Unlock Your Creativity: 5 Steps to Becoming a Prolific Creator
The prolific aren’t more talented—they just have the right systems in place
You’re scrolling through Twitter when you see a creator you admire post another [enter content here].
Another thread. Another essay. Another YouTube video.
It’s as if Hephaestus himself blessed this person, shielding them against the daily inconveniences of creation we mortals face—writer’s block, imposter syndrome, sub-par ideas.
How do they do it?
For a long time, I couldn’t fathom how writers like Cal Newport and Marie Forleo kept churning out stuff. That was until I realized they weren’t creative prodigies; they had just developed systems to facilitate consistent output.
I understood this once I became a freelance writer slash creator in 2020 and had to start coming up with my own ideas—a lot of them. I’d:
🕊 Tweet once a day from Monday to Friday
✍️ Send a dozen pitches to each of my four clients monthly (you do the math)
🗞 Write my freelance newsletter, Internetly, every two weeks (we’re on edition 73 now!)
Phew. That’s a lot of content.
I’ve since implemented a system that helps me generate high-quality ideas daily, create new content weekly, and finish large projects monthly. Now, I’m disclosing my best tips so you, too, can become prolific.
Why should you bother becoming prolific, anyway?
You might be hesitant to build another system. I get it. You may already have multiple “systems” in place—from time-tracking tools to project-management software—and a million things to do.
But it’s not as much about manually setting up systems as it is about designing a lifestyle that’s conducive to consistent creative excellence—which is not only easier, but intellectually stimulating.
If you’re a creator, your business depends on you producing a lot of content. As Ali Abdaal puts it in his newsletter, Sunday Snippets, “The point of creating content (from a business perspective) is so that your audience develops a connection with you.”
To be a successful creator, you need an audience that will listen to, support, and fund you.
Convinced? Good. Let’s go!
Tip 1: Fill your mind with high-quality ideas
To be prolific, you must be creative.
To be creative, as Steve Jobs famously said, you must be able to connect things.
To be able to connect things, you must have a lot of things in your mind.
This is why collecting ideas is the first step towards being prolific. There are various methods to gather ideas, but not all are equal.
For example, there are days when I’ll go on TikTok for more than an hour (I know, I know) and emerge with a fractured memory. I don’t remember 75% of the videos I’ve watched.
But when I read a printed book, I remember so much more. Research has shown we actually remember more from reading than from video or audio, as we’re not as distracted.
And it’s not only the medium that matters—it’s also the quality of the idea itself.
A “low-calorie” idea is something that appeals to our caveman brains. It’s arousing, infuriating, joyful—primal feelings that social media algorithms are designed to stir. It tends to be sensational, mindless, and found in the default algorithm for most social media. 🍪
A “nutritional” idea is more complex. It’s an idea that challenges you in some capacity; it requires a pause and a concentrated effort to absorb. You’ll have to purposefully seek out these ideas. 🥒
As columnist David Brooks writes in the Atlantic, “If you spend your time with genius, your mind will end up bigger and broader than if you spend your time with run-of-the-mill stuff.”
By ingesting high-quality ideas, you’ll not only be more creative but generate thoughtful ideas that make the world a more intellectually rich place.
TL;DR: Find nutritious ideas that challenge you by reading printed books and curated articles.
Tip 2: Seek solitude
There’s a caveat to the first tip.
We can’t connect these ideas by simply storing them in our brains; we need to give ourselves the mental space for these connections to form.
This means spending time alone. A study from 2018 found that anxiety-free time spent in solitude can foster creative thinking and lead to creative engagement.
Solitude isn’t your enemy! Not only will it spur creativity, it’ll also help you come up with more original ideas. This is because your inner voice is a reservoir of unique experiences, beliefs, and perspectives—which blows any ChatGPT competition out of the water.
Make a point to intentionally schedule and embrace time alone. If you’re unsure where to start, get dinner at a restaurant alone—leave your phone at home, and bring a pen and paper instead.
TL;DR: Schedule time alone to connect ideas in your mind and spur creativity.
Tip 3: Capture your ideas
Once you begin ingesting high-quality stuff and spending time alone, ideas are going to start flowing. But you won’t remember these ideas (no matter how bright the flash of inspiration) if you don’t write them down.
As David Allen noted, “The mind is for having ideas, not holding them.” This means the prolific creator develops the habit of capturing their ideas.
Consider the British novelist Roald Dahl. Dahl was known for carrying idea books—notebooks brimming with potential story ideas.
