OK … it’s the truth (and it’s not just you).

When it’s time to create content for your blog or zine … lets just say you don’t feel a cascade of warm fuzzies flowing down your spine.

What if you could stop the “What should I write?” craziness in it’s tracks? And dream up a year’s worth of content ideas in less than an hour?

You can ! And I want to show you how.

First a couple important rules (don’t worry, they’re fun!)

Rule 1:  No judging!
To make this work you need to get into flow and go with your gut. If it feels right, write it down.

Rule 2:  We’re not copying or stealing!
We’re simply using what someone else has already discovered, as a jumping-off point for our own brilliance.

Rule 3:  Focus on quantity, not quality.
Flow is crucial to having this happen fast. You can pick the best ones later.

Here’s how it works:

1.
You’re going to discover what your market is already interested in, using four primary search sources. (I’ll show them to you in a moment.)

2.
You’re going to make a list of the best ideas you find. If they’re borderline, write them down anyway.

3.
You’re then going to give that idea your own unique spin. (Remember Rule #2: No copying or stealing).

For example: The idea for this post came from a video titled: “How I doubled my rates. And it took me 3 minutes” by Derek Halpern. I loved that title structure! So I made it my own by changing it to “How to create a year’s worth of content ideas in 43 minutes”.

When you do this over and over, you get in a groove and the possibilities just flow.

So here are your four idea sources.
They’re waiting for you (just use Google):

For example, since I focus a lot of my content on online marketing, I would do a Google Search on Top Online Marketing Forums. You could also search for Best [ YOUR NICHE ] Forums.

Once you find a forum (you’ll be surprised how many there will be), look at which posts have generated the most interest / comments. That’s a topic that could be hot with your audience. You can also choose something you believe your audience would get excited about. Now take that topic and make it your own. And do that over and over.

Now do the same search, only instead of forums you’re looking for top blogs in your niche or specialty. When you find a blog, scroll through the post titles. Write down the ones that will resonate with your audience.

And then: Make them your own. Remember – your audience doesn’t want you to be a copy of someone else, or they’d be following that someone else.

Gettin’ the hang of it? Are you starting to see you don’t have to “figure it out”? Others who are highly successful have done the market research for you. You just need to scout out the topics that are a match for your audience. And then adapt them to your own voice, focus and point of view.

When you find a podcast and scroll through the episode titles, make a note of the ones you feel would be a great starting point for something your audience will love.

Folks in your niche who have built authority on YouTube have often posted hundreds of videos. Using your search results, head over to their channel and quickly scroll through the video titles, and make note of the ones that would ring true for your tribe.

Then find a way to tweak the title, focus, voice and vibe so it becomes your unique creation.

if your goal is 2 blog posts or articles a month, you only need 24 ideas to have your year set. And you will get way more than that if you use these 4 idea sources.

Kinda takes the pressure off doesn’t it?

Ready for a few cool advanced ideas?

Keep a Topic Idea Journal for Your Inspirations:

Once you’ve done this a time or two, you will suddenly find ideas and discoveries flowing from out of nowhere. So be sure you have a journal, a central place to capture them when they happen.

The crazy thing about ideas is they are elusive. So if you don’t have a way to capture them in the moment they arise, they will slip away and find someone else.

I have captured my own ideas on a central document on my laptop, a notepad, or even the back of Starbucks purchase receipts.

Use the Notes App on Your Phone

My current fave place for content inspiration is the Notes App on my iPod Touch. So if I’m taking a quick walk around my neighborhood and inspiration strikes, I can capture it.

Not every idea you find using these four searches will be something you can use. In fact, if 25% to 50% are a match you’re doing really well. The key is: Using these searches you’ll have access to literally thousands of ideas quickly.

To summarize:

Remember:  You’re just getting ideas … so do this quickly.
Remember:  You’re not stealing … you’re using other people’s great ideas as a way to stimulate and inspire your own.
Remember:  This doesn’t have to be hard. It can be easy, if you relax and allow it to be easy.

The content thing can get pretty complicated, with so many different possible outlets (blog, video, Facebook … augh!)

Here is how you simplify it: All of them start with GREAT content ideas that solve your clients’ problems and bring their dreams closer. And with these four powerful sources in your back pocket, you’ll never struggle for get list-building content ideas again.