Embrace failure. No one wants to fail, but if we are so focused on failure that we cannot try new ideas, we are doomed to never allowing an original thought any real chance. Grant explains, “The drive to succeed and the accompanying fear of failure have held back some of the greatest creators and change agents in history. Concerned with maintaining stability and attaining conventional achievements, they have been reluctant to pursue originality. Instead of charging full steam ahead with assurance, [truly original thinkers] have been coaxed, convinced, and coerced to take a stand.”
Expose yourself to creativity. It’s important to expose yourself to new ideas, but it is also important to gain mastery over a few. Therefore, get a general idea about a number of new things, and then choose a few to spend a lot of time working on and exploring.
Sometimes, it’s okay to procrastinate. When you finish a project quickly and diligently, it can feel wonderful. It can also mean that many of the ideas are conventional. Sometimes, procrastinating about a project can give your brain some time to think outside of the box, generating new and original ideas.
Is it important to be original all the time? Of course not! But, those with original ideas have made the world we live in a better place (while often gaining a personal fortune). Why not give originality a try?