How to capture inspiration
Like a beautiful sunset — that fleeting moment. We’ve all felt it before. Is it possible to summon it at will?
SUNDAY MORNING, 10:47 AM
Ah, this familiar feeling. A jolt of energy, stroke of insight, flash of brilliance, a natural “high”. It sends energy through my body and mind. I’m sitting up straight now, tilting slightly forward towards my laptop, intensely focused.
My mind races. I can never type fast enough to jot down my thoughts. The mysteries of the world seem to unravel in front of me — like in the movie A Beautiful Mind — only if I can capture it quickly enough.
I’ve felt this sensation before, and I know what it is — a state of inspiration.
I’m loving it.
Ctrl/⌘+S to save
I know you’ve felt it before, too, this state of awe. You must also know that as quickly and serendipitously it graces us, it departs with equal haste. It’s not something we can summon at will.
Growing up, I loved the game of Civilization. I wasn’t particularly good at it, but I found a way to conquer the world through frequent saving and loading of the game (if only it were that easy!). Many outcomes of the game are determined probabilistically, and on every re-load the outcome would be re-calculated. If something went wrong, I always have a previous state to go back to.
I’ve always dreamed about a world where we could “save” our state of mind, like how I’d save a game state in Civilization; like preserving a photograph or a video. Alas, that’s beyond our (current?) reach. Scientifically, it’s not possible to capture a snapshot of the neural synapses; even if it were possible, it’s harder still to apply a snapshot to one’s brain.
But, perhaps we could cultivate it.
Many successful entrepreneurs have told me that luck is a key to success; one in particular prescribed a wise strategy to “position yourself to catch luck.” You can’t summon luck at will, but you can prepare yourself to the fullest extent: when the right opportunity strikes, you are ready to act.
Similarly, I believe the same for cultivating inspiration. It’s about aligning the body and mind, finding the right time and place, recreating the condition that uniquely work for you.
My inspiration checklist
1. Being in a city
I’ve always been inspired by cities — New York City, Tokyo, Hong Kong. Cities are the culmination of human civilization, and countless stories are told every single day. Human stories, because after all, a city’s energy builds on its citizens.
“You can’t look out on an entire city everyday, and not want to build something big.” — Danielle Morrill
Danielle summarized this feeling perfectly on a Mixergy interview. There are tremendous opportunities in cities, and always someone to look up to. After all, everything around has been built by people no different from you and I.
2. Traveling
I’m never cease to be amazed by air transportation, that within 24 hours, I can be on any continent in the world.
Being in a new place opens up my eyes. A mundane walk to a coffee shop is now filled with new discoveries. Like squeezing the water out of a sponge, the mind is more receptive. I’m inspired by these discoveries.
Our world is full of rich cultures and uplifting stories, beautiful architecture and delicious cuisine. Traveling reminds me of it and keeps me grounded in knowing that despite of our differences, people are remarkably similar.
3. Coffee & music
One of my favorite pastime (proof: Instagram) is hunting for the perfect cafe for the right time and place. A place with the right amount of energy, light, ambient noise, music, wifi (or not), and parking that I know can bring out my focus. It differs whether I want to write, read, research, and create.
It’s not only the caffeine itself that jolts me up, but the combination of coffee with the music and the environment. I find that more and more, the environment is becoming a necessary condition to focus. A few of my favorites in SF/Bay are Backyard Coffee, Ritual (Bayview, Mission), KitchenTown, and Philz (San Mateo, Middlefield).
4. Stories
Stories of struggle and success resonate with me. They inspire me because they highlight the possibility in the world, and shed a ephemeral light on a potential path. For this reason, I love listening to successful founders, inventors, and creators share their stories.
Elon Musk, Kobe Bryant, Deng Xiaoping, startup founders. What these stories tell me is that oftentimes, it takes a lifetime to realize a goal. The pursuit is the inspiration.
Making the most of it
Anytime now, I know this inspired state of mind will melt away. For me, it typically lasts anytime between a minute to a couple of hours. I know I need to make the most of it.
Now’s the time for me close those pesky, distracting tabs. Prioritize the one thing that I want to put my mind on. It could be writing an article, brainstorming on a tough problem, typing out 10 emails that’s buried deep, or sending a message to an old friend. Do BIG things. Do things that I wouldn’t ordinarily have the energy to tackle.
What about you? What inspires you? And how do you capture these moments of inspiration?