Finding the Alchemist Within

Do you feel compelled to follow that rainbow and find your pot of gold? Or discover the secret to turn lead into gold? And do you know in your heart that your pot of gold–or that secret formula–is buried somewhere within you, and your mission is to dig until you find it?

If you answered “yeah baby”, then come with me.

In Paulo Coelho’s best-seller, The Alchemist, the wise alchemist tells “the boy”, “wherever your heart is, that is where you’ll find your treasure.”

When I read this fabulous little fable just recently, it dawned on me that I was the character. I was “the boy”. Apart from the minor gender mix up, this was my story. Talk about goose bumps. I could feel that fable because I’m living it.

But it’s been a while coming, let me give you the tip. I chased a lot of rainbows to find my pot of gold; my purpose.

So how about you? Does the rainbow you’re chasing really light up your world?

Finding Your True North

Start-up evangelist Guy Kawaski recommends that we make meaning as opposed to make money. Without wanting to sound too cosmically lovesick, “I totally get this man”, because that’s exactly what I’m trying to do.

Making money is undoubtedly lots of fun (I say this as an outsider, because I’ve never actually made money), but following your heart is where the true gold lies. This is the stuff that will make you H-A-P-P-Y. And while I’d love to make oodles of dough, I also want my money’s worth out of life. I want fulfillment.

BTW – check out Guy’s definition of a blogger. (And here I was trying to make meaning.)

Sometimes people just know their mission, but oftentimes we’re grasping at straws trying to figure out what the hell we’re supposed to be doing. I’ve come to believe that this is a necessary part of the journey. Right now, if you don’t really know in your gut, then that’s okay, just keep going. If you intend to find it, it will find you. And what you discover along the way will be valuable to you in one way or another.

For an eloquent summary of finding your true north, take a look at William S. Frank’s career inspirations.

And this blog is a little beauty! I found Developing Talent through Kammie’s awesome connections in her last post. I LOVE this guy’s line of thinking and his diverse approach to creativity. Yummy, yummy, yummy. If you’re looking to do something innovative or creative, this is a great blog to tap into.

I might just throw in here that if you’re under the illusion that once you find your mission it’s going to be easy…um…I have a bit of bad news for you. Especially if it involves innovation.

Creativity is Bloody Hard Work

When gold fever hits, look out ’cause you’re in for the ride of your life. As they say, strap yourself in and hang on petal.

My adrenalin pumped mercilessly and my brain cranked till it hurt. And then some. One of the memories I have etched in my mind is of working at my dining room table on a hot summer’s day. It was February, our hottest month, and this day was a scorcher. Slumped back in my chair, both legs up on the table (in a feeble attempt to get air circulating from beneath), I sketched furiously as sweat literally poured off me. The irony of this scene is that I have air-conditioning. But I couldn’t stop what I was doing to go turn it on. Suddenly I realised the absurdity of my behaviour–hot as hell, soaked in sweat, and suffering for hours because I could not stop–and I threw my head back and laughed.

Anyone who’s ever been bitten by the creativity or entrepreneurial bug is probably nodding right about now. I’ve got dozens of similar scenarios burned in my memory, frequently involving meal times and bathroom breaks. But I won’t go there; you don’t need to know.

Looking back, one of the things that strikes me is that creating something is not exactly sexy work, which I guess is the reason why so many people fall out of love with their idea and dump it. (But if you do go the distance, then after you’ve become a huge success, suddenly the story becomes very sexy.)

For me there were moments of pure exhilaration, and they are indescribable. But for the most part, it’s hard yakka. A lot of the time it’s like trying to make your way through a maze blind-folded. I think it’s the combo of the love of the chase and that compelling feeling that you must do it that gets you to the finish line. Turns out that Edison had a point: Of inspiration one percent, of perspiration, ninety nine. Literally in my case.

For those of you who just can’t leave well enough alone… Welcome to my little shop of horrors –

Panning for Gold

Let me start by saying I am generally not a “technique-oriented” person. Creatively speaking, I have the organisational skills of a 3-year-old. However, working on the development of my board game The Meet Market over a period of 14 months, I found certain approaches to consistently help progress the flow of ideas.

Ultimately, it doesn’t matter what the technique is, what matters is how effective it is for you. If it doesn’t work, don’t let it become a roadblock, get rid of it and try something new. Whatever you do, ensure that you sample different methods, techniques and systems, because if you don’t, you WILL become stale and stuck. Or worse, give up.

Paul Sloane suggests some simple yet effective methods to get your creative juices flowing in Unleash your inner genius: Ten great ways to boost your personal creativity.

And here’s some little gems by Scott Baradell: 101 Ways To Brew Up a Great Idea.

