Allow for Incubation Time

January 31, 2023

When you write a book (or anything else), always allow time for creative, compelling ideas to incubate. So often, your best messages arrive when you work for a while and take a break and do something different.

As author Michael Gelb says in Creativity on Demand: How to Ignite and Sustain the Fire of Genius,

“People spend hours in meetings without breaks and wonder why they aren’t inspired. Give yourself a break and integrate breaks into your creative process. Work with intense focus and then relax and be receptive…In other words, when I studied hard and thought deeply about something, insights would arise more frequently and profoundly when I was relaxing, for example, in the shower, resting in bed, or enjoying a long walk.”

The Eight of Wands tarot card shown below can be interpreted as receiving a lot of inspiring ideas. Don’t you see how the wands hurtling through the air convey the feeling of getting a flurry of ideas when you are out in nature taking a relaxing walk? Similarly, many people are bombarded with creative ideas and ingenious solutions to problems in the midst of a warm shower while feeling relaxed.

In short: Work intensely. Take a break and relax. Walk or do something different. Expect to receive a flow of creative ideas for your book!