Here is a plain text template I use to help come up with 10 ideas every day. Paper works even better, but sometimes a text file works.

I got this idea from this weird millionaire self-help guy James Altucher. Here’s a blog post where he lays out the 10 idea idea.

At first, I just came up with 10 random ideas based on a subject. I think my first list was 10 ideas for an app. I struggled at first (and still do sometimes) to do it every day, but after doing this every day for about two months, I started writing down what the first action step I would take to execute the idea would be next to each idea. The next level where I’m at now, is occasionally the 10 ideas will be for another person, and sometimes I tell them a few of the good ones.

The trick is, you don’t have to actually do any of them, and they don’t have to be particularly good ideas. The point is to train your brain to realize that there are a ton of ways to deal with any given problem, and you can always come up with something.

As a bonus, if I keep doing this every day for a year, I will have come up with 3,650 ideas. If even one or two of the ideas are great and you end up doing it, you will be ahead of the curve.

As a side effect, it helped lift me out of my depression.