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“OMG that is SO cool…how on earth did they think of that?
How, indeed.
Ideas are the lifeblood of marketing, and FUN-COOL-CLEVER ideas are the lifeblood of tourism marketing. So, if you’re in tourism, idea generation is definitely a skill you want to master.
Some folks seem to rattle off ideas as naturally as breathing. You throw them any challenge, any thread, and they’ll hit you back instantly with a dozen different paths you can take.
How do they do it so effortlessly? Are their brains just wired differently? Perhaps a bit. The same way some pitchers have an exceptional throwing arm and some singers have an exceptional voice, it’s true that some people are just exceptional idea generators.
Does that mean others have no shot at generating cool ideas? Hell no! Because with the right toolbox and mindset, ANYONE can transform themselves into “an idea person.”
Some of the best idea generators I know recently compared notes on how they do it. We talked logistics, inspiration sources, habits, and more. It quickly became clear that “idea people” – who seem to come up with magical thoughts out of thin air – actually all have a consistent process under the hood. And there were several key commonalities.
So…wanna become an idea person? Steal these habits.
KEEP A FILE…AND USE IT
Every single idea person in this group said they squirrel away cool things they see into some sort of repository. The type of repository differed – online folders, email folders, physical notebooks, notes apps, post-its, whatever. The type doesn’t matter, so do whatever feels most comfortable to you.
But the point is, as you come across things “out in the wild” that are interesting, clever, or just strike you as cool…store it somewhere, even if it’s not relevant to anything you’re working on right now. Then, when you need to come up with an idea, peruse your repository and see if you can pull on any of those threads.
TRAIN YOUR BRAIN WITH ASSOCIATION
Ever see a dog go wild when they hear the jingle of a leash? That’s because their brains have been trained to associate that sound with going out for walkies. Idea people often use that same trick.
A favorite chair, a decadent pen, a #2 pencil, a certain notebook, a type of music, a particular treat… training your brain to associate one or more things (or conditions) with brainstorming is like having a secret weapon. For me, it’s two things: a clipboard, thick stock paper, and a pencil + my thinking chair. I could be sitting at my desk all day, jammed with back-to-back meetings and deadlines…but the minute I move to my thinking chair and pull out that clipboard and pencil, it’s just like the jingle of the leash to a dog. My brain literally goes, “Got it. We’re on!” And ideas just start flowing.
That kind of association doesn’t happen overnight, so don’t get frustrated if you want to use this trick and ideas don’t immediately flow. It takes repetition and reward to solidify the association in your brain. Do it a ton, have success, and over time, your brain will lock that in. Soon, the very act of reaching for “that thing” will spark the idea flow.
FIND YOUR OIL
Just look at that fun toolbox of stuff!
Sometimes, even an idea person’s brain can be rusty from distraction, uncertainty, or emotion. When this happens, even your go-to brain association habits may not work. But idea people have tricks to overcome that too. You have to “find your oil.” What tools can you use to grease that rusty brain so ideas start flowing smoothly?
There’s no magic bullet here…you have to find YOUR oil. Among the tricks our idea people use are: potato chips, fleece clothing (especially socks), hot showers, washing dishes, folding laundry, powdered sugar donuts, walking/running, caffeine (especially espresso), a fountain soda with ice and a straw, champagne, any of Mozart’s piano concertos, jigsaw puzzles, crosswords, and naps.
These things all help settle unsettled brains and smooth out the bumps that are obstructing idea flow. And it’s so interesting that they’re not universal. Caffeine could be the opposite of what someone needs, and Mozart might put someone else to sleep. So, the key is to pay attention to what soothes YOUR brain when you need it to focus on creating ideas.
READ, CONSUME, & MARINATE
This is a MUST. There’s a saying that you can’t create ideas in a vacuum, and that’s true. But if you regularly read stuff, watch TV, peruse social media, or listen to the radio…you’ll never have a vacuum.
All idea people read and consume information voraciously. And not with a singular focus either. Exposing your brain to a wide variety of subjects is the best way to fill your idea vacuum, and give your brain stuff to marinate on. You’re not a gardener? Read a gardening magazine from time to time. Not a skier? Check out what some ski influencers are doing. Not a science geek? Peruse some issues of Popular Science. You don’t need to develop ongoing personal interests in these things. Just poke around and see what’s trending/important in different subjects.
Sure, if you’re in tourism, you should keep abreast of what both trade and consumer media are sharing, and you’ll certainly get ideas from that. But deliberately seeking out exposure to non-travel things adds some spice to your vacuum.
One great tip here: every time you take a plane or train, grab a magazine from the newsstand that you don’t normally read. And – connecting the dots to the above tip – that might even become a “brain association” thing for you eventually. Like, “airports = time to learn about a new subject.”
MAKE “WCWDWT” YOUR MANTRA
OK, this is the biggie. The ABSOLUTE BEST idea people all have a “What Can We Do With That” mindset…and they apply it to practically everything they see/hear/read.
Taylor Swift is on tour…WCWDWT? Super Bowl is coming up…WCWDWT? Divorce is on the rise…WCWDWT? People are drinking less alcohol…WCWDWT? Famous rock climber scaled one of the world’s tallest skyscrapers without a rope? Ren & Stimpy journeyed to the world of left-foot socks? You met a jeweler that creates “immersive jewelry experiences?” Your best friend started to wear a wig? Italian food just got classified as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO?
What can you do with all that?
The trick here is to develop the muscle in your brain that assimilates things. This is when you take two seemingly unrelated things and put them together in a way that makes sense. Like…your best friend started to wear a wig. And you’ve been trying to figure out a way to make your restaurant’s Tuesday night happy hour more popular. Put those together and you might get something like “Wine & Wigs” night. Have boxes of fun wigs available for people to wear, put some wines on special, and voila: the germ of an Instagrammable, TikTokable event is born. Give some proceeds to a cancer charity and the idea gets even stronger.
This kind of assimilation is critical to idea generation, and a favorite tool of idea people. It even got a brilliant cameo in the (timeless) 1988 film Working Girl, when an assistant had to prove that her boss stole her idea:
And finally…
RECORD RANDOM IDEAS IN THE MOMENT
Don’t assume you’ll remember every good idea nugget you have, and will be able to pull it out when you need it. As ideas pop into your head – as they will do at the weirdest times, often in the middle of the night or when you’re driving somewhere in your car – record them.
That’s why having that file mentioned earlier is so helpful…not just for squirreling away things you see, but also things you THINK.
Our idea people all record their random thoughts in different ways – from emailing their ideas to themselves and dictating into their phones while on a run, to keeping a notepad at their bedside, carrying post-it notes in their bag, establishing a Teams chat with themselves, and more.
It doesn’t matter how you do it. Just record the thread in the moment, and then later you can store it in your repository or use it accordingly.
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The bottom line is that if you develop these habits and practice them regularly, you too will become an idea person.
Need a little jump start? Try these:
