How to Generate Ideas with a Dictionary

Idea generation is important to everyone, from writers to entrepreneurs. Luckily there are a number of old writer's tricks that can jump start anyone's creative thinking. The thing to remember is that creativity tends to escape if you let it fly completely free. Set a few simple limits on it, and it's amazing the work it will do for you.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Dictionary (or other book)
• Paper
• Pen or Pencil

1. First write down what you are trying to find ideas for. If you are an entrepreneur, you may be looking for products, or you may be looking for marketing ideas. If you are a writer, you may want to write a particular kind of story -- a mystery, a children's book. Pick ONE. (Although you may write down others as they occur to you for later exercises.)

2. You will need a dictionary, although in a pinch you could use any book. You just need something with a good selection of words. (The advantage of a dictionary is that, if you choose a word you don't know, it will give you the definition.)

3. Close your eyes and open the dictionary to a random page, and place your finger on the page.

4. Open your eyes and see which word you have landed on. Write it down.

5. Close your eyes again, and open the dictionary to another page, and place your finger on that page.

6. Open your eyes and see which word you have picked, and write that one down too.

7. Look at your words and think about how they relate to each other. What they mean and how they are used, separately and together. Write down your thoughts.

8. Now look at the subject you wrote down in step one. How do these words relate to your subject or problem? Try to find the obvious, but also think about the unlikely. Try to look at all the elements that you wrote down about what the words mean and how they relate to each other.

Tips & Warnings

• If you get to really boring words, you may be tempted to start over, but creativity can actually work better with boring. For instance, what if you got "the" and "to"? If you pause and think about it "the" is often used to indicate something that is unique, or the best. That's not so boring. And "to" indicates direction, movement, and also things like gifts. Also not so boring.

Resources

• How to Generate Ideas while Watching TV

[rickmac]

on 4/18/2009 I like this idea of finding connections with random words and generating ideas.

[vlhammett]

on 2/5/2009 Very good. A simple way to get creative juices flowing.

[sunshine11219]

on 2/5/2009 great idea