Developing something new is hard. Doing it alone is even harder.
I often hesitate to speak with others about a new thing. I am even more hesitant to speak about a dream or passion. I don’t want to be laughed at or criticised. I want people to think I’m smart. So I naturally hold back and give myself time to think.
However, I have found that this makes developing a new thing very hard, if not impossible. The only way around this is to find trusted people and discuss the new idea with them. The sooner I do it, the better the result. Here, “better” means; I develop the new idea faster, clearer, and with greater focus on what I actually hope to achieve.
I never seek out experts. I just need people who can:
Listen - People who seek to understand first, before they tell me their thoughts.
Trusted - They will keep it to themselves, and not bad mouth me to others.
Encouragers - People who will give me courage to either keep going or let that idea go (cause that takes courage too).
You will notice that I did not say they need skills in the area of my new idea. They don’t. In fact, in terms of innovation, it is often best to discuss an idea with someone from outside the area of our idea.
Trust me: don’t go it alone. Talk with others. As fast as you dare!
Patch Adams is a great story about developing a new idea. I love his concept that each person can be both a patient and a doctor. What a great concept. Don’t just seek out people to listen to your idea, find ways to listen to other people’s ideas.
Develop your ideas together - a foundation concept for Project Nexus!
Have a watch of this short clip, and listen for who is criticising him, where he thinks they are wrong, the courage he has, and why his idea is so powerful.
