156: 8 Idea Generation Strategies

I had high hopes for the first couple of weeks of the year, but I rang in 2023 in bed, completely uninspired by goals or ideas—anything beyond a desire to get healthy and feel human again, let alone any loftier business aims. Taking a (very loud) hint from the universe, I settled on the theme THRIVE as my focus to start the year.

One of the most common replies to my “wave a magic wand and fix one thing in your business” question when people access the Free Time Toolkit is for help with idea generation. In a meta move—seeing as I was in need of those very strategies myself to create this episode—today I am sharing 8 of them here with you!

Don’t forget, you can always share a question or your favorite time-saving system by leaving me a voice memo at http://itsfreetime.com/ask.

🌟8 Idea Generation Strategies

1. Maintain a collection bucket for when you’re reading, watching or have-on-the-go ideas. 

2. What is true now? Look for Truth While It’s Fresh or Share When Solved moments.

3. Always Be Listening (ABL). Systematize your listening through forms and ongoing input.

4. Synthesis: Introduce a new concept by fusing different ideas together through metaphor.

5. Be a contrarian: What is everyone talking about right now, and what is your take?

6. What tropes or industry cliches drive you crazy? 

7. Be a trend spotter: What is happening now that you have a heightened sensitivity to?

8. Get quiet: What can come through only me? How can I serve as a messenger? 

📝Permission

Lean on your audience and friends when creatively stuck. Explicitly ask for Q&A submissions, or get quiet and tap into the collective consciousness to create what you most need to hear in this moment. What’s the “love letter” you want to write or say if you were sitting across from one of your business besties (or your ideal reader or listener) in a coffee shop?

✅Do (or Delegate) This Next

Create an “always be listening” form (or field on an existing form asking about your audience’s biggest question or challenge) if you don’t already have one. For more on this, get your copy of Free Time and check out Chapter 13! 

📘Books Mentioned

• Free Time: Lose The Busywork, Love Your Business 

• Pivot: The Only Move That Matters Is Your Next One 

• How to Take Smart Notes: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking by Sönke Ahrens

• Building a Second Brain: A Proven Method to Organize Your Digital Life and Unlock Your Creative Potential by Tiago Forte

• The Way to Wealth: Ben Franklin on Money and Success by Benjamin Franklin (Benjamin Franklin)

🔗Resources Mentioned

• Free Time Toolkit, Free Time Operations Dashboard

• Videos: Matthew Dicks’ TEDxBerkshires Talk: Homework for Life, Curb Your Enthusiasm: Bad Middling

• YouTube Channel: The Deep Life with Cal Newport

• Article: New Yorkers Sick of Being Sick

• Notion web clipper: https://www.notion.so/web-clipper

• Jenny’s Loom walkthrough on Notion, and Notion for Collection Buckets

🎧Related Episodes

• 111: Building a Second Brain with Tiago Forte

• 142: 🍉 Pick the Low-Hanging Watermelon

• 124: JB’s 5 C’s System for Content Curation and Production

🌟 Enjoying the show? The best way to thank us is by leaving a rating or review.

🛠 Get instant access to the Free Time Toolkit: http://itsfreetime.com/toolkit

💬 I’d love to hear what’s on your mind! Take the Free Time listener survey

☎️ Submit a voice question or comment for future episodes: http://itsfreetime.com/ask

🎧 Make sure you’re subscribed wherever you listen to podcasts

📝 Check out full show notes and links from this episode and share it with a friend!

💌 Subscribe to the Time Well Spent newsletter: http://itsfreetime.com/join