Ideas

I sighed, a blank sheet of paper before me. It was almost as blank as my head at that moment. One article every month. I had taken for granted that I could keep on travelling to get ideas. But ever since unpredictable COVID lockdowns began, that had gone. We could not plan anything especially to coincide with my term breaks. No planes took off from the airport, border-crossing was allowed with strict quarantine restrictions. In other words, we were pretty much stuck. Had I known, this would also halt the stream of ideas entering my head, I would have started scavenging for them long ago.  

'Travelogues,' the word repeatedly entered my head a million times. These had been the beating heart of my articles. I could explore new cultures, behold wonders of the world, roam wherever I felt, learn about history and much more about a country and I loved every bit of it. But now I struggled in vain to find a topic. The media is replete with articles - so many magazines, books, periodicals, papers, Internet; so of course there are a  plethora of topics one could write about but yet I struggled to get even one idea. I realised that when one door closes, another opens. It finally dawned upon me how closed-minded I had been. Travelogues had been my comfort-zone. I knew how to write them, what their structure was, how to look for information etc. New ideas barely trickled into my mind. At first it seemed an impossible task, my thoughts constantly coming back to travelling. This was the key. I knew exactly what to write about: how to get ideas, because I am sure that many people have been in the same position as me, and it is very stressful. 

What are ideas? An idea is like the ignition to a creation. Even the smallest spark can get you on your way. Ideas could be anything under the sun. They help you in everything you do. The conceptualisation of an idea, whether it is for an article, an idea for solving your math problems, an idea for a new rocket design is the foundation for everything we do. That is the reason for which they are so important. Without an idea, no matter how big or small, you will get nowhere.  

But how do we get them? This is a seemingly complex question, though actually, it is easier than you may think. Of course, there seems to be no dearth of topics to choose from - this is evident from the plethora of articles being written everyday in  newspapers, magazines, Internet media, blogs, etc. But the best ideas come from our own experiences. We may be young, but we go through a myriad of different emotions, feelings and experiences every day. There are many topics which we care about which is evident from the fact that we get happy, angry, relieved, sad throughout the day when we hear, see or experience our environment on a daily basis. These topics or experiences can subtly alter our lifestyle. If you have had a thought provoking experience, these thoughts and experiences can turn out to make some of the most powerful articles. A lot of authors are inspired from their experiences and use them in their books.

So that is an excellent way to find some inspiration for ideas, and I hope it helps, because it has helped me a lot in this article as well.