We all want great ideas to fizz into our minds on cue. But let's face it: you're not always going to be blessed with mental effervescence. The next creative epiphany may not come bubbling into your head just when you feel you need it most.
Whether it's Monday morning, Wednesday afternoon, or Friday lunchtime - there's no good or bad time to gather round with your colleagues and blitz your brains for the next big idea. The important thing is to be ready, to be mentally open.
There are few things more irksome than having a bout of creative lethargy during a brainstorm. I say a few things - there are probably millions. It’s still irritating, nevertheless. So, the question is: how do you make sure you’re ready to fire off a string of technicolour gems quicker than your colleague can scribble them down on the flip chart?
Brain lunges!
Simples.
Your brain is like an athlete – it needs regular exercise to stay in peak condition. Therefore, to continue the analogy, before your brain engages on a record-breaking sprint for ideas, it needs to limber up. Otherwise, you may find yourself slow from the blocks, off the pace and, dare I say it, pulling a metaphorical muscle.
As all good boy scouts say – be prepared. Making careful preparation is akin to putting your brain through a trial run. Have a good look into your subject at least the day before. Then, while you sleep, your brain will try to solve all those problems you were unable to during your waking hours. The following morning, your brain will have come up with some of the answers – often without you even realising it. That’s the reason why you get some of your best ideas while you’re in the shower or eating toast. (Or is that just me? Crumbs!)
If you ever watch an athletics tournament on the telly – or any sporting event for that matter – you’ll see the athletes stretching and twisting, touching their toes and wiggling their arms around. That’s exactly what your brain needs to do. Have a mental stretch. Get rid of all those psychological aches and pains. What I like to do – and you may or may not wish to follow my lead on this – is read the paper.
Not much help, you might think. Actually, you don’t want the news. Or the sport. Or the personal ads. At the back of the Metro and in the middle pages of some of the papers, you’ll find all the cartoons and puzzles. Rather than indulging in some navel-gazing, reading your horoscopes – have a look across the page and see if you can find the brain teasers. Dingbats is a great starter but simple quizzes and riddles can get your brain thinking off on a tangent and, crucially, away from work for five minutes before the real competition begins.
Take five minutes before your brainstorm to do some brain lunges and you might be surprised at how quick off the mark you are.
Combining your trial runs with some brain lunges will work. You might not turn into Usain Bolt overnight but you may start to win a few races and perhaps a few gold stars along the way.
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