Job Bridge

10 Ways to Generate a

Great Idea in 20 Minutes

by Trevor Blake

I often hear people say they want to start their own business or find a more rewarding job, but that they just don't have any great ideas. There are techniques anyone can learn to make moments of insight become more common. It's not hard to do. Henry Ford used to sit in a rocking chair to get great ideas; Ralph Waldo Emerson did it by walking in the forest.

Researchers at the Center for Neural Decision Making at Temple University found that when people take the time to quiet down the left (logical) brain--to forget about to-do-lists and unplug from all input--solutions often percolate up from the subconscious. After a period of not thinking about the problem, the answer simply appears. The more the study participants let go, the more activation surfaced in the part of the brain associated with enhanced vigilance and awareness--exactly what you need when you're looking for a new idea!

The human brain contains approximately a hundred billion neurons, all constantly disengaging and engaging in new neural networks, creating brain patterns that we experience as ideas and feelings.

The great news is that we have some control over all that neuronal activity. We can consciously change existing neural patterns through hypnosis, daydreaming, pre-sleep, and such other interventions as simply taking quiet time early in the day so that it becomes natural for us to generate brilliant ideas.

Stilling the mind takes about 20 minutes; and contrary to common belief, we are not slowing our thoughts down, but speeding them up. Once we stop distracting the brain with menial everyday worries and tasks, we release it to work at maximum speed long enough for the brilliant ideas constantly fired at us to make their way into our awareness.

Want to generate moments of insight? Here's how to do it:

1. Be alone.
Taking quiet time is a technique to be practiced alone. Inviting moments of inspiration requires  separating yourself from the disruptive energy and influence of other people’s thoughts and intentions.

2. Do it early.
Because our days are filled with sensory input until the moment we fall asleep at night, this process is best undertaken early, just after waking. Unless you're a meditation master, a still mind is much easier to achieve before you're fully awake.

3. Get silent.
Choose a calm place away from as many interrupting sounds as possible. Make it comfortable enough for you to look forward to being there every morning. Find a comfy chair in a quiet corner, with a blanket to keep you warm if conditions so warrant.

4. Sit up.
Don't lie down; sit to prevent falling back asleep if you’ve just awakened. We need to be comfortable enough to consciously release our thoughts, meaning focusing on nothing. Get relaxed—with your feet on the floor to avoid stiffness and aches and pains.

5. “Clean” your energy.
Rub the palms of your hands together vigorously until you feel the heat; place them on your temples and drag your hands down your cheeks; then shake your hands as if air-drying them. Repeat these actions two more times. Do the same for your forehead three times, and then cross your arms and brush your hands over the opposite shoulders and upper arms three times.

6. Relax and sigh.
Close your eyes. Take a deep breath and exhale with a sigh. (Making a sound helps concentration.) Repeat this a few times until you feel relaxed. Concentrate on relaxing every part of your body, starting at the top of your head and moving down to your toes.

7. Get grounded.
Once you're relaxed, it helps to practice a technique borrowed from Native Americans: Visualize yourself physically connected with the Earth. This allows your mind to be fully in the present.

8. Follow the breath.
Now it's time to distract your left brain. Focus on your normal breathing--in and out. Try to follow it through the nose, curling into the lungs, and back out. Do this for 10 minutes or more. If extraneous thoughts pop into your head, let them float away. Don't follow the thought, just your breath.

9. Stretch.
Open your eyes now and smile. Stand and stretch to get blood flowing throughout your body. Thank yourself for this gift of a few minutes of peace created just for you.

10. Plug in to nature.
Don't immediately plug your brain back into those stressful texts, emails, or media headlines. Take five minutes outdoors first. Touch a tree, smell a flower, and breathe in some fresh air before returning to the noise of your everyday life. Then let nature, along with your newly energized brain, take its course.

                                                          ____________________
Trevor Blake (http://www.threesimplesteps.com/) shows others how to succeed at anything using a three-step strategy he developed, based on his business experience and the latest findings in neuroscience brain research. All this he shares in his New York Times bestselling book, Three Simple Steps: A Map to Success in Business and Life (BenBella, 2012). Blake has donated more than 8,000 copies of the book to U.S. libraries, and all profits go to cancer treatment research and development. 

To contact Trevor for help redefining your life and finding success, add a comment or question
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