Pin It To Win It – When Inspiration Strikes
“You never have to change anything you got up in the middle of the night to write.”
I joined Pinterest a couple of weeks back. Better late than never right? I’m not sure why I never bothered to try it before but I think a part of me always felt using it was a little uncreative. Like you could just go open the app and recreate all posts on there because you couldn’t think of anything yourself. Needless to say, that mentality ain’t it.
There’s nothing wrong with drawing inspiration from the things around you. Pinterest was created for the purpose of gathering different ideas and using them. Whether you’re looking for new ways to style your go-to sneakers, how to pose for your next Instagram picture or learn how to cook something new – Pinterest has got you covered.
When I write, I do the same thing. The notes app on my phone is packed with words and phrases that I’ve heard on tv-shows, songs and books. (the last one being – “there is more honor in defeat than in unused potential” that I heard on the Netflix show, the Politician).
And you know what, for the longest time I always thought it was just me that couldn’t come up with an original thought to save their life so they had to resort to “stealing” other people’s creativity for their own art (guess this thought process has something to do with imposter syndrome). Luckily, I know now that is not the case.
It has never been a secret that Taylor Swift for example likes to take draw inspiration from things she’s seen or experienced for her songs. So, while I was watching Desperate Housewives and noticed some of the lyrics to her songs in the script; “Are we out of the woods yet? Are we in the clear?” “All Too Well”, “No Body, No Crime” and even adaptations such as “We can never get clean” versus to Taylor’s lyrics “I am finally clean”, I finally accepted that it’s ok to feel inspired by things that already exist.
I never leave the house without at least a piece of paper and a pen anymore because it has happened way too many times that an idea popped into my mind and I had to remember that “genius” idea I had that I couldn’t write down. Next thing I find myself running back home from the supermarket like a mad person repeating the same line over and over again in the hopes I wouldn’t forget it.
These sudden bursts of inspiration mostly occur when I’m busy doing daily things. Walking, doing laundry, getting up at night to go pee or while driving. It even got up to the point where I created a Whatsapp chat with myself so I can recite things that I thought of while driving. It’s moments like these where you mind is completely free and your subconscious can do its magic.
(little side tip: create a group and then remove all participants. This way you have your own notes place on Whatsapp where you can share pictures, notes and even voice-memos with yourself)
So next time when you feel a little creatively blocked, watch your favorite show, listen to your favorite music or read your go-to book. Try and think about what it is that you like about what they say. Next – write down (even if it’s just buzzwords) what it is you liked. This way you become conscious of the aspects what had drawn you in, in the first place. Afterwards think about what these words that you wrote down make you feel.
I can assure you once you do, ideas will keep flowing.
