However, just like other people, there are points where I struggle to get ideas. In fact, it took around 8 minutes just to write the paragraph above since, like I said in "YoSquid's 17th Birthday Party - 18 April 2018", I suck at introductions (P. J. Baloran, 2018a).
In my Welcome post, I stated that I will post every week (P. J. Baloran, 2018b), which is every Sunday since I posted "Cringey Regrets" on a Sunday. But I had some trouble getting ideas for "Helping People" since I haven't helped people significantly recently, aside from Minecraft server staff work (which is increasingly stressful, admittedly), so it was delayed to Tuesday. I then made up for that by posting about YoSquid's birthday, which was the only fresh idea I had after that party.
I chose to post weekly because, according to Sean Cannell and Benji Travis from Video Influencers (2017), inconsistent uploading is one of the common mistakes made by new YouTubers, and I knew I would have a hard time getting ideas thanks to my laziness.
(Took me 20 minutes to write this one. RIP brain.)
Edit: I resigned from my staff position on December 2018.
By the way, all of these ideas are based on personal observation. In a gangsta voice, I ain't got no time to do research to verify my ideas.
(Gangsta double negatives have a negative meaning, by the way. Normal double negatives are either positive or neutral.)
Now, with that introduction out of the way because I'm lazy and bored and I don't wanna ruin the other fresh ideas I have, let's begin:
The first, and probably laziest way I resort to, is collective/cooperative brainstorming, where I ask people to help me get ideas.
I am about 40% perfectionist, so I sometimes feel uncomfortable about my ideas being "wrong" or "weird". Working alone gives no guarantee that my work will be of excellent quality since I have no critic except myself...and I'm already a lunatic to begin with. Like I said in "Cringey Regrets", I want my content to be "high-quality, informative, ethical, and, of course, entertaining" (P. J. Baloran, 2018c, para. 3). Just because I think my posts fit those criteria doesn't necessarily mean others think the same, especially the academic community.
Edit: I said before that all my blog posts are proofread.
Turns out, they aren't. Some, like my Coach G-Force posts, have actions that I don't want to show to my mom or some specific women (but they're technically allowed to read it, and I don't mind the risks).
Others, like Pest Control: Pokémon Edition and "10 Things I'm Most Excited For in Hytale", have too much game-specific jargon to show to my less nerdy family members.
My second way of getting ideas is walking. According to Ben Greenfield Fitness (n.d.), women who walked 90 minutes per week had "significantly better cognitive function and less cognitive decline". Sal Khan, the founder of Khan Academy, said that he walks before making videos. (I couldn't find the video where he said that; maybe Khan Academy deleted it, or made it private?)
By the way, I recommend walking outdoors, preferably at a local street or park, because walking around at a small, enclosed space or on a treadmill can quickly get bland thanks to the lack of variation; one basically sees the same things over and over, while outdoor environments offer a variety of constantly changing sights that trigger similarly variable inspirations.
Feel free to walk indoors or on a treadmill though if you need more focus, rather than imagination.
Similar results can be achieved with other cardio workouts, like swimming, parkour, and fighting (Fazen, 2015).
Speaking of fighting, playing violent video games or punching my heavy bag gives me ideas for original, real-life fighting moves.
Another by the way: Play music while walking. I usually play route themes from the Pokémon series, or Fire Emblem music in general.
Third, I sometimes get ideas while raging. Perhaps it's due to the adrenaline rush caused by stress?
When I get angry about losing or failing, I think of ways to fix or evade the fail, or maybe relate the fail to other things I'm interested in, and then quickly get back in a neutral mood.
But this is my most harmful method of getting ideas, and I don't recommend you try it since there's a risk of becoming angrier and more violent, unless it's righteous anger.
Righteous anger is triggered when a person gets angry at something morally unacceptable and aims to stop it to benefit others. In my case, I'm righteously angry at crimes (especially those motivated by illegal drugs or alcohol), corrupt politicians and their supporters, cigarettes (especially when used near other non-smokers), bullies, and littering. My brain gets flooded with ideas about why these things happen and how to stop them.
Another trivia: This was the very first idea that came to mind right before writing this post since I was raging the day before.
Fourth, I randomly get ideas while viewing various forms of media, whether it's video games, TV, or even boring textbooks.
Lastly, here are some random and weird ways of getting ideas that aren't as effective for me, but have experienced, but can't really explain why they give me ideas:
- Showering/bathing. Perhaps it's the focus provided by closing my eyes to avoid being struck by flowing water that gives me ideas? I have created quite a lot of Minecraft Annihilation tactics in the shower.
- Mind-mapping. Rough description: a mental activity of connecting related topics together.
Sometimes, again, I'm simply too lazy to get ideas. According to my mother, our brains randomly "shut off" during thinking processes (J. S. Baloran, personal communication, 22 April 2018).
I actually had no idea what to write in order to make up for my late posting of "Helping People" before the announcement of YoSquid's birthday party. Even during and after that party, I had no idea what to write except that party.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm out of ideas, and I need to relax my brain.
(This post had significantly more references than others, and I'm kinda proud of it)
TL;DR summary: Although I have a hard time getting ideas due to laziness, I attempt to get them by asking people, walking, raging, using various forms of media, and other everyday activities.
References
Baloran, P. J. (2018a) YoSquid's 17th Birthday - 18 April 2018. Retrieved from LunaticTactician's Store of Rubbish: http://reallunatictactician.blogspot.com/2018/04/yosquids-17th-birthday-18-april-2018.html
Baloran, P. J. (2018b) Welcome to LunaticTactician's Store of Rubbish. Retrieved from LunaticTactician's Store of Rubbish: http://reallunatictactician.blogspot.com/2018/04/welcome-to-lunatictacticians-store-of.html
Baloran, P. J. (2018c) Cringey Regrets. Retrieved from LunaticTactician's Store of Rubbish: http://reallunatictactician.blogspot.com/2018/04/cringey-regrets.html
Ben Greenfield Fitness. (n.d.) Why Walk? The Multiple Benefits of Walking.
Ben Greenfield Fitness. (n.d.) Why Walk? The Multiple Benefits of Walking.
Cannell, S., & Travis, B. (2017) Advice for New YouTubers — 10 Mistakes New YouTubers Make. Retrieved from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNKQOi-k50g
Fazen, S. (2015) 3 Surprisingly Fun Cardio Workouts. Retrieved from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EX2UMPzT144
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