How to Create Great Ideas: Listen & Ignore
Posted on March 10, 2008 - Filed Under Brainstorming Techniques
I believe that everyone aspires to have a great idea. One that adds tremendous value to your life. One that could even change the world. But a great idea requires a different mindset and approach than a good idea. Because a good idea is something that’s … just good. It doesn’t change a culture. It doesn’t create a sustainable competitive advantage. There are two things that you need to do in order to create a great idea:
Step 1: Listen
You need inspiration. That’s why you listen. You need to know what the core elements of the problem are. That’s why you listen. But don’t just listen in your office or boardroom. Get out there and listen to real conversations. Find out what real people are thinking. People who don’t have a vocabulary of corporate bullshit. And listen to realms that are outside of your own. If you are in advertising, take a look at science. If you’re in science, take a look at how people do things outside of a lab.
One of the best examples of drawing inspiration from a everyday situations is here. Shell invented a cheaper way of drilling oil (that is also better for the environment) by seeing a teenager drink a milkshake from a straw. Your inspiration is out there. You just have to listen.
Step 2: Ignore
In a manifesto “How To Be Creative”, the cartoonist Hugh Macloed’s first rule is to ignore everybody. I agree.
The more original your idea is, the less good advice other people will be able to give you. You don’t know if your idea is any good the moment it’s created. Neither does anyone else. The most you can hope for is a strong gut feeling that it is. - Hugh Macloed
Because when an idea is a great idea, it is originally resisted. This is because all great ideas motivate change. People fear change. You need to ignore everyone in order to be original. It allows you to free your mind and do things your way and not how society tells you to.
Before Sean Combs’ first fashion show for his Sean Jean clothing line, the business mogul never saw a fashion show. He didn’t want to see one. All he knew was how he was going to do it. So he rocked it by launching his label his way without the influence of seeing how everyone else normally did it. Needless to say, it’s been a big success.
So by ignoring everyone, you kill all external influences. That means that there are no nay-sayers and no preconceptions … only you, the problem and your mind.
Conclusion
It’s pretty simple. Listening gives you insights and inspiration. Ignoring everyone allows you to create the correct mindspace to think and develop your idea. The end result is great ideas.
- Christian
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2 Responses to “How to Create Great Ideas: Listen & Ignore”
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You COULD say that this listen/ignore paradigm resembles the structure of … wait for it… wait for it…
Chocolate Laxatives!
(Man, I’ve gotta stop watching documentaries at 1 in the morning.)
True true … I’m all about creative juxtapositions. I think it’s because it creates a sense of balance.