Sometimes we need to take a different approach to familiar problems—one that helps us to think afresh about what we face. Here's a writing exercise you can do right now that will show what I mean.

Before doing the exercise, here are a few tips that will help you use any writing exercise effectively:

• Simply put down whatever comes to your mind first, don't think about your response.
• In fact, don't think about what you've put down at all until the instructions tell you to.
• Don't judge what you wrote, or use it as a way to put yourself down.
• Do HAVE FUN!

Now here's the exercise:

Ask yourself the following question: Why am I reading this?

Answer this by writing "I'm reading this because..." and fill in the blank with the first thing that comes to mind.

Now take whatever it was that you wrote after 'because' and use it as the basis for the next response. So you might write something like this: "I'm reading this because...I'm bored at work."

Then take the last few words and use them again. "I'm bored at work because... "

Keep on doing this, using the last response as the stem for the next one, until you've written about five or six.

Use this box as a place to type in your responses.

I'm reading this because...
NOTE: To save what you've typed, copy and paste it into a text document on your computer.

Now look back at what you wrote. What do you see in your response?

To see a sample writing and analysis of this exercise, click here.

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