One day, Dahl was driving when an idea struck him. He pulled over, jumped out, and with his finger scribbled the word “elevator” onto his dusty car window. This morsel of inspiration ultimately led to his book Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator.
Dahl knew ideas were finicky—had he waited until he’d arrived home, there’s a chance that sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory would’ve never seen the light.
Find the lowest friction method to increase your chances of writing ideas down. My own idea-capturing technique is rudimentary, but it works. I use my Notes app on my iPhone and carry a little gray notebook in my purse.
TL;DR: Get in the habit of writing down your ideas the second they come to you.
Tip 4: Remix
Woo-hoo! You’re now developing the practices of the world’s most prolific creators. You’re ingesting high-quality content, spending time alone, and capturing your ideas.
But what’s next after you’ve written down a solid idea?
Reframe it so that one idea blooms into dozens. My go-to way of doing this is by peppering each idea with a “story” angle (either mine or someone else’s).
For example, I was coming up with pitches for Matt D’Avella’s newsletter Snail Mail and wanted to write about the power of storytelling. Not bad…but it was bland. What if I added perspective? These ideas came to mind:
• ”What Taylor Swift’s Songwriting Can Teach Us About Storytelling”
• ”I Spent 4 Weeks in a ‘Storytelling Bootcamp.’ Here’s What I Learned.”
• ”How to Craft Your Story Using Methods From Ancient Greek Storytelling”
Much more interesting.
Another great way to squeeze out every drop of your idea is to try the 4A Framework by Dickie Bush. In short, you can cut in an idea into four broad categories:
Actionable: Here are the steps.
Analytical: Here are the numbers.
Aspirational: Here’s why it’s possible.
Anthropological: Here’s the reason.
TL;DR: Try adding a story angle and using the 4A framework to turn one idea into dozens.
Tip 5: Overcome doubts
The most important part of being a prolific creator isn’t your content diet, system, or anything else: it’s your mindset.
As Oliver Burkeman wrote in his book The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking, “The daily rituals…of prolific authors and artists…rarely include techniques for ‘getting motivated’ or ‘feeling inspired.’ Quite the opposite: they tend to emphasize the mechanics of the working process, focusing…on accomplishing certain physical actions, regardless of mood.”
You’re guaranteed to experience sour moods that dissuade you from creation. That idea isn’t good enough. No one cares what you have to say. It’s Day 100 and you haven’t blown up yet. This is pointless.
The prolific creator acknowledges these thoughts, then chooses to forge ahead anyway.
Because ultimately, you never know what might resonate with your audience— becoming a creator is a numbers game.
The best part of being prolific is that creativity begets creativity. There are times I’ll sit down to write a tweet, and get one idea…then another…and another (which is why batching is so effective!).
You contain a whole universe of unrealized creativity. With a few intentional lifestyle adjustments, the stars of your imagination will illuminate and fuel your creative work to new boundless lengths.
Unlock Your Creativity: 5 Steps to Becoming a Prolific Creator
The prolific aren’t more talented—they just have the right systems in place
You’re scrolling through Twitter when you see a creator you admire post another [enter content here].
Another thread. Another essay. Another YouTube video.
It’s as if Hephaestus himself blessed this person, shielding them against the daily inconveniences of creation we mortals face—writer’s block, imposter syndrome, sub-par ideas.
How do they do it?
For a long time, I couldn’t fathom how writers like Cal Newport and Marie Forleo kept churning out stuff. That was until I realized they weren’t creative prodigies; they had just developed systems to facilitate consistent output.
I understood this once I became a freelance writer slash creator in 2020 and had to start coming up with my own ideas—a lot of them. I’d:
🕊 Tweet once a day from Monday to Friday
✍️ Send a dozen pitches to each of my four clients monthly (you do the math)
🗞 Write my freelance newsletter, Internetly, every two weeks (we’re on edition 73 now!)
Phew. That’s a lot of content.
I’ve since implemented a system that helps me generate high-quality ideas daily, create new content weekly, and finish large projects monthly. Now, I’m disclosing my best tips so you, too, can become prolific.
Why should you bother becoming prolific, anyway?
You might be hesitant to build another system. I get it. You may already have multiple “systems” in place—from time-tracking tools to project-management software—and a million things to do.
But it’s not as much about manually setting up systems as it is about designing a lifestyle that’s conducive to consistent creative excellence—which is not only easier, but intellectually stimulating.
