Most people wait until they feel creative before they start creating. That's the trap.

Creativity isn't a feeling. It's a practice. And like any practice, it starts before you're ready — with a blank page, a pen, and a prompt that gets you moving.

These 10 prompts are drawn from the Rennie Lab creative confidence framework. They're not about producing great work. They're about rebuilding the habit of showing up.

Grab the Rennie Lab Analog Journal and work through one a day.

1. What did you make as a kid that you loved?

Not what you were good at. What you loved. Drawing, building, writing stories, making up games. Go back there. That version of you had something worth remembering.

2. What would you create if no one would ever see it?

Remove the audience. Remove the judgment. What would you make just for the pleasure of making it? Write it down. Then ask yourself why you're not doing that.

3. Describe a problem you're facing as if you were explaining it to a 10-year-old.

Simplifying forces clarity. When you strip away jargon and complexity, you often find the real problem — and sometimes the solution — hiding underneath.

4. What's something you believe that most people in your industry don't?

Contrarian thinking is the engine of creative work. Your most interesting ideas live at the edge of consensus. Write down your honest answer without softening it.

5. List 10 uses for something on your desk right now.

Pick any object. A pen. A coffee cup. A notebook. Write 10 uses — including the ridiculous ones. Divergent thinking is a muscle. This is how you train it.

6. What's a decision you've been avoiding? What's the worst that could actually happen?

Fear of failure is the single biggest creativity killer. Writing out the actual worst-case scenario almost always reveals it's far less catastrophic than the vague dread you've been carrying.

7. Who is the most creative person you know? What do they do differently?

We learn creativity by studying it in others. Write about someone specific. What habits do they have? What questions do they ask? What would it look like to borrow one of those behaviours?

8. Finish this sentence: "I used to think _______, but now I think _______"

Growth is a creative act. Tracking how your thinking has changed reveals the distance you've travelled — and points toward where you might go next.

9. What's something you've been doing the same way for years? How else could it be done?

Routine is the enemy of creative thinking. Pick one habit, process, or approach and deliberately question it. You don't have to change it. Just imagine you could.

10. What do you want to make before you die?

Not achieve. Not accomplish. Make. A book, a business, a garden, a meal, a piece of music, a life that looks a certain way. Write it down without editing. This is your creative north star.

The practice

One prompt a day for 10 days. Don't overthink it. Set a timer for 10 minutes and write until it goes off. The goal isn't a great answer — it's the act of showing up.

If you want a structured system to build this into a daily practice, The Creator System includes the Analog Journal, the 30-day field guide, and Ben Rennie's signed book — everything you need to make creativity a habit, not a hope.