Mitch Ditkoff presents 14 ways in which people can come up with breakthrough ideas. He talks about a Eureka! Moment, and that the best Eureka! Moment comes from within, it comes from the vault of ideas and memories stored in the brain. He makes a list of where all the best ideas immerge, as well as a few tips on what to do when stuck, and overall it seems that ideas, especially great ones, are not forced. The greatest ideas are coerced out of one’s mind, often at random times, when one’s head is clear and relaxed. His suggestions all make sense, some more than others, and to me there were three I recognized that stuck out as being particularly relevant.
The first and most relevant thing I found was to “Listen to your subconscious.” Many people struggle, constantly making a conscious effort to solve a particular problem and to strain their brains, when many times the answer has been in front of the person the whole time. Ditkoff suggests that when a person is trying to figure out a solution to a problem that they strain and drain themselves, give up and recommit, in order to discover the solution. When in reality, many breakthrough ideas seemingly come out of nowhere at random moments because after the mind can’t consciously figure it out, it turns the problem over and let’s the powerful subconscious mind figure out the problem. My favorite quote from this section of the article: “They weren’t buying lottery tickets at their local deli, hoping to win a breakthrough fortune; they were digging for treasure in their own back yard.” Meaning that the ideas and/or conclusions that the person came to was locked in the subconscious and it was only a matter of time, with persistence and knowledge, until the idea comes out of nowhere.
The second most important thing goes hand-in-hand with the first one. “Take a Break.” Taking a break from attempting to come up with an idea can be very helpful. It allows the mind to relax and process the problem(s) at hand. During this time, the mind may make a subconscious shift in order to help the conscious mind solve the problems presented. I find this technique to be very useful, not only when struggling with ideas, but struggling with tasks and assignments. It’s much easier to step back, take a deep breath, relax for a minute, then dive right back in to work than it is to try and breakthrough a roadblock in front of your destination. This tip can be useful in many different situations, especially those situations where there is a high amount of stress, emotional stimulus and a many countless number of other situations. It is often very useful to take a step back and assess the whole situation, take a breather and take a look at the problem from a new, more relaxed perspective. The human mind can only take so much thinking and struggling before it needs a break.
The last and certainly not least most important thing to me is to “Notice and Challenge Existing Patterns and Trends.” As a Video Production student, I think it is very important to observe. In order to get an idea of what is, what isn’t, what could be and what couldn’t be, it is crucial to observe and pay attention to your surroundings. I find it important to notice little things, the way people move, the way they change with emotional stimulus, as well as noticing things like the way a shadow falls across someone’s face in a dimly lit room, or paying attention to the sounds as one walks to class. I think it is important to notice and be aware of your surroundings at all times, not just because I can use this knowledge for video work but because it makes sense to be aware of yourself, your surroundings and the effect you have on the people and things around you. Being able to notice existing patterns and trends allows for video producers to make videos in which the viewer is at ease because the camera operator, cinematographer and director have all worked together to make an image that is familiar and pleasing to the eye, while at the same time, knowing what is normal can help one shoot something that is outside of normal, by changing color schemes, angles, framing and every other little aspect that goes in to making videos.
I have decided to do the prompt from #14 which states: “What can you do this week to suspend practicality, logic and rationality in service to birthing your big idea?” I spend a lot of my time being critical and somewhat cynical because I like to focus on the ‘reality’ of situations relative to things that ‘could’ happen. I plan to spend my time this week to think outside the box and not be so critical.
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