If you’re a creator, your business depends on you producing a lot of content. As Ali Abdaal puts it in his newsletter, Sunday Snippets, “The point of creating content (from a business perspective) is so that your audience develops a connection with you.”
To be a successful creator, you need an audience that will listen to, support, and fund you.
Convinced? Good. Let’s go!
Tip 1: Fill your mind with high-quality ideas
To be prolific, you must be creative.
To be creative, as Steve Jobs famously said, you must be able to connect things.
To be able to connect things, you must have a lot of things in your mind.
This is why collecting ideas is the first step towards being prolific. There are various methods to gather ideas, but not all are equal.
For example, there are days when I’ll go on TikTok for more than an hour (I know, I know) and emerge with a fractured memory. I don’t remember 75% of the videos I’ve watched.
But when I read a printed book, I remember so much more. Research has shown we actually remember more from reading than from video or audio, as we’re not as distracted.
And it’s not only the medium that matters—it’s also the quality of the idea itself.
A “low-calorie” idea is something that appeals to our caveman brains. It’s arousing, infuriating, joyful—primal feelings that social media algorithms are designed to stir. It tends to be sensational, mindless, and found in the default algorithm for most social media. 🍪
A “nutritional” idea is more complex. It’s an idea that challenges you in some capacity; it requires a pause and a concentrated effort to absorb. You’ll have to purposefully seek out these ideas. 🥒
As columnist David Brooks writes in the Atlantic, “If you spend your time with genius, your mind will end up bigger and broader than if you spend your time with run-of-the-mill stuff.”
By ingesting high-quality ideas, you’ll not only be more creative but generate thoughtful ideas that make the world a more intellectually rich place.
TL;DR: Find nutritious ideas that challenge you by reading printed books and curated articles.
Tip 2: Seek solitude
There’s a caveat to the first tip.
We can’t connect these ideas by simply storing them in our brains; we need to give ourselves the mental space for these connections to form.
This means spending time alone. A study from 2018 found that anxiety-free time spent in solitude can foster creative thinking and lead to creative engagement.
Solitude isn’t your enemy! Not only will it spur creativity, it’ll also help you come up with more original ideas. This is because your inner voice is a reservoir of unique experiences, beliefs, and perspectives—which blows any ChatGPT competition out of the water.
Make a point to intentionally schedule and embrace time alone. If you’re unsure where to start, get dinner at a restaurant alone—leave your phone at home, and bring a pen and paper instead.
TL;DR: Schedule time alone to connect ideas in your mind and spur creativity.
Tip 3: Capture your ideas
Once you begin ingesting high-quality stuff and spending time alone, ideas are going to start flowing. But you won’t remember these ideas (no matter how bright the flash of inspiration) if you don’t write them down.
As David Allen noted, “The mind is for having ideas, not holding them.” This means the prolific creator develops the habit of capturing their ideas.
Consider the British novelist Roald Dahl. Dahl was known for carrying idea books—notebooks brimming with potential story ideas.
One day, Dahl was driving when an idea struck him. He pulled over, jumped out, and with his finger scribbled the word “elevator” onto his dusty car window. This morsel of inspiration ultimately led to his book Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator.
Dahl knew ideas were finicky—had he waited until he’d arrived home, there’s a chance that sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory would’ve never seen the light.
Find the lowest friction method to increase your chances of writing ideas down. My own idea-capturing technique is rudimentary, but it works. I use my Notes app on my iPhone and carry a little gray notebook in my purse.
TL;DR: Get in the habit of writing down your ideas the second they come to you.
Tip 4: Remix
Woo-hoo! You’re now developing the practices of the world’s most prolific creators. You’re ingesting high-quality content, spending time alone, and capturing your ideas.
But what’s next after you’ve written down a solid idea?
Reframe it so that one idea blooms into dozens. My go-to way of doing this is by peppering each idea with a “story” angle (either mine or someone else’s).
For example, I was coming up with pitches for Matt D’Avella’s newsletter Snail Mail and wanted to write about the power of storytelling. Not bad…but it was bland. What if I added perspective? These ideas came to mind:
• ”What Taylor Swift’s Songwriting Can Teach Us About Storytelling”
• ”I Spent 4 Weeks in a ‘Storytelling Bootcamp.’ Here’s What I Learned.”
• ”How to Craft Your Story Using Methods From Ancient Greek Storytelling”
Much more interesting.
Another great way to squeeze out every drop of your idea is to try the 4A Framework by Dickie Bush. In short, you can cut in an idea into four broad categories:
Actionable: Here are the steps.
