Welcome to the Working Solo Minute, the 60-second newsletter designed specifically for solo entrepreneurs. To unsubscribe or change subscriber options, see the bottom of this issue.

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In last week's Working Solo Minute (WM #24) I wrote about the flashes of insight we have that can be so ephemeral if we don't capture them, and how to give structure to a nonlinear flow of ideas. I shared three techniques: mind mapping, diagramming, and flow charting. Here are four more:

1. Clip and paste.
Inspiration can come when and where you least expect it. So be ready to be motivated by images all around you every day. And when you see something you want to use, be it in the newspaper, a magazine, or on the back of a cereal box, clip it out. Creating a board or notebook of clippings can also provide inspiration and focus for a specific goal.

2. Index.
Working within a small, finite format such as a 3x5 index card is good for capturing those individual gems or fragments of a larger idea. A side benefit is that the cards readily lend themselves to organizing (indexing) later into outlines or narratives. Change your plan? Just shuffle the cards into a new order.

3. Color.
A lot of people do their best thinking in color, so if you're one of them, gather colored pens or pencils and paper and go do it. Let different colors suggest actions and emotional associations. Use the entire spectrum and mine your subconscious for possibilities.

4. Post.
Those how-did-we-live-without-'em Post-it Notes can function like 3x5 cards; you can jot and stick anywhere, anytime, then create a working outline that can easily be adapted, changed, or discarded. Since these notes now come in myriad colors and sizes, the possibilities are endless. In fact, my own office has tiny 2x2 notes stuck to my paper calendar and the mega-Notes (nearly 2x3 feet) hung on my walls for a big project I'm working on.

-- Terri Lonier
Founder, WorkingSolo.com