elfs | TCD! (Thought Capture Device!)

Last year I was in a traffic accident that totalled my car. One of the things in that posting was that my "work recorder" (a reliable Olympus model dictation stick I've had so long the model number has worn off, but I think it's one of these) had flown into the passenger footwell, along with nearly a quart of Pepsi.

I found it again recently. It still works, and I've stared to carry it reliably. I call it my TCD (Thought Capture Device), because that's exactly what it does-- it helps me not lose thoughts while I'm driving or walking or otherwise in motion and can't write things down. I've gotten into the habit of dumping it every evening, while I plan my next day, and it's been miraculous.

Here's the thing most people don't understand about creativity. The hard work part is hard work. But the inspiration part is habit. You can build on it. You just have to get the backlog out of your head. The TCD does that, and it helps me be aware that I haven't missed anything. Which frees my mind from the anxiety of lost ideas, and lets it go about its business of creating new ideas. This weekend I was hit with almost 15 code and story ideas, all of which are now safely down on paper. Whether they actually rise to the level of projects and get done is a different story, but at least they'll never be lost. That happens too much to me.