The Paralysis of Ideas (and How to Avoid It)
Let me start by saying that despite what you're probably thinking given the title, I'm not against ideas. It's not a crime to have ideas. Ideas are important—critical, in fact—to business. Being able to rattle off new and innovative ways of looking at things, or being able to brainstorm a new use for your company's widget; those are massive, possibly even game changing ideas. But as noted (and oft quoted) author Seth Godin mentions, ideas are worthless. It's not that they don't have any value per se, it's just that it takes a person with a plan to turn that idea into something that is worthwhile.
In my time working in the trenches, I've seen the same theme emerge over and over again. I still see it today, though from a different perspective (typically as a consultant or hired contractor). In many cases, good people—motivated people—feel compelled or are instructed by managers to come up with ideas on how to solve a specific problem. And unfortunately, it rarely stops there. In an effort to make sure that no stone is left unturned, a brainstorm session is added to make sure that enough ideas have been generated to cover all of the bases. The employee is usually left with a list of ideas, some good, some not so good, to wade through and execute on. This is where I would encourage every manager to hit the pause button.
At the end of the day, the objective isn't to have ideas, right? Ideas by themselves don't pay the bills. The objective is to take those ideas and turn them into something. To achieve a result. Logically, if the budget for the executing on these ideas is a pie chart, the more ideas you add, the fewer resources you have for each idea, right? I've watched way too many companies operate using this type of shotgun approach—committing only a small fraction of their resources to a myriad of projects, none of which ever gain them anything significant.
My challenge to you is to try putting your eggs in one basket. Analyze, strategize—try to determine which idea is going to provide the largest gains (monetarily, market share, etc.—whatever your metric) and fully commit to it. The key is having the discipline to focus your efforts and only execute on the idea that promises the best outcome.
There's another advantage to focusing on a single idea. You're able to avoid what I've termed "The Paralysis of Ideas". This is where an employee, beset with a list of deliverables, is paralyzed into non-action by either an inability to decide where to start, or by the thought that there's another possibility out there that they didn't consider. Both situations are extremely defeating to employee morale and ultimately to the company's bottom line.
In many cases, the only wrong-action is inaction. Mistakes are inevitable, ideas are many. Trust your own judgment, as well as the judgment of those that you've hired (you hired them for a reason after all). Focus, execute, evaluate. Repeat as often as possible until the desired outcome is achieved.
Have thoughts or comments on this post? Are you struggling with "The Paralysis of Ideas" in your company? Drop me a line in the comments area below. Thanks for reading.—Jason @ Ideavise
