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For those dream ideas for new products,
set the right mood for creative thinking
Working in wood requires a lot of handson, sawdust-breathing, sweat-filled hours in
the shop or on the job site. There’s no getting around putting in the actual hours.
But as wood craftsmen know, it also
takes quite a few hours of planning and
outright daydreaming to turn a project
into something extraordinary.
Whether you’re a wholesale furniture
manufacturer looking for that new idea that
will excite the furniture stores, or a custom
builder trying to figure out the best way to
make your client’s dreams come true, taking
time to be creative is important.
So how do you get those creative juices
flowing? Here are a few ideas.
Make time. There seems to be no end
of work to do in the shop, in the office and
dealing with clients. Taking some time to
think seems like a guilty pleasure.
But creative juices don’t come on command. You need some time to let your
mind drift away from the workaday
world. And the best way to do that is to
get away from where you work.
For some, that might mean taking a long
walk. For others, sitting in a coffee shop
with a notepad to doodle on, or relaxing
14
in a library where it’s nice and quiet might
do the trick. A famous ancient Greek supposedly came up with a revolutionary
new mathematics formula while soaking
in a bathtub.
Whatever works for you in unleashing
your creativity, the key is to make the time
to do it.
Keep a notebook and pencil with
you. Ideas tend to strike at the strangest
times – while standing in line at the bank,
while eating breakfast, maybe even in the
bathroom.
The problem is that often we fail to put
those ideas on paper at the time and later
when we get around to it again, the details
of the idea have vanished.
If you keep a notepad and pencil in your
pocket, you can write it down right away
while it’s still fresh.
Brainstorm with others. Take some
time to throw out ideas with your spouse,
kids, business partner or anyone else who
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