Never lose ideas again

[👋 ](=) Hi! If you’re anything like me, you probably find that ideas regularly flash into your mind. And of course there’s no pattern to it. The ideas magically appear while you’re chatting with friends, walking your dog or even as you’re just about to sleep. Now, while it’s great to have this consistent flow of ideas and inspiration, you’ve undoubtedly noticed a problem. Namely, if you don’t jot down the ideas quickly - often you forget them. That’s right. Many great ideas are lost down the drain due to their temporary owner allowing them to slip through their hands. It’s happened to me, and I’m sure it’s happened to you too. Is there a way to prevent ideas being lost? You bet there is! Not just one way, mind you, but there are several methods of ensuring that your ideas are captured before they are gone forever. Let’s look now at four ways to ensure you never lose your ideas again. #1 Keep a pen and paper on your bedside table You turn off your bedroom light and slip under the covers. You’re feeling sleepy, but your mind is restless due to the busy and stressful day you’ve had. Despite your best efforts to fall asleep, 15 minutes of being in bed has left you drowsy but still awake. This is one of the most common times when people receive ideas from their unconscious mind. It’s due to the barrier between the unconscious and conscious mind being much thinner than normal. But when the ideas come, most people lose them the moment they drift off into sleep. However, you can avoid this. Simply keep a pen and some paper on your bedside table; and, when the ideas flow into your mind, you’ll be ready to jot them down immediately. After that - you can sleep easy! Of course, some people find inspiration through their dreams. If you’re one of those people, then, once again, make sure you have the all-important pen and paper by your bed to capture them before they disappear back into your unconscious. #2 Keep a notebook in your car If you spend a lot of time driving, then it’s essential that you have a way of recording ideas that might come to you while on the road. Now, before I get into this, please don’t attempt to write down ideas while you’re driving. This is extremely dangerous and should never be done. The correct way to make a note of ideas that come to you when you’re behind the wheel, is to pull over to a safe place and then jot down your ideas into your notebook. As luck would have it, your glove compartment offers the perfect holding place for a decent-sized notepad and pen. Personally, I find long road trips provide fertile ground for thinking and coming up with new ideas. It’s probably the endless concrete roads that lull the mind into a receptive state. While your car will certainly cost you money to drive, you might just come up with an idea worth much more! #3 Use a digital notebook on your smartphone A notepad and pen is not always convenient to carry around, but if you have a smartphone, then you won’t need to. Apps such as Evernote, Google Keep, Microsoft OneNote allow you to quickly jot down thoughts and ideas, even if your device is disconnected from the internet. For most people, this is the handiest way to capture ideas before they’re lost. And there’s an added bonus… Once your smartphone connects to the internet, it’ll save your notes in the cloud, allowing you to access them from other devices (e.g. your computer at work). This also makes it easy for you to come back to older ideas, that if captured with pen and paper, you may have thrown in the trash can. Digital notebooks offer an instant and virtually effortless way to access your notes. #4 Freely jot down ideas, don’t worry about organizing them Ideas seldom come on their own. In most cases, you’ll receive several related ideas. And when this happens, you may be tempted to start putting then into some kind of order, such as: - Ease of implementation - How important you perceive them to be - Their perceived value to your life The problem with this approach, is that it will slow down your ability to capture your ideas. This could lead to you forgetting some of them. Or if you were interrupted during your organizing phase, you may fail to remember any of the ideas you planned to scribble down. Because of these reasons, the most important thing is to capture your ideas quickly and in their entirety. If you do this, you’ll have plenty of time later to sort them into a useable order. John Maynard Keynes once said: “Ideas shape the course of history.” And your ideas will - at the very least - shape your history. Want to read more about capturing your ideas and organizing them? Then click on the link below... [Secrets to Organizing Thoughts and Ideas (So You’ll Never Lose Ideas!)](=) Ideas are the lifeblood of organizations - including Lifehack. And as such, I’d love to hear any ideas you have for improving the content we offer. Please [share your thoughts](=) with me. Cheers! - Leon [Facebook]( [Twitter](=) [Pinterest]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. [Unsubscribe]( [Terms of Service]( | [Privacy Policy]() 113 Cherry St #92768, Seattle, WA 98104-2205