Ever since I can remember I have been coming up with ideas that I thought would make a great business or product. I’m always dreaming up stuff that I think is awesome. Constantly bugging whoever is around me to make them listen so I can bounce ideas off of them. Sometimes it is just a simple product that I think the world needs, other times it is a full fledged business idea.
Most of the time when I get an idea like this I think about it as I’m going through the motions of my regular day. When I do this I tend to put it in the back of the mind, and when that happens I have very little chance of remembering what that idea by the time I get home to my computer to do some research on it.
Write your ideas down immediately.
Writing these ideas down as soon as you think of them is absolutely critical. If you wait as long as ten minutes there is a good chance that you will forget that idea forever.
You never know when that idea that you had is going to make you some money. When you initially come up with the idea you are probably thinking that this is the most genius thing ever. Why has no one ever thought of this before? It will seem so simple that you don’t think you need to write it down. This may or may not be the case, but you will never know unless you can remember it long enough to do a little research on it.
Trust me. WRITE IT DOWN. Sorry to yell again, but I can not stress enough how important this is.
I used to have think that I didn’t need to do this. I thought writing things down was for stupid people who couldn’t remember anything. I’ve always thought I had a pretty decent memory, but it turns out I was fogetting things all the time. I would remember having an idea but I couldn’t remember what it was.
After this happened one too many times and I decided to get serious about trying to create a business for myself I finally followed the advice that I had read so many times. I bought myself a pocket journal.
I can’t begin to tell you how much this has changed how I think about things now. I always have a notebook with me that I can jot something down in.
What will People think?
I used to worry about this a lot when I first started carrying my notebook with me. What are they going to say if I whip out this little notebook out of my pocket and write something down in the middle of conversation. They are either going to think hey this guys is a super nerd, or he is super rude
Actually, most people won’t think either of those thoughts. They are just going to be curious and probably ask you what you were doing. Just tell them they said something that you wanted to remember. Most people will be flattered to hear that. Don’t go in to too much detail about what you wrote down unless they really want to know. You don’ want to bore them or change the subject from what you were talking about before. Both are very rude.
How to carry your journal with you everywhere.
Now some people will find this akward to actually carry around in their pocket. For most women this is easy because you could simply put it in your purse but men seem to have a little harder time with this, myself included.
Here is what I do:
- Keep multiple journals
- Keep one in your car
- Next to your computer
- By your bed
- In a laptop bag or backpack, or anything you carry with you a lot.
The point here is to just make sure you have a notebook wherever you are that you can write that brilliant idea down.
Oh yea, don’t forget to keep a pen or a pencil nearby as well.
Why can’t I just use my iPhone, Blackberry, etc.?
There is nothing wrong with jotting your ideas down on a portable electronic device if you don’t have your journal near by.
Notice I said only if you don’t have a notebook nearby. When it comes to brainstorming ideas I have found that using pen and paper is the best way to go. Now don’t get me wrong I love my iPhone and all my other gadgets just as much as the next guy (probably more), but there is just something about it writing it on paper that makes it more of a real idea.
When you write it down on paper your idea instantly becomes tangible. Which also makes it feel like it is more attainable.
I guess writing your ideas down on paper rather than electronically, is really just a psychological benefit, but don’t you want any kind of advantage you can get?
How my journal helped me.
I started to keep a journal like this just recently. I can’t even tell you how much this has helped me generate new ideas. Not only do I never forget anything because I always write it down, but often times new ideas are generated while brainstorming on the original idea.
My notebook has been awesome. It is what got me started doing some affiliate marketing, writing ehow and hubpages articles, and even why I started this blog.
This blog is actually just a big notebook for me as well. I know I said not to do it electronically, but I promise, all of my ideas have started on paper.This is just a way that I can share what I’m doing and thinking with all of you.
So go to wal mart or your local bookstore and find you a couple notebooks that you can stash all around your house, car, and work and start writing down those ideas.
If you have any other tips for keeping a notebook of ideas, I would love to hear them in the comments.
And as always I would love to hear success stories as well. Do you have an income that just started out with an idea on a piece of paper?