Big Ideas TM

4 minute read

Hello, I’m Lisa, I (probably) have ADHD, and I am full of Big Ideas.

I started my digital Big Ideas™ list a few years ago when I was doing a lot of walking (hello lockdowns), and getting a lot of ideas, and then forgetting them before I got home.

Creating an official list was a way for me to keep track of some of the weird and cool things I was thinking about. Some were big and seemed impossible, and some were simple and absolutely do-able. I just needed to write them out.

In late 2024, I “created” an Ideas notebook that I started carrying to work with me. It quickly started to fill with zine concepts, blog outlines, and event brainstorming.

What a good idea it was to create an Ideas book.

THREE BIG IDEAS

Here are three ideas from my Big Ideas list:

Elders Art Night. Art Night like usual but we convene in the lounge at a retirement home. Residents could join us to do a craft or just sit and chat. Alternately, young people could host a gathering with their friends at their grandparents homes.
Chasing Sunbeams and Big Ideas. A walking club that meets at sunset. Meet your neighbours. No set route. “Crime prevention” aspect. A place to discuss your big ideas.
Banking and postal kiosks. In person assistance for easy banking questions, or to send mail. Opportunity for more locations than currently (accessibility), but with lower overhead because they are small in size. Community owned and operated.

None of these have come to fruition, but there are some on the list that have, like: Buy Me A Coffee memberships, summer solstice picnic, host a documentary film screening.

HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN IDEAS LIST

Here are three easy ways to get started with your own ideas list, depending on how you like to organize information:

On your desktop. This is my least favourite of the three, but it’s good for folks who spend a lot of time at their computer, get most of their ideas while sitting at a computer, have specific time set aside for brainstorming sessions. Open up your favourite word processor, and create a document titled “My Big Ideas”–or whatever you want to name it. Keep it on your desktop or high up in your document sorting system so you don’t have to dig around in a bunch of folders to find it.
On the Cloud. Open up a document in your cloud server, and start writing! I use Google Drive, but there’s also DropBox and Microsoft OneDrive. It doesn’t have to be fancy, and in fact I would recommend you keep it basic and boring. Use headings for categories and to keep your list more organized. Make sure you can access this on your phone for adding ideas when you’re out and about.
On paper. Grab a notebook that will become your dedicated ideas book. Try to pick one that is small/compact enough to carry with you. Make sure you have a pen. If you want to get really organized, you can create tabs with different headings (“work”, “family”, “creative”, etc.) but it is not necessary. A highlighter or different coloured pens work as well.

The most important thing is to make it easy and accessible. Just like with any habit you want to form, if there are big (or annoying) barriers, it’s less likely to happen.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR MY BIG IDEAS

I see myself headed in a few different directions with future Big Ideas. Considering I have a lot of energy right now (as I write this post), it’s easier to imagine BIG stuff. But I know that I won’t always have this amount of energy, or desire, or interest. What happens on those days?

On lots of energy/time days, I can be ready with my Big Ideas list to bring those to life! And it’s important that I not procrastinate by fiddling around with small tasks or making the list look prettier.
On low energy days, I can flesh out some of the bigger and more realistic ideas that I’m most excited about and tidy up the list.
And every week I would like to quickly review the ideas lists so I remember where I’m at and can add things to my planner as needed. A deeper dive into the list will happen during my Monthly Reviews (time and energy permitting).