subject: How To Come Up With Great Ideas [print this page] In need of some great ideas? You could try waiting to see if they pop into your head someday, but if you want a more systematic method you can use today, here it is in three simple steps.
Be knowledgeable in the area where the ideas are to be used.
Use idea-generating techniques.
Come up with several ideas and choose the best.
Knowledge is the Mother of Great Ideas
You wouldn't expect to come up with a new theory of relativity if you had no knowledge in physics or mathematics. You need some degree of knowledge in the area in which you want new ideas. But for those truly out-of-this world great ideas, you need a veritable Fort Knox of knowledge.
If you are looking for a way to design a new motorized vehicle, you would have to be knowledgeable in the field of vehicle design, as well as other specialized disciplines. This might include knowing a little about all the current modes of transportation. Other things you might want to consider would be a list of failed ideas, and a list of things that people would prefer to see when taking public transportation.
Great Ideas From Techniques
Our mind is where all ideas and inventions are born, and our mind does have several rules to abide by. This brings us to the topic of different idea generating techniques, that include, but are not limited to problem solving techniques. One valuable tool would be the concept combination technique. Tell your mind that you need a useful combination of a plane and a motorcycle, and it will search until it finds it. It took me, for instance, just five seconds to come up with this idea - a motorcycle with wings that automatically sprout as it flies off the edge of a cliff, thus making me, in theory, a worthy successor to Evel Knievel.
Another technique you may wish to try would be redefining problems - this reveals so many hidden avenues and byways for your mind to drive through. Redefining "inexpensive homes" as "ways to help people afford homes" has lead to all sorts of new financing methods that have made it easier to buy a home even as prices have risen. The word "job" connotes a task, an obligation, something you have to do, but "way to make money" sounds like something that has something in it for you. There are dozens of great idea generating techniques to choose from, each with it's own advantage.
More Ideas = More Choices
Finding good, or great ideas is easier simply by having more ideas at your disposal, more ideas emanating from your coconut. One must work pragmatically and systematically when coming up with cogitations, abstractions or ideas in general. Lastly, if you feel greatness is congruent to doing something important, then focus on what you do feel is important. You may have an idea in mind for a wonder potty trainer for toddlers, but why limit your scope to potty trainers if your great ideas encompass so much more, like the obviation of war and conflict, the solution to world hunger, the miracle cure to AIDS and other deleterious human conditions and/or making the world a better place in general?