Analytical: Here are the numbers.
Aspirational: Here’s why it’s possible.
Anthropological: Here’s the reason.
TL;DR: Try adding a story angle and using the 4A framework to turn one idea into dozens.
Tip 5: Overcome doubts
The most important part of being a prolific creator isn’t your content diet, system, or anything else: it’s your mindset.
As Oliver Burkeman wrote in his book The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking, “The daily rituals…of prolific authors and artists…rarely include techniques for ‘getting motivated’ or ‘feeling inspired.’ Quite the opposite: they tend to emphasize the mechanics of the working process, focusing…on accomplishing certain physical actions, regardless of mood.”
You’re guaranteed to experience sour moods that dissuade you from creation. That idea isn’t good enough. No one cares what you have to say. It’s Day 100 and you haven’t blown up yet. This is pointless.
The prolific creator acknowledges these thoughts, then chooses to forge ahead anyway.
Because ultimately, you never know what might resonate with your audience— becoming a creator is a numbers game.
The best part of being prolific is that creativity begets creativity. There are times I’ll sit down to write a tweet, and get one idea…then another…and another (which is why batching is so effective!).
You contain a whole universe of unrealized creativity. With a few intentional lifestyle adjustments, the stars of your imagination will illuminate and fuel your creative work to new boundless lengths.
Unlock Your Creativity: 5 Steps to Becoming a Prolific Creator
The prolific aren’t more talented—they just have the right systems in place
You’re scrolling through Twitter when you see a creator you admire post another [enter content here].
Another thread. Another essay. Another YouTube video.
It’s as if Hephaestus himself blessed this person, shielding them against the daily inconveniences of creation we mortals face—writer’s block, imposter syndrome, sub-par ideas.
How do they do it?
For a long time, I couldn’t fathom how writers like Cal Newport and Marie Forleo kept churning out stuff. That was until I realized they weren’t creative prodigies; they had just developed systems to facilitate consistent output.
I understood this once I became a freelance writer slash creator in 2020 and had to start coming up with my own ideas—a lot of them. I’d:
🕊 Tweet once a day from Monday to Friday
✍️ Send a dozen pitches to each of my four clients monthly (you do the math)
🗞 Write my freelance newsletter, Internetly, every two weeks (we’re on edition 73 now!)
Phew. That’s a lot of content.
I’ve since implemented a system that helps me generate high-quality ideas daily, create new content weekly, and finish large projects monthly. Now, I’m disclosing my best tips so you, too, can become prolific.
Why should you bother becoming prolific, anyway?
You might be hesitant to build another system. I get it. You may already have multiple “systems” in place—from time-tracking tools to project-management software—and a million things to do.
But it’s not as much about manually setting up systems as it is about designing a lifestyle that’s conducive to consistent creative excellence—which is not only easier, but intellectually stimulating.
If you’re a creator, your business depends on you producing a lot of content. As Ali Abdaal puts it in his newsletter, Sunday Snippets, “The point of creating content (from a business perspective) is so that your audience develops a connection with you.”
To be a successful creator, you need an audience that will listen to, support, and fund you.
Convinced? Good. Let’s go!
Tip 1: Fill your mind with high-quality ideas
To be prolific, you must be creative.
To be creative, as Steve Jobs famously said, you must be able to connect things.
To be able to connect things, you must have a lot of things in your mind.
This is why collecting ideas is the first step towards being prolific. There are various methods to gather ideas, but not all are equal.
For example, there are days when I’ll go on TikTok for more than an hour (I know, I know) and emerge with a fractured memory. I don’t remember 75% of the videos I’ve watched.
But when I read a printed book, I remember so much more. Research has shown we actually remember more from reading than from video or audio, as we’re not as distracted.
And it’s not only the medium that matters—it’s also the quality of the idea itself.
A “low-calorie” idea is something that appeals to our caveman brains. It’s arousing, infuriating, joyful—primal feelings that social media algorithms are designed to stir. It tends to be sensational, mindless, and found in the default algorithm for most social media. 🍪
A “nutritional” idea is more complex. It’s an idea that challenges you in some capacity; it requires a pause and a concentrated effort to absorb. You’ll have to purposefully seek out these ideas. 🥒
As columnist David Brooks writes in the Atlantic, “If you spend your time with genius, your mind will end up bigger and broader than if you spend your time with run-of-the-mill stuff.”
By ingesting high-quality ideas, you’ll not only be more creative but generate thoughtful ideas that make the world a more intellectually rich place.
