If you want your ideas to serve you, you first need to serve them
When was the last time something made you gasp, stopped you in your tracks, or left you in awe?
It could be an image, a song, a scent. Anything that moved you. Stirred your emotions.
We are flooded with “content”, but how much of it makes you really think or feel, or, better still – do something?
How much of your Information Diet inspires and delights you?
“Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.”
—Oprah Winfrey
From Creativity to Productivity and Back.
Just a few years ago, many of us were excited about productivity hacks, building our second brains, taking better notes, and managing our personal knowledge. But now, it can feel like we’ve lost sight of what really matters: these are just tools, not the end goal.
We’ve become hostages to the process, drowning in checklists, to-do lists, and endless goal-setting.
And here we are: librarians, clerks. “content creators”.
While useful in some areas, this approach can stifle creativity, make us more anxious, and simply get in the way of “doing the doing”.
From “Why?” to “Why not?”
We’re obsessed with problem-solving instead of imagining new possibilities.
Some of the greatest human creations weren’t about fixing issues, but bringing into existence things that didn’t exist before but COULD. They embodied the spirit of “Why not?” rather than just “Why?”
Many of us are trying to tap into our potential, as if it’s some hidden tool buried deep within us. We are looking for meaning, a sense of purpose, but how about we start with “just” making stuff?
And making starts with imagining it.
But what exactly do we want to create?
Focus on your vision first, then look for the tools to make it happen.
Imagine what you’d like to see in the world and become the person who can create it.
Having a clear vision is an organizing force in life, just like how resources are directed towards creating new life upon conception.
The Bar is Getting Lower – and Much Higher.
In today’s world, barriers to creation are crumbling.
What once required special permission and resources is now accessible to almost anyone.
I’ve experienced it it first hand as a photographer.
A lot of my early days in photography were felt like magic – I had to learn a lot of things really well to be able to translate my vision into an image. My progress was slow and costly – as a student I had more films and developers in my fridge than food.
I learned from books, then from magazines, then from my professors.
Then internet happened.
Then digital happened.
And it changed everything. Not only you could see what you’ve just created, but you could then tweak it in postproduction.
Initially, many of us, “real photographers”, were trying to create some artificial boundaries to separate ourselves from the rest. It was pretty futile.
The technology has changed a lot over the years, but what remained was my understanding of First Principles – of how things work – that I can always take to the next scenario. Oh, and my Imagination, the desire to create something just because.
From Skills to Ideas
Today it’s less about honing any particular skill, but rather our ideas. Chances are Ai will soon help you do everything else.
Your job is to prompt it well, to describe precisely what you want to create.
As skill barriers fall, the distance between our thoughts and creations shrinks dramatically. In this new landscape, the quality of your imagination and “prompts” will matter more than ever.
Not just the technical prompts – but how you master “prompting” your own mind.
Imagine Something and Get Curious.
To stretch your imagination, start by using it.
Create an “inspiration box” – a folder, file, or board where you collect things that inspire you, make you think, or evoke emotion. Don’t overthink it or try to label everything; just keep adding to it.
Over time, patterns may emerge. This box isn’t just for pretty things; include anything that stopped you in your tracks, even if you don’t fully understand it yet.
To Start Seeing – Observe.
We are all filters, paying attention to different bits of information.
Follow your curiosity without an agenda, go down rabbit holes, and let your energy guide you. Many things won’t make sense until they do.
When it comes to output, ask yourself: What would you like to see in this world?
Don’t overthink it, just have fun.
Write down “It would be fun..” and let your imagination run wild.
There are no grades, no one watching. Embrace the joy of creation.
In the age of AI, rewilding our productivity means reclaiming our creativity and giving ourselves permission to explore uncharted territories.
It’s about carving out space for unstructured thinking, where ideas can collide and evolve organically. By nurturing our imagination, embracing uncertainty, and leveraging technology as a tool rather than a master, we can create a new paradigm of productivity.
We are only bound by our Imagination.
I’ll leave you now with one of my favourite quotes from Martha Graham:
“There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique.
And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and it will be lost.
The world will not have it.
It is not your business to determine how good it is nor how valuable nor how it compares with other expressions.
It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.
You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work.
You have to keep yourself open and aware to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open. … No artist is pleased. [There is] no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others”
Would you like to create something and see what else is possible for you? It’s as exciting as it is scary.
Are you’re ready to move beyond stuckness?
Awesome.
Drop your email and be the first one to find out when the Safe Space to create, experiment, fail, stretch and grow it ready.
Let me know when the Creative Companion is ready!
Can’t wait?
I get it. Get in touch for some 1:1 mental hand-holding and jumping over the puddles.
Let’s connect and explore the possibilities together!
