TJ Walker outlines a daily creative practice with specific habits: read physical books, limit email and social media, meditate, exercise, and sleep well. Write maxims, create jokes, doodle, draft stories, and share your work to sustain creative flow and improve the quality of your ideas.
Chapters
Ultimize. I can achieve a creative flow state on a regular basis. Read from a paper book for the last hour of every evening in order to generate new ideas. I'm hardwired to be creative. You are a poet. I'll write one thought to live by today. You are a spinning flywheel of creativity and productivity. I create more when I only look at email twice a day, or as little as possible. Write down a one-sentence maxim to live by today. I create and deliver world-class presentations. Create one thing at a time. Multitasking doesn't work. I'll create today and achieve a flow state while doing so. Read real books, non-fiction and fiction. I improve the quantity and the quality of my creative ideas and innovations. Go to a non-art-related museum this week. I block out time on my calendar specifically for thinking and creating. Spend fewer minutes on your phone today so you can concentrate more on your creations. I become better and better at persuading others to appreciate and understand my creations. Today I'll create a short joke even if it isn't that funny. I produce one new idea today that I'm proud of. To boost my creativity, I limit my social media consumption to 10 minutes per day. I sleep, eat, exercise, and meditate at my optimum levels to increase my chances of being more creative and productive today. You see signs of human creative genius all around you. I'll always be more creative after a full and relaxing night's sleep. Read a biography about the innovative person you most respect. I boost my creativity by meditating for at least 5 to 10 minutes each day. Write down every good idea you have today and every bad idea. I get better and better at making connections between different ideas and objects. Create one new joke a day, even if it isn't funny. I'll do anything to protect and improve my creative superpowers. My perspective on the world just gets fresher, not stale. Ask yourself one tough question today. Say yes today to any opportunity to speak about your creations. Offer a fresh take on everything you see and experience in the world, make my creations more accessible to more people, visualize accomplishing all of your creative goals in life, listen to old comfortable music so you won't be distracted when writing or reading. Humans are never perfect, but they are great at creating improvements all the time. Never pass up an opportunity to speak about and share your creations with others. Goof off, play for at least a few minutes every single day. Today I'll draw one doodle. Have a notepad and pen next to your bed so you can write ideas down if they come to you in the middle of the night. When I create, I feel a sense of joy. Focus on your ideas and creations without interruption. Write a short story and share it with someone, or just keep it for yourself. Read at least one page from a classic book that has had its ideas stand the test of time. Take a single evening painting class. Play a silly word game to warm up your brain in the morning. Every single day, humans create new ideas and inventions. How can you create just 1% more today? Think about how to use technology to 10x your creative impact on the world. Daily, I write down one insight or aphorism that helps guide me in life. Start a side project that isn't about short-term cash. To generate more good ideas, I'll spend at least 60 seconds daily writing down as many big, bad, horrible ideas as possible. Reflect on what creative outputs have been improving lately for you. At your next social gathering, turn off the TV and play a group game instead. Walk around your town without an agenda. And just explore new streets, shops, and sounds. Your creativity allows you to make a game out of all of life's challenges. Create as many bad ideas as possible in 60 seconds. A few will end up good ideas. Spend more time creating each day. Spend less time consuming. You will have one big or small creative breakthrough today. People can be creative at every single stage of life. Cook a meal that you've never tried to cook before. Ask yourself, where am I making progress today? Look at a written list of all of your major creative goals in life. Fill your home and office with photos and artifacts that give you creative inspiration. I am respected for being a consistently creative thinker and producer. My creations will help the world and will help me. Go to an Ideas conference or festival in person or online. When you're ready, continue with Episode 4.
