The daily routines of Messrs Nick Cave, David Hockney and Leonardo Da Vinci.

Where does creativity come from? Scientists and psychologists have been puzzling it out for decades and don’t seem much closer to anything concrete – the definitive answer may as well be “42”. Because even if we pinpoint the precise cognitive source of great ideas, where does that leave us? It’s not like you can bottle and sell inspiration (though we’re sure Mr Elon Musk will have a go). Thankfully, Ms Emily Gosling has a simpler suggestion. The author has compiled habit profiles of 56 geniuses into a concise compendium, Great Minds Don’t Think Alike, aiming to distil some of their creative expertise into something tangible. “These pages are intended not only as an exploration of some of the greatest creative minds of today and from history, but also as chisels with which to chip away at creative block,” she writes. The following five cases might just prove there’s method to the madness, even if madness is sometimes the method.

Phone a friend

Anyone who was anyone flocked to Mr Andy Warhol’s Factory in the 1960s, but the 24-hour party people the artist surrounded himself with weren’t just pretty faces. The steady stream of actors, musicians and his self-proclaimed “superstars” served as a constant source of inspiration and the perfect soundboard for new ideas. Photographer Mr Stephen Shore, who was part of the set, says, as well as helping to alleviate the artist’s anxieties and insecurities, he really valued their creative input: “My guess is that it helped him in his work to have people around… I think he kept people involved by asking: ‘What do you think of this? Oh, I don’t know what colour to use. What colour should I use?’ Just something to keep the swirl of activity around him.”

Write about anything, everywhere

When Mr Nick Cave first moved to the UK from Australia, he started a diary to document the dismal British weather. Later, in 2016, he turned notes that he’d jotted down on aeroplane sick bags into a book. Writing about the mundane, you see, is how the Bad Seeds singer exercises his imagination, and extols the idea that you can’t wait for inspiration to strike – you’ve just got to get yourself into the routine of writing. About anything. Mr Cave’s schedule? “I wake. I write. I eat. I write. I watch TV.” Sounds simple enough, right?

Exercise your mind and body

If you thought Leonardo da Vinci was all brain and no brawn, think again. The Renaissance man was recognised as an athlete in his day and, like many of his contemporaries, was a champion of the classical notion of mens sana in corpore sano – “a sound mind in a sound body” – which held that neither could thrive without exercising both. So, as well as painting, engineering and mathematics, the polymath took up fencing, horse riding and athletics to keep fit. In fact, you could say his training regime rivalled that of the Vitruvian man himself. The science backs it up, too. Aerobic activity improves blood flow and thus increases the oxygen supply to the brain, which might explain why he ended up having all those bright ideas, including the invention of the helicopter, tank and parachute. No pain, no gain, eh?

Try something completely different

Few artists have tried out quite as many media as Mr David Hockney, who’s dabbled with drawing, printing, collage, photography, video and, in recent years, has used an app on his iPhone and iPad. “Mediums can turn you on, they excite you: they always let you do something in a different way,” he explains. The lesson? If something stops working for you (or no longer feels exciting), approach it in a way you haven’t done before. You won’t know until you try.

And if all else fails…

“Go to the pub.” As pearls of wisdom go, we’ll admit, this nugget from Mr Mark E Smith isn’t particularly profound. But the late Mr Smith – who, incidentally, was a habitual library user and prolific reader – credited isolation with his lack of inspiration, and alcohol-induced bonhomie the only antidote. In the end, he elevated his drinking sessions into something resembling a creative manual, outlining a seven-day itinerary in the aptly titled “The Mark E Smith’s Guide To Writing Guide”. It involved – after the first day spent scribbling notes down on scraps of paper – five days of drinking at his local boozer followed by one day of writing at home. But only if an idea had struck. If not, he suggested… another trip to the pub.

Great Minds Don't Think Alike (Ilex Press) by Ms Emily Gosling is out now

The men featured in this story are not associated with and do not endorse MR PORTER or the products shown