Thinking about Ideas
An idea is a mental devices often invented by a human mind to achieve something. There are various kinds of ideas, for example, business ideas that can help one to earn money faster; ideas for a change in the society etc. etc.
The genesis of an idea is some critical thinking.
To begin with, i looked at various websites to know what others have thought about it. I read the article on pediatric, it really i did not appeal to me much! One source that i really liked is the book entitled Changing Minds authored by Howard Gardner, sections of this book is available on the Net for anyone inclined to read it!
An idea can be very useful in many life situations, for example, an idea can be useful in mitigating a difficult situation. We all often face such situations in our daily life! It may be in the form of a novel device that can do a certain job much more effectively then any available device, or it may be a plan to get popularity or money. We all know about popular TV shows; a block buster movie, a bestseller book, a website like the scribd, twitter, Youtube; facebook etc. They are all novel ideas. Ideas also change theories and laws of science like the Theory of relativity, the structure of aromatic compounds! We also know about the ideas of almost immortal great leaders like Mahatma Gandhi. He conjured up the idea of using non violent struggle for India's independence from centuries old British rule. Then there are well known business ideas that have helped persons like Buffet, Gates, Ford or even Dhirubhai Ambani to amass huge wealth within their life time!
There are then some really great ideas and some not so great. Ideas that appeal to many people and often influence their mindset and ideas that are transitory and influence very few persons.
What is the difference between the two?
I myself have had some good ideas, like the present idea of thinking about various subjects, write about them and share them through websites like scribd and Facebook!! Similarly i came up with the idea of initiating an e-forum website for the science community of the University of Delhi some three years ago. None of them turned out to be a really good idea!!
How can one come up with a good idea? I think Scott Berkun has some clues. In an article entitled “ How to pitch an idea” he wrote:
“Coming up with good ideas is hard enough, but convincing others to do something with them is even harder. In many fields the task of bringing an idea to someone with the power to do something with it is called a pitch: software feature ideas, implementation strategies, movie screenplays, organizational changes, and business plans, are all pitched from one person to another. And although the fields or industries may differ, the basic skill of pitching ideas is largely the same. This essay provides a primer on idea pitches, and although most of my experience is in the tech-sector, I pitch to you that the advice here will be relevant to pitching business plans, yourself (e.g. job interviews), screenplays, or anything else.
Ideas demand change. By definition, the application of an idea means that something different will take place in the universe. Even if your idea is undeniably and wonderfully brilliant, it will force someone, somewhere to change how they do something. And since many people do not like change, and fear change, the qualities of your idea that you find so appealing may be precisely what make your idea so difficult for people to accept. Some individuals fear change so much that they structure their lives around avoiding it. (Know anyone exhibiting the curious behavior of being obviously miserable in their job, their city, their relationship, but still refusing to make changes?). So when your great idea comes into contact with a person who does not want change, you and your idea are at a disadvantage. Before you can begin the pitch, you have to make sure you’re talking to someone that’s interested in change, or has a clear need that your idea can satisfy.
Always formulate 3 levels of depth to pitching your idea: 5 seconds, 30 seconds, 5 minutes. The 5 second version, also known as the elevator pitch, is the most concise single sentence formulation of whatever your idea is. Refine, refine, refine your thinking until you can say something intelligent and interesting in a short sentence. “My idea? It’s a way to make car engines twice as efficient, and 5 times as powerful.” This can be done for any idea: never allow yourself to believe your thing is so complicated and amazing that it’s impossible to explain in a sentence. If you were to use this excuse on me, I’d tell you it means you don’t have enough perspective on how your idea fits into the world.
If you can get enough perspective of what you’re really doing, have a half-decent command of whatever language you’re using, and spend some time at it, you can develop a good 5 second pitch. Practice it on friends, peers, anyone, by doing the 5 second version, then answering their questions, and then asking them to help you refine the 5 second version again. (And if nothing else, the 5 second version comes in handy at parties, when you need to quickly explain what you’re doing without boring people to tears). As proof that 5 second explanations are possible, here’s some diverse and complex ideas, and some simple 5 second explanations of them.”
To make an idea work, you have to change the mind of people around. How can one do that? Well, according to Howard Gardner, the author of a very popular book entitled: Changing Minds: The Art and Science of Changing Our Own and Other People's Minds it is as follows:
• Reason — Especially among those who consider themselves educated, the use of reason figures heavily in matters of belief. A rational approach involves identifying relevant factors, weighing each in turn and making an overall assessment. Reason can involve sheer logic, the use of analogies or the creation of taxonomies.
• Research — Complementing the use of argument is the collection of relevant data. Those with scientific training can proceed in a systematic manner, perhaps even using statistical tests to verify — or cast doubt on — promising trends. But research need not be formal — it need only involve the identification of relevant cases and a judgment about whether they warrant a change of mind. A manager who has been exposed to the 80/20 principle might study whether its claims — for example, those about sales figures or employee difficulty — are borne out on his or her watch. Naturally, if the research confirms the 80/20 principle it’s more likely to guide behavior and thought.
• Resonance — Reason and research appeal to the cognitive aspects of the human mind; resonance denotes the affective component. A view, idea or perspective resonates to the extent that it feels right to an individual, seems to fit the current situation and convinces the person that further considerations are superfluous. To the extent that 80/20 comes to feel like a better approach than 60/40 or 50/50, it’s likely to be adopted by the decision-maker in an organization. If possible, of course, resonance follows on the use of reason and/or research, but it’s equally possible that the fit occurs at an unconscious level and that the resonant intuition is in conflict with the more sober considerations of Rational Man or Woman. Resonance often comes about because one feels a “relation” to a mind changer, finds that person “reliable,” or “respects” that person — ..”
So, I think that ideas do not come in vacuum, they require interaction and contribution from intelligent peers and friends!
Rakesh Mohan Hallen