The Idea Exchange

I think Mind Maps are fairly helpful in coming up with new ideas and sparking creativity when a problem arises.  I’m going to start posting some of my mind maps on this blog, hopefully to spur some thinking within your minds, and maybe they will actually be helpful to you at some point.  The first one I have here is a mind map on the concept of creativity.  I’m hoping to do a lot more in the future, and I’d like your input on something that would be helpful for me to create.  Enjoy!

There are many self-help books and theories that all center around the Law of Attraction (namely The Secret).  These books present some ridiculous claims: A guy who was getting so overwhelmed with bills he couldn’t easily pay started to think positive thoughts and dream about checks coming in the mail instead.  Sure enough, the next month the bills had stopped, and he was now getting several checks in the mail simply because of his hopes and dreams.

I don’t believe these claims for a second, and it’s all just a big marketing ploy that really appeals to the masses of lazy people who want to achieve wealth or desires without any kind of work.  The book has become a phenomenon mainly because of this, and it’s sad to see so many people believing in it and trying to only rely on their positive thoughts rather than productive actions. 

Now, hold on a second.  I’m going to contradict myself slightly here.

I do believe the Law of Attraction can be very useful to one particular area, creativity.

Many people claim that they are not creative and are not able to come up with new ideas.  This is a problem. With that thought process you will never come up with any new ideas because you won’t want to try.  However, if you truly believe you’re creative, then you will continue to try to think up new ideas. The more you try, the more likely you are to come up with a genuinely great idea.  If you continue to tell yourself that you’re creative, you’re engaging in creativity affirmation which is the key to producing new ideas.

So, the Law of Attraction probably won’t make your bills disappear, but if you practice this simple thought process, you’re well on your way to becoming a truly creative person.