March is National Ideas Month. Hey, whose bright idea was that?

As a best-selling author, I’ve experienced creative blocks when writing under deadline pressure and the pressure of my own high expectations. Over time, I’ve developed several tricks to stimulate my creative muscle and help me come up with great ideas.

As I tell the writers I coach, creativity is a muscle—you use it or lose it. But anyone can build their creativity, just like any other muscle.

I define creativity as the ability to develop great ideas while under pressure. Pressure creates diamonds, so why shouldn’t it also create great ideas? Here are four of my no-fail tips for generating creative ideas when writing, or any time you’re trying to solve a problem:

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