To feed your creative and innovative thinking and actions to help you stay ahead of the game, it’s important not to fall into the debilitating and inspiration-sapping trap of routine. Varying your schedule and constantly looking for different sources of inspiration will keep your thinking fresh and alive, so that you’re more likely to create sparks of genius.
Becoming consumed in repetitive behaviour, like a mouse on a wheel, will mean you appear to be putting in a lot of effort without necessarily getting anywhere as a result. It will deliver a mindset that lacks vision, imagination and creative spirit. When you do the same things day in, day out, you establish a routine. This state of mind both inhibits and prohibits new possibilities.
You will find that the same old problems surface, and bizarrely you’ll think that by doing the same thing over and over again, the results will be different. Of course, the reverse is actually the case. To avoid slipping into a crippling routine, you must be aware of your habits, ideally before they become hard-wired into your daily schedule.
The manifestation of routine is that you experience a sense of monotony, and a feeling that you are stuck in a rut. The consequences are poor self-confidence, low energy levels and loss of purpose and direction – all of which can seriously derail the successful pursuit of your goals.
If you find yourself in this situation, you need to take steps to rewire your thinking, and place the emphasis on constantly searching for stimulus – things that will disrupt habitual behaviour, strengthen your creative muscles and deliver a freshness of thought.