Accidental Genius: Using Writing to Generate Your Best Ideas, Insight, and Content by Mark Levy

Author:Mark Levy
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Non-fiction, Writing
ISBN: 9781605095257
Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
Published: 2010-08-09T10:00:00+00:00

Or maybe you might begin:

I said I’d do Mark a favor by trying this writing approach out, but this seems a bit nutty. Oh, well, since I told him I’d do it, let me tell myself about that portfolio situation which has me a bit confused. It seems …

If you feel resistance to addressing the situation or to this approach, write about the resistance you feel. Perhaps you want to curse. Perhaps you want to speak with yourself logically. Approach the situation from whatever perspective you choose. Do this for five minutes, or longer if necessary, putting down the facts and your reactions as fast as you can write. If you suddenly find yourself dry of words, talk to yourself on the paper about your lack of words. (“Hmm, what else can I say? Have I said it all? That’s not possible. This problem’s been bugging me so badly that I must think other things about it that I’m not telling. What are they? Oh, yes …”) Eventually bring your mind back to your troublesome situation, even if you have to mutter to yourself about information you already put down on the page.

Now, without more than a brief glance back, write about the part of your situation that works. What’s happening within it that you like? Are there people within the situation who are doing a good job of backing you up with supporting work? Have you made a number of sound decisions that have only temporarily led you to this bottleneck? Have you strengthened a skill while involved in this troublesome situation? Just where, precisely, are your thinking, behaviors, and associations working for you?

Continue your nonstriving, non-stop writing about these factors for the next few minutes. You’re answering these questions, by the way, so you can examine the situation from a different perspective, not for positive thinking purposes.

Okay, you’ve put your situation down on paper and have briefly examined the parts that are working. Your next round of writing centers on the area where your thoughts and actions may be hurting you. If you need to scan your previous writing for a minute or so, go ahead, but don’t get caught in daydreaming or rewriting. Start, instead, to talk with yourself about the areas where you’ve contributed to this troublesome situation.

Perhaps your actions are based on assumptions that just aren’t true. Maybe you’ve failed to carry through on a promise you made to yourself or to others. You’ve probably covered some of this material during the initial step of this exercise. If so, that’s fine. Just quickly note it again and continue to comb through the situation for four or five minutes for other areas where you may have dropped the ball.

At this point, your pages look like a fillet, blackened with both the logical and emotional factors that make up the situation. While writing out your thoughts, you may have even started to steer yourself toward some potential solutions. Sometimes getting all these notions and facts out of

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