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Ideas, we all know, are not born in people's heads. They begin somewhere out there, loose wisps of smoke swirling directionless in their search for a befitting mind.
Mia Couto
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Ideas come from external sources and require a receptive mind to take shape.

In this quote, Mia Couto suggests that creative ideas are not solely products of individual imagination, but rather arise from the environment and collective consciousness. He likens ideas to wisps of smoke that drift around, indicating that they are formless until they find a mind capable of capturing and shaping them into concrete concepts.

Themes

IdeasCreativityImaginationWisdomInspiration

In practice

Example use cases

In a brainstorming session to encourage team creativity.

More from Mia Couto

Listen, and you will realize that we are made not from cells or from atoms. We are made from stories.
Mia CoutoRead

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