What don’t you like?

Where do Ideas come from? How can we generate new ideas? What is it that makes some ideas great, while others fall to the wayside? What makes an idea great?

I am reading a book about coming up with ideas : “Become An Idea Machine: Because Ideas Are The Currency Of The 21st Century.”

In the book it has exercises to be better at coming up with ideas. This one was the very first one and it was a good exercise not just in coming up with ideas, but also in finding the good with the bad. It is a struggle sometimes to look around your life and see what you can complain about and what you should be grateful for even in those things that you don’t like. It was a great exercise that got me thinking and made me flex my mental muscle, but beyond that I am hoping it will help me to become a bit more mindful in my day of the things that I don’t like and how they are positive just as much as they are negative.

Here is what I was supposed to do to come up with ideas.

List 10 things that you don’t like and turn them into things you can be grateful for.

1.I don’t like dealing with clients. But I am grateful that I have some freelance clients that I can have around me to earn extra money.

2.I don’t like when my kids are whiny. But I am grateful that I have kids that I enjoy spending time with and love.

3.I don’t like my weight. But I am grateful for my health and I am working on getting that under control.

4.I don’t like crowds. But I am grateful to live in a place that has many opportunities around me that I can take advantage of.

5.I don’t like the my youth years and memories. But I am grateful for the life lessons that I was taught and the experiences that I had growing up, that made me who I am today.

6.I don’t like the snobby design culture online. But I am grateful that my profession is gaining new light and becoming something that is being talked about and discussed and is being found as something with value.

7.I don’t like distractions. But I am grateful for the many things around me that I get to experience. It also makes me more grateful for when I do unplug and get away from it all I feel more at peace.

8.I don’t like working late. But I am grateful having an in demand job and a job I enjoy that requires me to work late, even if that means I have some late nights.

9.I don’t like movie trailers that give away the whole movie. But I am grateful for lots of entertainment.

10.I don’t like when a good book ends. But I am grateful for the wonderful experience and story that I just read and what I learned in the process.

 This was a great exercise I know some of them are silly, but they are things I don’t like and I found a positive in there.  Hopefully will get you thinking, what do I not like in my day and how can I turn them around to be things that are positive in my life. I just started this book but I am really excited to keep it going and I hope that I can keep generating new and unique ideas to benefit my life and the lives of those around me.