Inspiration and Forgetting

Many of my best blogs are missing.

No, they weren’t swallowed by my computer, although my laptop has digested more than one document.

Let me explain.

The first step in writing my blog is inspiration.  What should I write about this week?  That is the more difficult part for me.  The actual writing is easier.  Fortunately, at some point during my week, often while I’m walking, I’m struck with a promising idea for my next blog.

After that spark of inspiration, the next step is simply to remember the idea. Unfortunately, my ideas have a half-life of about 12 seconds. So unless I write them down immediately, and I do mean immediately, I am likely to forget them.  Perversely, it seems that the better the idea, the more quickly I forget it.  (Is this a delusion?  Maybe one day I’ll write about that, if I remember.)

Many years ago Roberta, a writer/friend of my father’s, complained that her best ideas bloomed in the middle of the night, only to become lost by morning.  Dad suggested that she buy one of those new-fangled tape recorders so she could record the idea on tape as soon as it came to her.

She did.  But Roberta ultimately reported to Dad that those “middle of the night blossoms” seemed dehydrated in the light of day.

Even though my iPhone is almost always with me and, if not, there is always the old fashioned method – pen and paper, I’ve always had a mental block against writing my ideas down.  Even when I really push myself, I only write down about half.

This morning I had two excellent business ideas.  By afternoon all I remembered was that they were terrific because I had completely forgotten what they were.

So if you have any great ideas for my next blog, please share.  I’ve already forgotten most of mine.

Oh, well.  At least this blog is finished.

Cheers.

Please.

Alan