How to Spark Inspiration

Making the Wheels Turn

Let us face it.  It is not everyday that we see the world with rose-colored glasses.  It is monotony that that kisses our faces day in and day out, like waves that do not fail to come to the shore; it is the humdrum of everyday life that besets us and pummels us into submission; the unexciting coming more often rather than the exciting.  And yes, there is some comfort in that.  The heart can only take so much – of happiness, of excitement, of something happening all the time.

But when you need to, how do you inspire yourself?

From time to time, we need inspiration, like a drowning man needing a life jacket to be thrown his way.  It is our path to greatness, the one way our mind is illumined by our possibilities.

How do the people who need inspiration every day do it?

Coming to mind are those creative people who depend on their imagination and inspiration to live – the writers, the painters, the musicians.  When it does not come, as sometimes these things will not come, what do they do to get back into their creative bubble?

These are how well-known bloggers get the spark:

1. Abe Olandres of YugaTech surrounds himself with pillows in a semi-darkened room.  Understanding that the early bird catches the early worm, he wakes up in the wee hours of the morning to catch the latest tech news and write about it.  It is almost second nature to him, this commitment to write, that after the initial shock of waking up, he pounds on his computer for hours, forgetting the time.
2. Connie of House on a Hill, who inspired me to apply to the BlogHer network, takes her morning coffee and then reads a chapter or two of a book to stimulate her mind.  This does it and then she starts to cook or bake and take pictures and write her engaging pieces.
3. Anton Diaz of OurAwesomePlanet eats and experiences.  He makes sure to go to a new restaurant at least 3 times a week or go out of town (many of his articles feature great out of town destinations – a testament to his advocacy that it is truly an Awesome Planet).  He takes lots of pictures (he has taught me a thing or two about photoblogging) or videos (assisted by his brother Rommel who owns Cinematic Concepts) and makes his notes.  He tries to get up everyday between the hours of 4am to 6 am, right before his boys wake up, to write his articles read by every foodie in the blogosphere.
4. Salve Duplito of MoneyStories and MoneyDoctors has a routine.  She munches on something and prepares to type whatever is on her mind. She then deletes, edits, or retypes until what she wrote attains some kind of a shape. If that still does not work, she reads a favorite author’s work or some of her own work that she particularly likes.   Deadlines also work for her.  According to Salve, “There is nothing like deadlines to make the creative juices flow.”
5. Leo Babauta of Zen Habits works with inspired people (whom he describes as creative, energetic and positive).  He also reads daily, communes with nature, talk with new people, break out of his routine, exercise and find time for silence.

I experience.  Since my current obsession is finance, I try to get into it as much as possible – I set up businesses and partnerships, invest in mutual funds and stocks, save, ask and learn, haggle, test the theories that I read in books, look into my past to understand my money philosophy, and reflect.  This serves as fodder for my musings and then the musings turn to inspiration that turn to a flood of words.

Inspiration and genius – one and the same. – Victor Hugo

How do you do it?

Be rich,

Issa

Article by Issa. Art by D. Copyright 2010.
Website: www.YouWantToBeRich.com
Email: issa@youwanttoberich.com

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