scientists, jewel thieves – all get their ideas the same way. They think them up. And all those ideas come from the same place. Their brains.
Everyone has their own way of viewing the world, their own set of experiences, their own cache of influences. Creativity comes from distilling everything you’ve absorbed and distilling it through your unique filter. Ideas will be original if you tell the truth about what you see, from your perspective, as only you can see it.
So what does that mean for you, a seeker of ideas? Should you crack open the head of a writer or artist, steal their brain and scoop out the ideas for yourself? Maybe, but let’s not resort to that just yet.
Here are three takeaways that I can reveal to help you get the brain working to generate your ideas.
FIND A PEN
I find the best way to uncork the idea bottle is to work it out with a pen and paper. For you non-Luddites, typing notes on your phone, tablet or computer is comparable. Give me a pen and a notebook any day. It’s amazing how much you can create with a pen in your hand.
TAKE A HIKE (OR A SHOWER)
A brisk walk or a shower lets your mind work in the background. You’d be amazed how often these quiet respites generate new ideas and solutions.
SEEK INSPIRATION
Listen to music. Read a book. Watch a movie. Immerse yourself in the work of other creative people … then steal their ideas. (Please don’t really steal their ideas.) Seeing how other creative minds come up with good ideas is a great way to invent your own.
Ideas don’t just appear out of thin air. Except when they do. You can’t force an idea out of your brain. Except when you have to.
There’s no mystery to where ideas come from. It’s a lot of thinking, a lot of procrastinating and a lot of panic. In many ways, the ideas find us as often as we find them.
Such is the curse of creativity. We are its master and its slave.
