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| Finding inspiration to sky dive! (image via flickr) |
I compiled a small list sharing all the best and the craziest (take note, craziest, so expect something unlikely included in this) activities to get my ideas and inspirations from. Hopefully, some of you might be getting yours the same way I do!
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| Strawberry fields are forever! (image via jpgr.co.uk) |
This is my best choice to get some inspiration. Music has become a primary step for me before doing any work since my college days. There’s something about the tunes and lyrics of any song that gets my brain cells going and excited. Maybe the banging of my head helps too when I do that. There’s always a right genre for every mood I’m in, and it produces different results as well.
Walking
Have your heard of the saying, “great ideas are produced while walking”? And yes, it does. I usually walk around much and it really does produce a lot of creative ideas. So many that when I come back to my house, I can’t remember all of them! Haha. But it’s effective still. Whenever I walk a long path, I always remember how Charles Darwin walks on his forest/garden as portrayed in the movie Creation. Hey, that’s the guy that thought of the Theory of Evolution while walking around lot!
From Other People
We all have our idols and people we look up to. Sometimes, it's magical when just a simple words spoken by other people we like can make us revive our energy and continue to fight harder. People I follow on Twitter re-tweet famous quotes from the Dalai Lama, Paulo Coehlo, Bill Gates and many more, which I believe has also inspired them and would like their followers to be inspired as well. If we can feel energized by these famous people, I also think family members and friends can make us feel better too.
Falling in Love
OK, so this is the cheesiest one of them all, but I need to include it. When I was in high school, falling in love was kind of a big deal, yet productive nonetheless. Those were probably the years when I learned how to write poems and journals (that crappy stuff), and excel more in school. But that’s a thing of the past, these days, falling in love could also result to headache and spacing out most of the time, daydreaming rather than having the urge to do something, so this is kind of a delicate matter. But hey, it’s your choice. It’s still wonderful to fall in love.
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| Single? Never a problem. Just watch a romantic movie. There's a lot of inspiration there. Then go find a significant other. Hehe (image via unabashedly--me@blogspot) |
Sometimes I read to relax, and sometimes I read to be inspired. Either by books, or by posts on the Internet, I get to enjoy a few read. Mostly anything I find there are amusing. I remember having read most of the posts on BitRebels and this quite inspired me to start this Extra Kanin blog with my friends. And hopefully, everything we write here in this blog will get to inspire a lot of our readers as well.
Travelling
I’ve always loved the three main parts of travelling: the joy of the journey, the moments shared within the place, and the longing to come back after leaving. From these emotions I find the trigger to shape ideas and inspirations. It is best enjoyed alone or while music is on to fully immense yourself in the feeling of being one with yourself. I say travelling is one of the best activities for writers to get inspired.
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| Trekking the Mt. Pinatubo was one of the highlight adventures of 2010. Really amazing going there! |
People-watching is something unavoidable while waiting for someone on the mall or park or anywhere. It’s a fun thing to do, because looking on a lot of people can produce a good story inside our brains. These stories can lead into more sub stories and eventually good inspiration.
In a Conversation
I like talking to other people, to friends or to interesting strangers. Having to listen to their stories make me stir lots of possibilities of interaction or business (well of course, they should talk with sense). As I win new ideas, I win new friends as well. Lots of posts on the internet also say that interaction with other people takes one’s social skill higher, thus making you focus on what you need to give to be able to help others. For client-based works, this is a very good practice.
In the shower
Usually these days, I take a shower at night to regulate my temperature against the coldness of Japan. The exciting part of taking a bath at this hour is about having good thoughts to flourish while the water is running down my head. I can’t explain it but it makes me think of new things to ponder about, and so after showering, ideas are ready to be written down and thought of.
Using the Toilet
This is the crazy stuff I was telling you about. It may not sound typical, but really, I can definitely say the private moment in the toilet while relieving myself gives me time to think of the wildest of ideas. I once concluded that 90% of my grandest thoughts where thought of while in the comfort room, although it’s kind of crazy since half of them are completely forgotten after I exit the cubicle. Much like already flushed on the drain. But yes, I definitely recommend this. Just make sure it's a very clean and sanitary place.
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| I wonder what secrets this throne hold? (image via flickr) |
There are other things that I get some off-beat inspiration from like drinking beer or eating or doing regular jobs, but ideas rarely come out of them. The Internet of course is a good way to find ideas, and well you already know that. What I mentioned on the list above are definitely my top activities to do to garner creative thoughts. And yes, they are effective for me, and maybe you’ll get the hang of it too.
How about you, our dear readers? Maybe you can share a thing or two about the activities you do to be inspired and to produce a gazillion of ideas. Feel free to share it with us and I’d be glad to collect them all and compile it on another list. Write away!
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