Summary – Cluttering mindset is the foundation of ideas
Yes, you heard it right. This is not an article to encourage decluttering. Instead it is meant to encourage exactly the opposite – to clutter. For the record, I am still a fan of decluttering. This is just to show how the act of cluttering can be beneficial if done correctly.
Introduction to Decluttering / Cluttering
For the benefit of readers who are clueless as to what is decluttering, it is when you clear your computer table leaving only three things; keyboard, mouse and the monitor. Everything else is just clutter and can be placed elsewhere.
If you practise the concept of decluttering religiously, you will start to create this mindset that everything need to be decluttered, from your kitchen to your wardrobe. This article will illustrate why you still need to have a cluttering mindset.
To understand cluttering, try to do the opposite of clearing your computer table. Put everything in your room on the computer table. Even though you organize everything into alphabetical order, it is still considered as clutter.
Why Clutter Is Just As Important As Declutter
Now that the introduction of the idea is out of the way, allow me to explain why we should not cast away that cluttering mindset just yet.
Cluttering mindset is the foundation of ideas
I’m sure you are familiar with the word “Brainstorming”. It is when you set a segment of your meeting to throw every ideas that come to mind even though it is illogical. They are not to be debated, at least not yet. If you’re interested, I actually had written a sketch script that describe accurately how a brainstorming session should be run.
The problem with decluttering is that we tend to throw everything out the minute they are put on the table. Brainstorming doesn’t work that way. Every single ideas are important even though it doesn’t make any sense.
For example, if a team of rocket scientist brainstorm, one idea that may come up is to go to outerspace by building a 20km high building and provide an elevator to go up. This may sound silly, but the idea can actually be further refined. I recently saw a documentary in History Channel that research is being done to develop the strongest fibre to be the foundation of space elevator. This very idea if worked may be refined from that silly tall building idea.
Once you have put everything on the table, I mean every single idea you can squeeze out, then only you refine everything and try to make use of the illogical ideas to maybe spark another new ideas. That’s my friend is how all the professional thinkers are doing it.
Conclusion – A has 2 ideas, B has 100 ideas. Let say 50% of all ideas are useless. A will only have 1 useful ideas but B will have 50 useful ideas. You do the math. (Wait, that is the math)
– I wonder –
What are your most illogical ideas in your life? (This should be interesting)
———– Personal Note ————-
When I was a child, I was obsessed with Transformers (The cartoon). My first dream was to collect enough money for me to construct my own robot with aluminium foil etc. The idea was obviously illogical, but from that idea my brothers and I started cutting paper and build our own paper transformers and toy vehicle. I think DaPocket managed to sell his for 20 cents 🙂
There! a story of how brainstorming can actually makes money 🙂
Photo Credit – Jacob Botter