To Have, But Not To Hold: Why You Need an Idea Bank for Your Creative Work 💡
I have 337 of these. Can you guess what?
Not mugs. Not sweaters. Not tarot decks (although… tempting).
I have 337 ideas sitting in the Notes app on my phone, ranging from half-written blog posts to single-line thoughts like “tuna = sales system???”
I’m a minimalist at heart. I love tiny homes, I rely on a capsule wardrobe, and I feel at peace when my space is simple and uncluttered.
But minimalism completely abandons me when it comes to writing ideas.
Why I Capture So Many Ideas (And Why It Helps)
This isn’t proof that I’m an endless idea machine. I’m not.
Human brains were meant to have ideas, not hold them, and yours probably likes to surprise you with something when you least expect it.
Ideas arrive while you’re driving, standing in the shower, wandering around the forest, or drifting off to sleep. And if you don’t capture them, they vanish. 💨
Over time, I’ve learned that I need a simple, reliable way to catch ideas because I simply do not think well under pressure. I never liked group brainstorming sessions with the bright lights, the dry-erase markers that smell like death, and the expectation to produce “brilliance on command”.
My best thinking happens when I’m relaxed or distracted, which is why my Notes app has become a creative compost bin where everything gets tossed in and sorted later.
This matters even more because I write a lot—for my own therapy practice, my newsletter, copywriting clients, and more. When I sit down to create something new, I don’t want to start from scratch. I want to open my idea bank and scroll until something sparks.
Most Ideas Will Be Mediocre — And That’s the Point
I go in knowing many ideas will never become anything. A few will turn into something decent. One or two might become genuinely useful.
You can’t know which ideas matter unless you:
Put them somewhere you can find them
Come back later with fresh eyes.
How This Applies to Therapists or Healers Writing Newsletters or Content
If you want to market your business with less stress and more consistency, you need two things:
A place to catch your ideas.
A commitment to stop judging them as they arrive.
This can be a notes app, a Google Doc, a Trello board, a notebook, a wall of Post-its, or a handful of voice memos.
It doesn’t matter what you choose. What matters is easy access.
Just as important, you have to step away from deciding whether an idea “deserves” to be saved.
Your job is not to evaluate in the moment. It’s to notice and collect. Evaluation comes later, when you’re ready to write.
Hold your ideas the way you hold space for clients: with curiosity, compassion, and a willingness to let things unfold.
When you separate idea generation from actual writing, everything becomes easier. You’re no longer forcing inspiration. You’re choosing from sparks and following what feels alive.
Try It This Week? 📝
Create one place where all your ideas go. Call it your Idea Bank, Idea Garden, or even “brain compost.” Add to it without judgment. Let it grow, grow, grow!
Then the next time you need to write something—a blog post, a caption, an email, or a longer resource—you’ll already have a starting place.
You’ll still need to shape the writing, but you’ll avoid the sweaty palms of a blank page.
Align your message with your magic.
Join The Weekly Wordsmith
Join 1,000+ therapists and heart-led entrepreneurs writing with clarity, stepping into visibility with joy, and growing their business — and themselves — with intention.
