[neltnerb]

In my experience having done this a few times, I find that while I'm working I can't come up with new ideas because I'm too mentally exhausted or just don't have time.

Usually I take a week or two letting myself experience calm and boredom, and then reading what others are doing inspires some ideas.

Usually I then write myself mini proposals like you'd do for your boss or a grant, clarifying what I think I know, what I think might work and why it works be interesting, how the problem I'm considering is done best now, and how I'd go about developing that problem into a project.

It takes maybe a day or three per proposal, but saves months of chasing bad ideas like a new electronic device that solve a technical problem in a cool new way (but does it worse than the current solution.

It just takes a different amount of time and introspection and recovery for each person. There are so many ways to live a good life, and many are better than what we thought we wanted in high school or college. Don't be afraid to explore things that seem silly, no one is watching and it's the only way to learn.

But boredom while alone is critical. Perhaps the most important part to redeveloping curiosity and processing what we think we want is silence.