There’s imagination… then there’s believing in one’s imagination, having a certain confidence that you can think of something, create something… maybe even something good. That your imagination will be there when you need it.

Until recently I never looked at ideas as something I had much influence over. I couldn’t will them into being. They came when they came.

I’ve felt that if I was writing, something would come to me. And sure enough, the more I showed up, the more something did come.

But recently when I felt at a loss for ideas another approach occurred to me. I thought about how many times, in writing and in other parts of my life, my intuition has led me to a creative solution. Especially in other areas of life where I sometimesvhave a self-assurance that’s harder to attain when I’m out there on a limb, writing.

And I thought, “What if I approached writing with the attitude of, ‘I know I’ll think of something’. As opposed to ‘I hope I think of something’.”

What would that be like?

I’ve been trying it – a kind of trick of the mind – and, crazily enough, it often helps.Yes, that’s partly because by now I’ve written many songs. That does give me some wind in my sails.

But this other kind of confidence is not the same. It’s not, ‘I know I can write a song; I’ve done it many times.’ It’s more like, ‘I can and I will think of something. I have plenty of ideas; more than enough. They’re inside me somewhere. All I have to do is open up and let them come out’.

Let me know your thoughts, additions, disagreements in the Comments section below:

And please share on facebook etc. by clicking these tabs –