TL;DR: Find nutritious ideas that challenge you by reading printed books and curated articles.
Tip 2: Seek solitude
There’s a caveat to the first tip.
We can’t connect these ideas by simply storing them in our brains; we need to give ourselves the mental space for these connections to form.
This means spending time alone. A study from 2018 found that anxiety-free time spent in solitude can foster creative thinking and lead to creative engagement.
Solitude isn’t your enemy! Not only will it spur creativity, it’ll also help you come up with more original ideas. This is because your inner voice is a reservoir of unique experiences, beliefs, and perspectives—which blows any ChatGPT competition out of the water.
Make a point to intentionally schedule and embrace time alone. If you’re unsure where to start, get dinner at a restaurant alone—leave your phone at home, and bring a pen and paper instead.
TL;DR: Schedule time alone to connect ideas in your mind and spur creativity.
Tip 3: Capture your ideas
Once you begin ingesting high-quality stuff and spending time alone, ideas are going to start flowing. But you won’t remember these ideas (no matter how bright the flash of inspiration) if you don’t write them down.
As David Allen noted, “The mind is for having ideas, not holding them.” This means the prolific creator develops the habit of capturing their ideas.
Consider the British novelist Roald Dahl. Dahl was known for carrying idea books—notebooks brimming with potential story ideas.
One day, Dahl was driving when an idea struck him. He pulled over, jumped out, and with his finger scribbled the word “elevator” onto his dusty car window. This morsel of inspiration ultimately led to his book Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator.
Dahl knew ideas were finicky—had he waited until he’d arrived home, there’s a chance that sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory would’ve never seen the light.
Find the lowest friction method to increase your chances of writing ideas down. My own idea-capturing technique is rudimentary, but it works. I use my Notes app on my iPhone and carry a little gray notebook in my purse.
TL;DR: Get in the habit of writing down your ideas the second they come to you.
Tip 4: Remix
Woo-hoo! You’re now developing the practices of the world’s most prolific creators. You’re ingesting high-quality content, spending time alone, and capturing your ideas.
But what’s next after you’ve written down a solid idea?
Reframe it so that one idea blooms into dozens. My go-to way of doing this is by peppering each idea with a “story” angle (either mine or someone else’s).
For example, I was coming up with pitches for Matt D’Avella’s newsletter Snail Mail and wanted to write about the power of storytelling. Not bad…but it was bland. What if I added perspective? These ideas came to mind:
• ”What Taylor Swift’s Songwriting Can Teach Us About Storytelling”
• ”I Spent 4 Weeks in a ‘Storytelling Bootcamp.’ Here’s What I Learned.”
• ”How to Craft Your Story Using Methods From Ancient Greek Storytelling”
Much more interesting.
Another great way to squeeze out every drop of your idea is to try the 4A Framework by Dickie Bush. In short, you can cut in an idea into four broad categories:
Actionable: Here are the steps.
Analytical: Here are the numbers.
Aspirational: Here’s why it’s possible.
Anthropological: Here’s the reason.
TL;DR: Try adding a story angle and using the 4A framework to turn one idea into dozens.
Tip 5: Overcome doubts
The most important part of being a prolific creator isn’t your content diet, system, or anything else: it’s your mindset.
As Oliver Burkeman wrote in his book The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking, “The daily rituals…of prolific authors and artists…rarely include techniques for ‘getting motivated’ or ‘feeling inspired.’ Quite the opposite: they tend to emphasize the mechanics of the working process, focusing…on accomplishing certain physical actions, regardless of mood.”
You’re guaranteed to experience sour moods that dissuade you from creation. That idea isn’t good enough. No one cares what you have to say. It’s Day 100 and you haven’t blown up yet. This is pointless.
The prolific creator acknowledges these thoughts, then chooses to forge ahead anyway.
Because ultimately, you never know what might resonate with your audience— becoming a creator is a numbers game.
The best part of being prolific is that creativity begets creativity. There are times I’ll sit down to write a tweet, and get one idea…then another…and another (which is why batching is so effective!).
You contain a whole universe of unrealized creativity. With a few intentional lifestyle adjustments, the stars of your imagination will illuminate and fuel your creative work to new boundless lengths.
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Subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you never miss a story.
Lens in your inbox
Lens features creator stories that inspire, inform, and entertain.
Subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you never miss a story.
Lens in your inbox
Lens features creator stories that inspire, inform, and entertain.
Subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you never miss a story.
