1. Don’t sit and stare at a blank page.

Whether you are writing your essay by hand or on the computer, sitting andstaring at a blank page or computer screen will do nothing for yoursubconscious. All that will happen is that you will feel an impending sense ofdoom. Your blank canvas will make you feel worse by the second. This isespecially unfair to yourself because no one can write their essay in a matterof minutes. Your thought process won’t wander into creative paths but insteadbecome occupied by thoughts of failure and meta-thoughts about the implicationsof your failure. Research has shown that negative thoughts are a significanthindrance to creativity. Don’t make this mistake. The key then is to surroundyourself with positivity and creativity. How can we do this?

2. Listen to music.

Seriously. I’m not talking about the newest top 10 hit, though. Some of themost influential music is about significant moments and thoughts in an artist’slife. These lyrics are what you want to grab on to. Pull up a google search ofthe song’s lyrics and read along. Think about and analyze them. Thinkspecifically about the impact of what the artist is saying to their lives. Nowconnect these words to moments in your own life of significance. You don’t haveto have had a friend die of a drug overdose but we have all had these momentswhich have shaped us. Write these things down. These deeply personal thingsthat have shaped us are exactly what college essay readers are looking for.

3. Read blogs with interesting stories.

There are hundreds of blogs out there where interesting people are writingabout their lives. Do the same thing as with the music you were listening to.Take the authors’ stores and relate them to your own life experiences. Don’tworry if yours have trouble comparing; the people reading your essay realizeyou are only 17 or 18 years old and will adjust their expectationsaccordingly.

4. Talk to your parents.

You may think otherwise, but few people know you quite as well as they do.Ask them about the moments of significance in their lives and specifically onesthat relate to you. They can be a wealth of information about your personalityand how it changed you became an adult. Furthermore, ask them specificallyabout moments in their own lives which they consider to be significant.

You may have noticed a common theme in this list. These things are allpositive, and, more importantly, will push the thoughts of your need tocomplete an essay into the background and will push creativity and connectionmaking to the foreground. This is exactly what you want to happen. You wantyour mind to be thinking creatively while having the awareness to realize whensomething you stumble upon may make a good topic. The important thing toremember is that these moments can be very fleeting, and our memories are notas good as we like to think they are. Keep a notepad with you and when youthink of something, immediately write it down so you don’t forget it.

Also see: How to Start Your College Essay | Tips and Outline or…The Start-To-Finish Guideto Overcoming Writer’s Block.