Feeling like you're too dumb to have great ideas? Read this article from Harvey Mackay. In it, he addresses all my favorite guidelines for having ideas, like that everyone can have more ideas or that the best ideas are built off the ideas of others.
Favorite quote (it was hard to pick just one favorite):
Of every study known to mankind, not one -- zero, zilch, nada -- says there is a
correlation between IQ and creativity. This is good, because it means every one
of us can become more creative.
I just finished The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni. Great book, as always from Lencioni. One particular quote in the book stuck out to me:
In fact, building a strong team is both possible and remarkably simple. But it is painfully difficult.This sentiment is also true of having ideas. If you substitute having more ideas for building a strong team, you get:
In fact, having more ideas is both possible and remarkably simple. But it is painfully difficult.Simple because all you have to do is stop killing ideas. Painfully difficult because it is hard to overcome your own self doubt. It takes courage to present your ideas when you know they will likely get shot down. It hurts a little (or a lot) when you get ideas that don't work. And that's just getting over killing your own ideas. It's also painfully difficult to get over the habit of killing other people's ideas. "Yes, but" and its friends just keep jumping in the way.
I read an interesting post over at Mission Minded Management today. In it, she talks about building innovation into every level of an organization.
I like the idea of this for a few reasons.
It encourages collaboration
If everyone in the organization is expected to have more ideas, more of them will be shared and built upon.
It reduces idea killing
When everyone is held accountable for having ideas, people will have more - without fear of failure. It helps keep people from killing their own ideas. This creates an environment where it's ok to have ideas. Thus, the likelihood that people will be killing everyone else's ideas is reduced, because they don't want it to happen to them.
It empowers everyone in the organization with ideas
If you feel like you should be having ideas, and that those ideas are listened to, you are more likely to feel like your job matters and that you are in control. This means that even those people at the front line of an organization feel like they are making a contribution.
My favorite lesson from this is the reminder that everyone can get more ideas, no matter where you are in an organization.
When I was a little girl, my favorite book was Christmas in Ladybug Village. At the age of 2, I had the whole thing memorized. This included the dedication which read:
"This book is dedicated to my mother, who has always believed in my work."
Do you have someone who has always believed in your work? Everyone should. This person is your idea champion. Sit down right now and make a list of your idea champion[s]. Then call them when you feel down. Seek out more idea champions. Surround yourself with people who are confident enough to love ideas, even when they didn't think of them.
Your idea champions believe in you even when you kill your own ideas.
Thanks Mom.
People that innovate, or get more ideas, had to practice to become good at it just like everyone else. Sure, some people have more natural talent than others, but anyone that is the best at something got that way from practicing.
To start practicing, remember our steps for having more ideas.
Step 1: Stop killing your own ideas
Step 2: Stop killing other people's ideas
Pretty soon, you won't just be getting more ideas. You'll be innovating. And they pay people a lot for that nowadays, in our outsourced economy.
I love to read Fake Steve (note that if you are easily offended, Fake Steve is not for you). It's likely you've heard of it, but if not, it's journalist Daniel Lyons impersonating Apple CEO Steve Jobs via blog. Hilarious.
It's spilling over with idea inspiration. My favorite part about it is that it delivers real news about technology in a way that is much more entertaining than if I found all the articles he references on my own.
Recently, he wrote this post on Robert Metcalfe and others. Funny, if insulting, as usual, but this paragraph got me thinking:
I call it the "one pair of glasses" theory. You see it all the time. People know one thing and they think that this one thing can be applied to every problem, because it's the only way they know how to look at the world. They've got one pair of glasses.
Well, it looks like My Starbucks Idea was an idea that resonated with a lot of people. Many, many Starbucks patrons have posted ideas to the site.
I like the way they are responding to each of the ideas on their blog. My favorite is the one from 4/9 on splash sticks.
Starbucks has made a pretty clever move here. Not only are they getting a ton of free ideas, but they are building credibility with their audience by listening and implementing their ideas. Not a new idea, but a good old standard executed well so far.
Is there someone you are trying to reach? How can you use their ideas to engage them?
And PS, my idea has 140 points. Far from the 52,270 of the top idea, but oh well...
Often, you can get some of your best ideas from building off the ideas of others. That's why it pays a lot to know a lot of other people.
But how can you expand your network and meet new people? Try volunteering.
You could volunteer in the traditional sense. Like for your favorite charity or arts organization. Maybe you could join a committee at your child's school. Or even the board of a local professional association.
You can also volunteer at work. Seek out additional projects that will allow you to work with different people and outside departments.
It's not always easy and it takes time, but the idea payoff is worth it.
