Give Your Idea Wings!

Last week I spoke about Hunting for Good and in fact we have actually declared this week – Hunting for Good week in our organisation. I hope that you all took time to appreciate some of the positive highlights that have happened during this COVID challenge we are going through.

So, this week I want to focus on making new things happen. I want to challenge every person reading this to stop thinking about what you would like to achieve or change and set about making it happen.

But to do this and to ensure that what we do is sustainable, there are four steps that need to be followed to take an idea to reality:

1 - CREATE THE IDEA
This is about taking your concept or initiative from idea to reality, albeit the structure and logistics may not yet be developed. Creating it occurs when we stop thinking about it as something that might happen one day, to something we are prepared to step out and make happen. This is not an easy step, but we go nowhere and remain frustrated and negative if we cannot take this first and most important step.

2 - BUILD THE IDEA
What do you now need to make your idea a reality? Have you really thought this through? It is like baking a cake or cooking a great meal. One of the ways that we can ensure success in our cook is to have all of the ingredients available and on the bench, then it is a matter of just going through the process. So, what will you need on your bench to take this next step? Now there will always be surprises along the way but having the ingredients we need to start the process is the most important part of building your idea.
Develop a clear plan of what you will do and how you will do it, but keep in mind that you don’t know what you don’t know, so be prepared to be flexible and adapt where necessary.

3 - GROW THE IDEA
Start the process of growing it. Growing an idea is taking it off the paper and taking the first action steps. The first step will always be the hardest, but it must be taken. What have you got to lose? So, determine your first three action steps and prepare yourself to take them. It might mean seeking investment, it might be commencing the marketing process, or it might be as simple as telling someone about it and hearing yourself say it out loud. Whatever it is, do it so that your idea can grow.

4 - CELEBRATE THE IDEA
Celebration is not just about the end result. Celebration can and must be about giving yourself credit for every step you take and every new way of thinking that you adopt. Celebration creates the momentum that you need to take what you have done to that next level. Be proud of small achievements and celebrate the process and new learnings as much as the results. But here is the real key to success:

Once you take the four steps then take them all again, because that’s what success looks like. A constant pattern of growth and development.

So, you know that idea you have been thinking about for such a long time – it is time to release it. There is absolutely nothing to lose. If it doesn’t work out, then take what you have learned and do something else. It is all about the habits we form that become a part of our future life decisions.

Let’s hunt for good again this week, but actually make something good happen as well. Release your ideas and give them wings.

Have a great week.

Des Penny - Co-CEO
Proteus Leadership