So where do you find yourself, and what are you doing, when you get a great idea...or any idea? 

I'll bet that you said something close to one of these:

• Cutting the grass
• Walking the dog
• Driving to work
• Showering
• Listening to your iPod
• Meditation
• Praying
• Staring out the window

I'll also bet that none of you said, or even thought of, work.  Not surprising.  So why is it that you always seem to get your best ideas when you are doing these activities?  Well, it is during these activities that you get as close as you can get to the idea generator in your head (your subconscious), at least during waking hours. 

“Your subconscious,” you ask?  Absolutely...that amazing "back office" of your mind takes care of keeping your heart beating, breathing, and also for recording everything you encounter via your five senses.  Not only that, it constantly works to solve problems.  In fact, it can solve problems faster and better than any computer yet invented by Man.  By using the examples of the recordings it has made throughout your life, and comparing them to the problems you have assigned it (whether consciously or unconsciously), your subconscious develops potential solutions to your problems...or ideas.

Unfortunately, we lead unbelievably complicated and busy lives.  So busy, in fact, that we often cannot hear our subconscious when it’s trying to tell us that it has found an answer to one of our problems.  When you engage in one of the above-referenced activities, your conscious mind has gone into "auto-pilot" and you start listening to your subconscious.  Sometimes it has answers or ideas for your problems.  Sometimes it doesn't.  But now that you know how it works, you can use the world's most powerful problem solving tool to your advantage. 

The next time you have a problem, assign it directly to your subconscious.  You're asking, "How do I do that?"  Well, simply state your problem out loud or better yet, write it down on a piece of paper.  Take that piece of paper and shove it in a drawer.  Now, forget completely about your problem.  I mean completely.  If you start to think about it, just tell yourself that you already assigned that problem to your subconscious and that it is busy working out a solution for you.  Give yourself at least two days for the subconscious to sort through the "stuff" in your head.  Now, find the activity that most efficiently eliminates the noise in your head.   Haul out the piece of paper and read the problem out loud.  I think you are going to be surprised at what comes out.  Be ready...write the ideas down as they come to you.  If your subconscious hasn't yet found a solution, don't despair.  Just keep finding those quiet moments in your day, and you won't be disappointed.

Your subconscious is really only limited by the recordings that it has made through your five senses.  So, if you find yourself with a slow down in ideas, try to "feed" it something new:

• Read a book (fiction, non-fiction/business, biography, magazine)
• Watch the Science Channel instead of the Ultimate Fighting Championship
• Visit your local museum or library
• Talk to a friend you haven't heard from in a long time
• Go out, find some of your customers, and talk to them
• Take a walk in the woods, or at the beach, or down your town's busiest street
• Travel to a new place
• Visit Walt Disney World or Disneyland
• Take a camera with you and just start snapping shots of things you find interesting
• Take a day off during the middle of the week
• Visit a new restaurant
  

I think you get the idea.  For your inner problem solving machine to work, you need to follow this system:

1. Feed your mind fresh, new observations (try to utilize all five senses)
2. When you have a problem, write it down and then forget about it
3. Find times during the day to quiet your mind
4. Note which activities tend to lead to more ideas and seek out those times often
5. Listen to the ideas that pour out of your subconscious
6. Write the ideas down or otherwise record them so you don't forget
7. Return to #1