Last night I was at a seminar, supposedly on strategies to keep on top of the rapidly changing economy for 2015. In fact, it was a pitch by a business guru who would sell us his program to improve our businesses. Even at the 90% discount, the program was still a couple thousand dollars.
I knew going in I would get the pitch, though I did expect the event to be a little closer to the advertised topic.
I kept my credit card securely ensconced in my pocket. While I occasionally buy an educational product at events like this, I mostly attend them for entirely different purposes.
I go to connect with people, to get motivated and to learn a little. The presenters always give out some content in the free event to whet your appetite for their pitch. But, if you’re astute, you pick up quite a bit for free. And you certainly do get inspired to be more disciplined and energetic about those things you already know to do.
And I go for one other reason: to get creative ideas. It’s one of several settings in which my mind gets really creative. I may just pick up the next idea to propel my life to greater success, whether from the presenter, from dialogue with colleagues at the event, or simply from the stimulated neurons dancing around in my own head.
Last night I came away with some new ideas, in part stimulated by the presenter, in part stimulated by dialogue with a colleague. Provided I stay motivated, you’ll see some of them rolled out in the future.
OK, you say, but I’m not an entrepreneur; I don’t need that stuff. I get a paycheque every month, thank you.
My response? Great! Don’t go to entrepreneur seminars! (Though I truly believe we all have a little bit of entrepreneurialism in us.)
But I believe we are all creative people, and by stimulating and developing that creative part, we lead more satisfying lives. You’ll have your own ideas of what constitutes creativity for you and what success looks like for you. We achieve what to us is success, even if there is no attachment to dollar signs.
There are other settings that stimulate my creativity.
One of them is the shower. Yep, my showers may sometimes be long, but I often get a great brainwave there. And sometimes I even solve the world’s problems in there (lol).
Bill Gates (you’ve heard of him?) had his own unique way. Every year, he would take a week or ten days entirely away from everything and simply immerse himself in thousands of pages of reading material. From that, he would develop his new ideas for the coming year.
There’s another setting that always stimulates creativity for me: adventure getaways. Going to another country in another part of the world. Taking a complete break from the nitty-gritty of everyday life (though never leaving it entirely behind.) It’s like taking a distant look back at the big picture of my life without getting distracted by all the day-to-day details.
So, that being the case, you’ll probably get my next blog post from Nicaragua, or Panama, or Costa Rica, where I’ll likely be conjuring up, or honing, more creative ideas while leaving behind the details of everyday life. It’s been far too long since I’ve had one of these getaways.
Where do you get your creative ideas? (Hint: Ron’s blogs?)
Maybe next time we’ll invite all of you who subscribe to this blog to join me on one of these getaways and we can get creative together.
Rent 2 Own tip:
To rebuild your credit for a mortgage, you must have at least two sources of credit, and show that you use them and are keeping up on your payments.
Quote of the week:
The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.
– Edmund Burke
