50+ Ways to Get Inspired

We as humans are competitive by nature. It is normal to feel the urge to be innovative and to create. This urge is also necessary to stay ahead of the crowd. We all need the inspiration to do something innovative. We need fuel for our minds to generate new ideas. Here is a list of tips that you could try to derive inspiration from when you wish to do something new or to do something in a new way.

1. Take a break from your work. Sometimes it’s good to escape from the office jungle.
2. Divert your mind completely from the subject matter for a while, because you cannot think right when your mind is already saturated.
3. Believe in yourself and your ability.
4. Play with kids or babies. Your mind may come up with an excellent idea when it is not involved in the formal process of idea generation.
5. Take a nap. A nap is the best way to make your mind feel fresh and de-cluttered.
6. Self-motivation is very important to keep yourself going.
7. When you are ready to work, discuss the subject matter with someone who is an expert in the field.
8. Talk about your issues to your coach.
9. You have the largest resource of information at your disposal. The internet!
10. Go through relevant blogs and talk to bloggers.
11. Join forums to discuss the subject.
12. Visit social networking sites to read about the experiences of people from around the world.
13. Gather more and more valid information. Information is very necessary for you to move in the right direction.
14. Read books that are somewhat relevant to the subject matter. This way you will come to know about other perspectives and aspects to which you can connect the subject.
15. If possible, discuss the subject with your family or friends for more ideas.
16. Read the success stories of people.
17. Draw a flow chart of the process. Identify the loopholes to improve the process.
18. Follow a trial and error method. Apply your ideas and see if they work or how they affect the process.
19. Keep moving ahead even if your ideas fail. Do not get disheartened.
20. Look at random images. You may notice something that relates to your problem.
21. Develop a drive to be different.
22. Let yourself know that if you do not have a strategy, you will be a victim of someone else’s.
23. Keep on thinking. Thoughts are the food for your mind.
24. Analyze the process and ask ‘why this?’ & ‘Why not that?’
25. Learn more about the subject matter. Learning will enrich your developmental process.
26. Point out to yourself the errors so that you know what doesn’t work.
27. Be a good listener. Your listening skills might help you pick up on something important.
28. Be inquisitive. It will help you to delve deeper into the issue.
29. Stay updated with the current issues through the media. Try to look at it as a way to find an opportunity.
30. Put your networking skills to work. Try to identify the important people and build a network to enrich your knowledge. The possibilities of mutual gains may exist.
31. Try the ‘If I were’ strategy. Question yourself how would you address the issue if you had similar traits and authority?
32. Positive reinforcement brings you positive ideas and hence positive results. So think positively.
33. Be a part of brainstorming sessions.
34. Always note down the ideas that come to your mind, no matter how small they may be.
35. Materialize your ideas to come across new ones.
36. Try to be the devil’s advocate. Challenge the conventions.
37. Stepping into a different environment alters your train of thought. Visit a café and talk about the issue with colleagues over a coffee.
38. Tell yourself ‘there is nothing I can’t teach myself to do’. However, be realistic at the same time.
39. Try not to get distracted. Shut off the things that distract you.
40. Think from someone else’s standpoint.
41. Try rephrasing your problem. Rephrasing may help you come up with a solution.
42. Thinking of the issue upside-down may bring new ideas to your mind.
43. Ideas don’t need to be big. You can kick-start your journey to success with a small idea.
44. Go for a morning walk. It revitalizes your mind.
45. No idea is bad. Implement to see if it works.
46. Ever heard about ‘Serendipity’? Ideas just pop into your head from nowhere. You just need to bring them to reality.
47. Share your ideas with people and let them give you feedback.
48. Listen to music that soothes your mind. Most of the time ideas just pop in when you are doing an altogether different activity.
49. Have a strong imagination and set it free.
50. Go for meditation. This energizes and empowers your mind.
51. Try to locate the hidden blatancy that others might not have noticed.

So these are the simplest ways to derive inspiration to get a breakthrough. The key is to back up all your efforts with knowledge.