I keep two thinking systems.
The first is my mind map system for note-taking, a precise hierarchical system of organised notes with careful cross-references and indexes. It’s logical, structured and works exactly as intended.
The second is a beaten-up cardboard box stuffed with random note cards. I call it my “Chaos Box.” No organization. No system. No way to find anything specific.
Most visitors ask about my mind map system. The serious thinkers ask about the box.
When I explain that I shuffle through random cards from this box regularly, they’re often puzzled. “How do you find anything?” they ask. But finding isn’t the point. The randomness forces my brain to create unexpected connections between ideas that would never meet in an organized system.
The best ideas most often come from the messy collisions of unrelated thoughts.
The chaos box method for creativity
Do you want better ideas? Stop trying to be so organized.
Most of us spend our lives making things neat, structured and searchable. We tag, we file, we organize. But this obsession with order might be killing our best thinking.
I want to share a method that works against our modern impulse for organization. It’s called the Chaos Box.
What is a chaos box?
A Chaos Box is simply a container filled with unorganized notes. Each note holds a single idea, quote, fact, or thought that grabbed your attention while reading or listening.
The key? No organization whatsoever:
How the chaos box works
Every day or weekly, pull out a small handful of notes. Read through them. Put them back. That’s it.
This daily practice forces you to revisit ideas you’ve collected but haven’t thought about in weeks or months. Your brain sees these old thoughts with fresh eyes, making connections that wouldn’t happen otherwise.
Why disorder creates original thinking
When we search for information, we find exactly what we’re looking for. But when we stumble upon information randomly, we find what we never knew we needed.
Think about the last time you had a breakthrough idea. Did it come from a systematic, logical thought process? Or did it arrive when two seemingly unrelated concepts crashed into each other?
Our brains make magic when surprising combinations occur:
The Chaos Box creates these collisions by design. It puts ideas that would never meet in organized systems next to each other.
Why we need more randomness
Our digital tools have removed serendipity from our thinking. We’ve gained efficiency but lost the happy accidents that spark true innovation.
Search algorithms show us what we ask for. Social media feeds show us what we already like. Tags and filters narrow our exposure to the expected.
The Chaos Box works because it fights against this narrowing. It brings back the chance encounters our brains need to create truly original connections.
How to start your own chaos box
This simple practice might feel inefficient at first. That’s good. The magic happens precisely because it isn’t optimized.
Beyond just ideas
The benefits extend beyond just having better ideas:
Bottom line
Creating knowledge through randomness and disorder requires patience. Trust. Faith in the process.
But the results can be extraordinary. The connections you make through chaos won’t just be interesting. They’ll be uniquely yours.
Your best ideas are waiting to be born from disorder. Will you give them the chance?