When I was a boy we would play baseball in the park. The problem was that it was surrounded by bushes. Our balls kept getting vanishing in the bushes.
After about 2 years I learned how I should find them.
I would look at the bush and think of exactly how it should bounce and then look in the opposite place. I was almost always right!
The ball went to places it logically never should have.
This lesson has taught me a lot about life. When you are looking at a problem, think of the logical reasons and solutions, then consider the opposite, the most illogical and strangest solutions (most creative) often it turns out that they will serve your purpose a lot better.
1. No one else is doing it
If you come up with an idea that no one else has tried, it might be because it doesn’t work, but odds are that you have stumbled upon a great opportunity.
All too many people let these opportunities slip through their fingers; they waste these chances because they are too afraid to trust in their feelings.
If your gut reaction is that it will work, it probably will, try it out and see where it goes.
I do not think you should always go in completely blind, run trials and do some research to help you get an idea about if your idea will work. But don’t be afraid of your illogical plans because they are illogical, try them out and then pass judgment.
2. When you find the last way you are truly creative
I learnt this when studying marketing. If you are trying to come up with a smart solution first come up with a safe alternative and then come up with the craziest ideas you can.
Once you have the safe alternative you can always fall back on it. This lets you relax and be truly creative, churning out crazy, but often a lot more effective ideas and strategies.
3. You will learn the most
By doing something completely unexpected and different you will learn lots. You will have to think in new ways and adapt to new challenges, you might fail (which in itself teaches you a lot) but you might succeed and you probably will succeed big.
It is just the way the world works
There is a reason it has taken us 3000 years of thinking (without results) to figure out the world and meaning of life, life isn’t logical and cannot be explained by simple rules.
Don’t let your best ideas go to waste because you are afraid of following them.
The biggest difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is how often they fail, successful people fail at least 5 times as many times as unsuccessful people, the difference is that they try 10 more times.
That is why they at last find successful solutions.
Let yourself try and fail, so that you can try, try, try and try again.
I hope you liked this article and found it useful.
If you would like to read more from Daniel M. Wood. you can find more at his blog Looking to Business.com. He writes mainly about Motivation and the Principals of Success.