Kevin Hoffberg has a succinct and well thought out list of books on innovation on his quirky and diverse site.

My Top 10

Here’s the approaches that consistently worked for me. They’re not very sexy, but they work.

#1: Begin with the end in mind

What problem does your product solve? This is the key to your treasure chest.

#2: Research

“Basic research is what I am doing when I don’t know what I’m doing.” – Werner von Braun.

Research relevant and irrelevant topics.

#3: Play

Allow yourself to meander all over the place, and sample some things that are new or uncommon to you. Try:
– Brain teasers
– Get physical with something that requires coordination (like skipping)
– Read jokes

#4: Reality check

Allow your inspiration to roam free, but reel it in every so often.

Once you have a concept, right through to prototype, regular feedback (or market research) is a crucial part of the process. It’s SO easy to wander off into your own wonderland. Fielding and navigating feedback is critical and is a skill in itself, not the least of which is maintaining secrecy (so get yourself a confidentiality agreement). I found it to be extremely valuable…however, it is in fact a minefield, for a number a reasons. To get the most out of it, you need to become skilled at navigating it. That’s a topic for another post.

#5: Refresh your zone

To have innovative breakthroughs, take yourself out of the spaces you inhabit. I can’t recommend this one highly enough. Think about your problem, or better still, actively work on it in an unfamiliar environment. Familiarity breeds repetitiveness – break the cycle. Depending on what it is you’re working on, you may not be completely portable, but even if you’re only brainstorming, you can get a lot of mileage out of this technique.

Get outdoors – remove the walls. Go to an airport lounge. Find a space where you like the vibe and then tune in to your mission.

#6: Conversation

Tap into other people. This can be a tricky one with new ideas because of secrecy and confidentiality, but wherever possible, talk to people about your idea. You’ll be surprised at the insights people bring. Often the real gold is not in their specific ideas, but in the little gems that come in the form of stories. If you get into an interesting conversation, most people will have a story for you. The really important part about this approach is, let THEM talk. Say only what you need to and then get out of their way.

#7: Daydream

Free range thinking isn’t necessarily unproductive. I think if you’re trying to solve a problem that resides permanently at the back of your mind, you will naturally think of things that in some way, however seemingly unrelated, will help you work toward solving it.

#8: The holistic approach

Never lose sight of your vision. It needs to be your engine and your steering wheel.

The more I dug for answers by focusing on minute detail, the further away I got from my vision. I became intensely frustrated. Finally, when I collated all my ideas and looked at them from a holistic perspective I was suddenly able to see the forest.

It’s necessary to go off on weird and wonderful tangents, just be careful not to get so lost that you forget what you went in search of in the first place. Thinking from a big picture perspective allows you to regain control and critically evaluate all of your ideas in terms of their alignment with your purpose.

#9: Try, try again…and then once more

“Results! Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results. I know several thousand things that won’t work.” – Thomas A. Edison

#10: Strategically place sharpened pencils all around the house

Still Hunting for Your Breakthrough Idea?

My advice is to start taking notice of what flicks your switch. Not what you already do necessarily, but what you really think about at the back of your mind. Remember: this is play, not work. And then observe and think with purpose.

– Start analysing what you’ve observed over time
– Try to link unrelated things
– Look for patterns
– Look for and listen to the messages around you

Don’t rush this process. Allow your idea to find you.

For a great source of information on consumer trends, have a peek at Trendwatching. They have “trend spotters” scanning the globe.

If you’d prefer to find an existing biz venture to be a part of, then sign up for the weekly newsletter at Springwise. By scanning the globe for smart new business ideas, they “deliver instant inspiration to entrepreneurial minds”.

Snappy Seal is a nifty new Aussie business venture I heard about recently. I don’t know these guys, but I like their idea, and their branding’s pretty snappy too! They’re currently looking for global distributors.

From Drawing Board to Shopping Cart

Good luck. May the force be with you.

Just kidding. For tips and information on getting your idea to market, the Invention Submission portal on the About.com site is a good place to start for readers in the US. There’s also some info there for Canadian and UK residents. If you’re Australian, while I’m no expert, I may be able to point you in the right direction, so please feel free to contact me anytime – if I can help, I will.

For those of you still searching, musing or choosing, I hope you hit the jackpot. In the meantime, just appreciate the rainbows.

As for me, it’s true that I don’t always know what I’m doing. In fact, RARELY do I know what I’m doing! But what I do know is that I’m on the right course. If I relate my tale to that of “the boy”, I’d say that I’m in the midst of crossing the desert and on the verge of turning myself into the wind. Hey, I can feel a storm brewing!

Danielle
Gold Digger