Problems are also a good source for ideas because problems need solutions

Problems are also a good source for ideas because problems need solutions!…

• What bugs you?
• What’s tedious?
• What does not work?...
We all encounter obstacles, problems, and nasty people in the course ofwhatever it is that we do every day. What are the three biggest problems in yourwork place? What are your biggest pains as a parent, or as a teacher, or as agardener, or as a single mom, etc.?

Now repeat all the questions above, except pretend that you are in a “five yearsago” time warp. Yes, ask yourself the same questions, except place yourself
where you were five years ago. Next, repeat for ten years ago. To paraphrasean old saying...

“You’ve forgotten more about some things than other folks will ever
know.”

Call friends. Ask your kids. Phone your parents or your siblings… or anyoneelse who can jog your memory. It’s so easy to miss what others see.

Your mission, should you decide to accept it (!), and it is not as easy as itsounds, is to find a subject that you really know and like.

Here are a few examples of starting points to get your neurons firing.