If you’re reading this, chances are you have a very active brain. Perhaps even a little too active. Maybe your brain likes to jump ahead and imagine all the possible future problems that could materialize.
You’re not alone. If left to its own devices, my brain will invent stuff to worry about on top of the very real things it needs to think about.
But my brain also loves to come up with ideas. Over the years, I’ve learned to give my brain something to focus on so that it won’t go down an endless worry trail.
Years ago, I used to think ideas just “came” to me, but the reality is that I need to tune in or prepare to receive ideas.
How to Tune Your Brain
How do I change what my brain focuses on? By tuning my idea antennas. Maybe you have these, too. But before we go any further, let me explain what I’m talking about. Because I completely made this term up, and I hope it will make sense once you hear more about it.
What’s an antenna? It’s an electronic device that converts electric current into radio waves or vice versa.
What about an idea antenna? It’s that receptive part of you that can “pick up” on ideas in the air, and transmit them to you.
There are a few different ways to get new ideas.
You might sit down and start brainstorming. You might do some research to see what other people are doing in your field or other industries, to get your imagination fired up.
But one of the most powerful ways that I get new ideas is to direct my thinking in a certain direction and then completely let it go. I do something else, like working in the garden, showering, or cleaning the dishes. The next thing I know, ideas are showing up and dots are connecting.
In this case, I’m not actively thinking about getting new ideas. I just gave my brain something to work on, and then let it do its thing. One of the most common times when ideas come to me like this is right before I fall asleep, or (thanks to perimenopause!) if I wake up during the night.
So how exactly do I tune my antennae to get the best ideas?
For me, that looks like asking myself questions like:
- How could I solve this problem?
- What would make this more fun?
- Who would be the best person for this?
- Why does this matter?
- What’s next?
- If anything was possible, what would I want to happen?
The trick is to focus on a specific area of interest to prime the ideas to start flowing.
I’ve used this technique for everything from designing our farm’s orchards and rotational grazing systems to coming up with titles for books, events, and even entire businesses. I’m even priming my idea antennae to dream up interesting scenes for the novel I’m writing.
Ideation Is Productive Worrying
I think part of my ideation strength comes from my “worrying brain”. If I don’t give my brain something to focus on, it will start to invent things to worry about and fixate on.
So, I always like to have a creative effort or problem to solve. It keeps me from thinking about all of the things that could go wrong or that I should have done by now.
That’s not to say that there aren’t very real worries to be aware of and to prepare for. There’s a way to make worrying productive by guiding your brain to come up with solutions or plans to help you meet real issues head-on.
That way, you’re tapping into your brain’s resources with a purpose.
Not that engaging in some light daydreaming isn’t amazing, too. But if you tend to be a worrier like me, it helps to give your mind something more focused to work on, so it won’t fall into repetitive stressful patterns.
