Have you ever found yourself away from home or not anywhere near your computer when a great idea strikes?  Sometimes awesome ideas for blog posts come to mind when you least expect it.  You could be driving home, standing in line or even sitting at your computer writing a post when you suddenly find yourself spilling over with good ideas for future content.

You've got to write down these ideas when they come! (But if you're driving, pull over OK?)

An Idea Notebook

Everywhere you go, bring a notebook and pen along with you.  It doesn't have to be anything fancy, just a small pad of paper and writing utensil that you can keep it in your backpack, your purse, the diaper bag, the glove compartment or even on your nightstand.  Just something to easily jot down a few words or sentences that will jog your memory of that fabulous idea at a later date and time.

Your notebook can also come in handy if you find yourself in a waiting room or stuck in traffic.  These can be great opportunities for a little brain storming session.

Even if you don't have a good idea or aren't in the mood to brainstorm, you can still use your notebook to make a list of other blog related tasks that come to mind.  Whether it's a new page you want to add, new blogs to include in your blog roll or comments you meant to respond to - writing these things down when you're thinking about them can help increase your productivity the next time you sit down at your computer to work on the blog.

When good ideas strike, you need a place to write them down NOW.  Having a notebook stashed in your back pocket can be a great way to preserve these ideas before they have a chance to get away.

An Idea Text File

You can use a text file for saving ideas too.  Some times ideas come when you are at your computer, but you can't exactly stop what you are doing to start a new post.  Creating a simple text file in a location where it is easily accessible (like saved right to your desk top) is a great way to quickly stash ideas or thoughts as they roll in.

Maybe you're reading a post or news article that motivates you to write a post about that topic yourself.  You can open your file to copy and paste in the url with a few notes about what you're thinking and how it might work for a future post of your own.  The url will also be helpful when you go to link back and credit the author for inspiration if it makes sense to do so.

If you find yourself writing a post that's starting to feel a little long and realize it would be better to turn it into two posts, you can copy out the extraneous pieces and paste them into your file to save for a later date.

You can of course use your text file the same way you use your notebook – to type out ideas that come to you when you are in the middle of writing an email or watching 30 Rock on Hulu.

The Final Word

Armed with your notepad and text file, you'll be able to easily save your ideas and go back to flesh them out when you're ready to turn them into a spectacular post.  The next time you're struggling with writer's block or straining your brain to remember that joke you thought of when you were waiting at a stop light, you'll have a place to go for some inspiration if you wrote these ideas down when you thought of them.  This can be a great way to re-discover the awesome ideas you've had that may have otherwise been forgotten.