7 Ways To Become More Creative1. Work up a sweat.

Oh, I wax eloquent about running to the point where book reviewers make fun of me. But whenever I take a break in the workday to go for a run (or go for a run before breakfast) I come back with better ideas for whatever project I'm working on. There's something about running that "jogs" thoughts loose. I imagine this also works with biking, swimming, Zumba class, etc.

2. Do some cyberloafing.

I love the word cyberloafing. It means to surf the web in pursuit of pleasurable things. I have the blogs I love to read (Wandering Scientist, for instance, and many, many others). Sometimes these bloggers have written things that I can then tee off of and make my own. There's no love like link love.

3. Take in an art museum.

Just getting out of the office often gets the egg carton and dryer lint smoldering. But there's something about the images in museums, the juxtapositions of colors, the insights and such that make ideas come to me. If you can't make it to a museum, you can approximate it by looking at online images from great places like the Louvre. Or Pinterest. Just don't get so sidetracked with ideas for remodeling your bathroom that you cease doing work at all.

4. Be still.

We're so used to having every spot of boredom filled that situations where we're not constantly hyped up put the brain in a new and curious mode. I find that sitting in church makes ideas start churning in my head. So does listening to a symphony in a concert hall. Or forcing myself to sit outside with nothing but a notebook (and not the electronic kind) for at least half an hour.

5. Talk to someone smart.

I've been lucky enough in life to interview a few people who've just made my head spin (John Taylor Gatto was one of my favorites -- a former New York state teacher of the year who now advocates homeschooling, among other things). But whatever line of work you're in, it helps to talk to people who'll tolerate your babbling and add something insightful. Who's on your list?

6. Hit the library.

To be sure, this is a variation on reading sundry magazines. But I find that haunting the stacks can make me think of poetry and evolutionary biology within a few minutes. This causes strange and wonderful pathways to form as the synapses fire. These strange and wonderful pathways keep the egg cartons burning long after I've driven home.

7. Think a lot.

Like anything, the ability to come up with ideas can be honed with practice. If you need to come up with 10 article ideas a week, your brain will learn to come up with 10 article ideas a week. Soon, effortlessly it flows, like flames through dry kindling. Or not. Some weeks it's like someone's poured swamp sludge on the fire starters. But after much purifying, the ideas will be there too.