I’ve recently started thinking about ideas the way I think about emotions. I personify them. Give them an identity of their own. I think about them as if they are things I can engage with. Because they are.
No worries, they don’t talk back. At least not in an audible ‘I see dead people’ kind of way.
I have always had lots of ideas. In the past, I started most of them in one way or another. This has earned me a reputation for being brave and adaptable at best and, at worst, flighty or noncommittal.
Actually, I’m not sure what most people think. Honestly, I don’t care.
Not caring what others think of my choices has been one of the main reasons I have been able to try as many things as I have. Don’t get me wrong. I care about people, and I care about how I feel about myself. I never want to hurt people or cause them to feel like I’ve treated them badly or unjustly.
I just don’t care what they think about what I’m doing.
Especially if those opinions are negative. If someone tries to give you unwanted advice, ask them which one of your bills they are paying and get back to work. Just make sure they aren’t, in fact, actually paying one of your bills.
I do, however, value wise counsel. If I decide I want to start an aquarium servicing business and I meet someone with experience, I want to hear what they have to say. However, I don’t want them to expect me to listen and then get upset with me when I don’t.
By dipping into every idea that comes my way, I have learned a little bit about a lot of different things, but I have spread myself thin. I can’t help but wonder what would happen if I were to fully commit to one thing and stick with it.
Recognizing the issue is the first step, and I have been in strong communication with myself about this issue for several years now. Recently, I got inspired to think about my ideas in a different way. I read Elizabeth Gilbert’s book Big Magic, and she talks about ideas as if they are somewhat independent beings.
The thought is that ideas are floating around, looking for available humans to help them come to life. You can see an example of this during times when you have a great idea, and then a few months later, you see it in stores. The idea was pitching itself to you, and you passed on it. Someone else gave it a contract.
I have been looking at my ideas in this way lately and realizing I don’t have to enter into contracts with each one. This has helped me to start weeding some of them out. It hasn’t been easy. Instead of immediately jumping on an idea and going to work on it, I will think about it, wait a few days, see if it’s still hanging around, then slowly start to entertain it.
It’s like courting versus speed dating.
In the past, if an idea excited me, I would go straight into planning mode, complete with logos and branding within 48 hours. Now I am practicing getting to know the idea, spending some time seeing if it makes sense for me or if it would be better suited for someone else.
Like dating, if the idea is meant for you, it will stick around long enough for you to be sure. Just don’t make them wait too long, or the next time you open your phone to scroll Facebook, you’ll see your idea in an ad.
Just don’t get stuck.
One danger I have already encountered with this new way of thinking about ideas is the tendency toward analysis paralysis: when you think about something so much that you get stuck and can’t decide how to act on it.
To counteract this, I have started doing what I call mind dumps. I have a notebook that I have every intention of destroying one day, where I will literally write whatever nonsense is on repeat in my mind. I don’t always have answers when I finish these mind dump sessions, but I do have more peace.
Acknowledging your thoughts helps your mind feel heard and gives it space to work on more productive things. It also helps you work through the thoughts in a more organized way. You are forced to slow down a bit and think about each thought individually and in some sort of order. I have found that when I see my thoughts coming alive on paper, I can sometimes see solutions I couldn’t find while I was turning them over in my mind.
Commit.
These days, I am more careful about what I say I am committing to. Just this year alone, I have already made four business commitments, managed to keep two of those so far, and dodged two others. And it’s only April.
What’s more interesting, I am less active in this area than I have been in the past 7 or 8 years. But I am doing that on purpose.
As I get older, I realize I have limited time, and I want to maximize that time. I want to maximize my potential, not waste it thinking I want to groom dogs when I don’t even like dogs that much. I want to zero in on the ideas that are built for me and give them lives they haven’t even thought of. If ideas are orphans looking for a home, I’m the orphanage. As much as I may want to, I just can’t raise them all.
Written 4.18.19
