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So what’s a cute Gen X dude got to teach you about enlightenment? A few things, actually. Like, 33 of Life’s Most Powerful Lessons, 10 Counter-Intuitive Ways to Improve Your Life, and The Art of Self Loving. Jonathon Mead is the soul behind IlluminateMind.net, a blog he created to spread the inspiration virus, as he calls it, and a regular writer at, ZenHabits.net, Pick The Brain, and a member of the Brazen Careerist network.

Mead believes that, “attractive ideas cannot be stopped. If those ideas are based on truth and expanding awareness, they’ll snowball.” So of course, we just had to ask him…

How do you keep “illuminating” yourself?
I think it’s just the constant pursuit of truth and expansion. Trying to push the limits of life. Trying to see things from different angles. That’s what I live for. I regularly seek out new perspectives and contexts. Sometimes it’s hard to keep a balance between personal growth and contentment. I try to keep rooted in my permanent values, like authenticity, clarity and balance. That helps.

What would you like to revolutionize?
The boundaries between people. Breaking them down. We sacrifice so much of our lives because of these illusory boundaries between us. We think doctors and mechanics can’t talk on the same level. A bum and an executive can’t see each other as equals. It’s not our titles, status symbols, how much money we make, or what kind of clothes we wear that defines us. It’s the contents of our character. I think the more we can live with human-heartedness the more we can break down those barriers. That’s really my goal with Illuminated Mind.

How do you know when you’re inspired?
When I can’t help but write something or create I know inspiration has hit. It’s like the dam is about to burst, and the floodgates are opening up. You know because it’s harder to NOT create than to create.

How do you get things done?
I’ve really simplified this lately. I don’t have crazy project lists and item by item details of to-do lists. I just have a master to-do list and a daily to-do list. Everything I need or want to do, goes in the master list. Then each day before I start working, I filter down those things to my daily list. I keep things in perspective intuitively, instead of trying to obsess over all the details. This works much better for me than trying to plan everything out.

What do you collect, or have a lot of?
Ideas! I love to collect ideas. Thoughts, philosophies, perspectives. Ways of looking at things. That’s what I like to collect. And I can’t get enough of it. Since I started writing I like to collect expressions. Little phrases, metaphors, thoughts. Cool ways of saying things. The best thing about writing to me is that it forces you to look and think about things in different ways. It also forces you to get clear about your thoughts. It’s really enhanced my life. I highly recommend it.

What books, movies, or CDs have been most helpful or inspiring to you?
I started writing this past February, so inspiring books on writing have been really relevant for me lately. I’ve really enjoyed How to Become a Famous Writer Before You’re Dead by Ariel Gore.

What’s the feeling you’re usually trying to achieve?
Creativity. Hands down. I mean, when you think about it, life is really boring. We wake up, eat, drink, sleep, repeat. We do the same things day in and day out. But it’s the creative act that makes life worth living. It’s forms, shapes, colors, sounds, words, and the different combinations of all those things that makes life interesting. The notes in songs never really change, it’s just the combination of them that does. The colors in a painting never change, but the way they’re brushed and put down, does. That’s really what I live for. Trying to find a different way to put down the colors.

What’s a repeating lesson in your life?
Be authentic. Listen to your gut. Follow your intuition. The more I live closely aligned with my integrity and what I feel, the happier I am.