Creativity Is Downstream of Inputs

Ideas don't appear from nowhere. They're sparked by inputs colliding with existing problems.

That article you read last month. That conversation at a conference. That random YouTube video at 2am. They sit dormant until a problem activates them.

Creativity is collision. And collisions require fuel.

Just-in-Case vs Just-in-Time

For years, I was a just-in-case learner. Read everything. Save everything. Build a fortress of knowledge for someday.

Someday rarely came.

Most of that reading sat unused. Not because it wasn't valuable, but because it wasn't connected to a live problem.

Just-in-time learning is different. You have a problem. You need insight. You go find the right input at the right moment. It sticks because it's immediately useful.

AI Changes the Equation

Here's what excites me: AI makes just-in-time learning practical.

Working on a pricing strategy? AI can surface relevant thinking from researchers, practitioners, and your own past work - in seconds.

Stuck on a creative brief? AI can connect ideas you'd never have found manually.

The right input at the right moment. Automatically.

The Balance Problem

But here's the danger: if all learning becomes just-in-time, you lose serendipity.

The random book that changed how you think. The unrelated article that sparked a new direction. The podcast that made you question everything.

These can't be optimized. They happen by accident. And they matter.

My Current Approach

I split my input time:

70% just-in-time: AI surfacing relevant ideas when I'm working on specific problems.

30% exploration: Reading, listening, and wandering without a goal. Trusting that some of it will collide with future problems I can't predict.

Creation and consumption must stay in balance. Too much consumption, you never ship. Too little, you run out of fuel.

Finding Your Mix

Try this experiment: for the next week, track your learning inputs. Every article, video, podcast - note whether it was targeted (solving a current problem) or wandering (general curiosity).

If everything is just-in-case, you're probably not shipping enough. If everything is just-in-time, you're probably thinking too small.

My ratio is roughly 70/30 targeted to wandering. Find yours.