Published on: Thursday, October 13, 2011

Is the Shower the Final Frontier for Great Ideas?

Posted By: Robyn Greenspan
Filed Under: world business forum, robyn greenspan, innovation, retention, behance, scott belsky, making ideas happen

Comments (7)

There are few places left to escape the growing mountain of obstacles that prevent great ideas from being created, and even more roadblocks impeding their execution. Scott Belsky, CEO of Behance and author of Making Ideas Happen, said creative people have to find "windows of non-stimulation" to focus on thinking, research and implications on strategy.

In an intimate "unplugged" setting among a smaller invited audience at the 2011 World Business Forum, where ExecuNet exclusively reported, Belsky said "The more creative we are, the more unlikely we are to take ideas to completion," that we're suffering from "idea to idea syndrome."

The gravitational force of daily activities, project management, an overflowing inbox, the distraction of TV, waning enthusiasm and lack of accountability are among the killers of great ideas. Moreover, poor corporate leadership stymies ideation and demotivates creative talent.

"People leave companies because they didn't feel fully utilized and their skills are not fully leveraged," Belsky pointed out.

So, how to make ideas actually happen? Belsky cites three drivers:

Good organization
Communal forces
The leadership capability to keep teams engaged

A strong organization is a competitive advantage, and Belsky found the best practice is DIY — do-it-yourself — where individuals have their own systems of doing things that work for them. There was a consistent bias, he found, toward action in meetings, with an abundance of verbs and a near-bankruptcy on notes.

Belsky related a system Harvey Weinstein, the filmmaker, uses, where his assistants take notes in black ink, verbs in red. At the end of the day, all the red should be crossed out because they were actions that should have been taken.

There are typically three categories of people found in organizations, and it's incumbent to have the right balance for successful idea execution:

Dreamers: They jump from idea to idea and wonder what new things are next.
Doers: The "Debbie Downers" who are happy when there is nothing new to do.
Incrementalists: They rotate from dreamer to doer.

"You have to build an immune system on your team that has both," said Belsky because new ideas need to be killed when they can't be sustained. "Dreamers love hiring dreamers, but those aren't the people who make ideas happen."

Doers help mitigate the risk, but dreamers have to sometimes independently follow their vision. "If everyone thinks you're crazy, you either are crazy or you are onto something."

"Nothing extraordinary is ever achieved through ordinary means."

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Robyn Greenspan's avatar Robyn Greenspan
Robyn Greenspan is the Editor-in-Chief at ExecuNet, where she is responsible for setting and driving the editorial content engagement strategy across the private business network's publications and expert-led programming. She is also a Huffington Post blogger. You can follow her on Twitter @RobynGreenspan

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Posted by Jim Buchanan
12/23 @ 03:46 PM

One perspective is there necessarily needs to be a limit on dreamers. Creative thought notwithstanding, the action part is what happens when the good of the whole is determined to be actionable by decion makers. Buy in, for sure, is relevant, and that is the task for top leaders. To make those in the position to make it happen-"Debbie Downers" to be part of the solution. A good idea does not necessarily need to die because there is not enough strong leadership to instill the requisite motivation to sustain an action plan.

Posted by Robyn Greenspan
10/17 @ 08:21 AM

Thanks for all the great comments! There's more to come.

Posted by Tracy Mason
10/16 @ 06:26 AM

Thanks for sharing Robyn. Fully leveraging both the dreamers and doers while cultivating an engaged balance is key. Looking forward to reading more from the event.

Posted by Jerry Reep
10/14 @ 02:36 PM

"COUNTING TIME IS NOT SO IMPORTANT AS MAKING

TIME COUNT" Jerry Reep HOME DESIGN EXPO

Posted by Martin Hespeler
10/14 @ 01:42 PM

I find the article very interesting considering the current economic climate.

Posted by Gary Benson
10/14 @ 08:47 AM

Mr.Belksy's comment - "how to make ideas actually happen?" (3. The leadership ability to keep teams engaged) is the key to moving from activity to accomplishment. In more simple terms - the following, taken to heart, places the responsibility on every team member to become the best he can.

1. We live by the choices we make.
2. If things are going to change, I have to change.
3. If things are going to get better, I have to get better.
4. Doing more of the same, only gets you more of the same.

Not nearly as profound as Mr. Belsky's but it places responsibility on every team member to push himself/herself and dig deeper for solutions.

Gary Benson
Las Cruces, NM

Posted by Michael Ball
10/14 @ 07:29 AM

Interesting observation. I see where this playing into myt life daily. Enjoy reading about others observations and how they can be applied to today's job place. Thanks!