Is creating something out of nothing really possible? By “something” I mean wealth or income or a business.

If you don’t believe it’s possible, then it’s not. It’s as simple as that. This has a lot to do with you ability to manifest ideas that will help you attain your goals. If you don’t believe you can do it, how can you even manifest it? So if you are a non-believer, you can stop reading this post.

If you believe it’s possible, however, then please read on.

You are now entering the world of possibilities. To deomonstrate to you what’s possible and what you can accomplish with mere ideas. I’d also like to share with you a recent case of someone who did just this.

This guy bought his domain name www.milliondollarhomepage.com and wants to raise a million dollars for college. He’s selling ad space on the site, nothing new there. Here comes the twist… he’s selling it off in 10×10 pixel blocks.

There are a million pixels and he’s selling each one for a dollar. As of today, he’s got 688,700 pixels to go. This has done so well that it’s spawned copycats or “me too” sites like a million penny homepage and another charging a quarter per pixel, as well as a beer lover who sells you space in exchange for beers.

The site is guaranteed to be live for at least the next 5 years. What a ingenious idea that has created more than 310k in sales out of thin air!

This is a wonderful example of what your mind can accomplish. It only takes a unique idea and the guts to follow through.

And, in case you’re saying you aren’t creative… that’s total hogwash! You have the innate ability within you just like anyone else. You just haven’t unlocked it *yet*. Therefore, you can hone your mind to be sharp as a razor but only if you’re willing to exercise it.

It’s been said that the hardest work people can do is to think and that’s why so few people do it. This is why only a small minority actually achieve financial independence while the majority struggle the rest of their lives. So stop making excuses as to why you can’t do it.

So how do you develop your innate ability to be creative?

You must learn how to brainstorm. Brainstorming is an effective tool to unlock the full potential of what’s within you. While an established technique, many people apply it incorrectly.

Brainstorming requires you to be totally open-minded and relaxed. The best times to brainstorm will vary by individual but a good guide would be to choose a time of day for a 10-30 minute block of time when you won’t be interrupted. You should be relaxed an not in a tense state worrying about other affairs.

The most important component to brainstorming success is the ability to let your mind roam free in the flow of ideas. Never filter or censor your ideas during the brainstorming phase. This is the ultimate killer of good ideas. You may come up with the craziest ideas but it really doesn’t matter. Creativity doesn’t know limits. In fact, some of the craziest ideas may be turned into profitable businesses.

To illustrate, have you ever heard of Hotmail? Of course you have! Unless you’ve been living in the dark ages, you know what Hotmail is. What you may not be aware of is that Hotmail was a “throw-away” idea initially. The idea came from Sabeer Bhatia who was attempting to raise venture capital (VC) for another project. When the VCs turned him down, he was disappointed and getting ready to leave. One of the VC asked him what else he had and he casually mentioned the idea of free email. The VCs became very intrigued with the idea and asked him to explain further. And, the rest was history. He grew Hotmail in a span of 18 months into millions of subscribers – something never seen before. He eventually sold Hotmail to Microsoft for a cool $400 million.

While you may have finished the brainstorming phase, it’s not necessarily the end to your mind’s search. Remember our minds work 24/7. It never rests even when you do. Have you ever tried to solve a complex math problem in school and couldn’t solve it? What happened when you “gave up” and just “slept on it” (not literally of course)? Often times, when one revisits the problem, the solution presents itself magically somehow. This is your mind at work. But first, you have to get the gears oiled and running. If the engine isn’t even running, it cannot produce what you are looking for.

So, start exercising the brain muscle today. It could lead to your next big breakthrough. And when that happens, remember to drop me a line telling me your success. I’m always happy to hear about them.