Making Ideas Happen

How many of you have Moleskines full of ideas or random thoughts? What about a file folder with random notes, napkins with coffee stains and scribbled notes on the back, or newspaper clippings that set off a creative spark? Or that folder on your computer filled with half-written blog posts, the outline for your yet-to-be written book, or random thoughts typed frantically at midnight for a crazy new idea?

We all have ideas, but, as Thomas Edison famously said,

“Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration.”

This past week at Q, where the tagline is “ideas that matter” I heard some of the best and brightest share important ideas that will be crucial for the future of the Church. But there’s one small hitch… despite all of the great one-liners and challenging ideas presented, none of it will really matter unless we actually do something.

In his new book Making Ideas Happen, Scott Belsky, CEO of Behance, argues that ideas are worthless if you can’t make them happen and offers this simple equation…

Making Ideas Happen =  The Idea + Organization and Execution + Forces of Community + Leadership Capability

The Idea

The era upon us is filled with problems and opportunities that require fresh innovation like never before. We need to conceive new ideas to address the problems and opportunities that surround us – and we need to defy the odds and make these ideas happen.

Ideas are in no short supply. In fact, I think most of us are plagued with too many of them! The process of innovating and creating is birthed with a single idea… a new way of doing something or a better way to do something else.

In today’s Church, we need new ideas and insights to better reach and impact our communities with the Gospel. However plentiful our ideas may be, unless we act on them we’ll still keep doing what we’ve always done and fail to innovate new ways to make a difference in people’s lives.

Organization & Execution

Creative professionals – defined as those who generate (and sometimes execute) ideas for a living – constitute what is most likely the most disorganized community on the planet. But these same individuals are ultimately responsible for the design, entertainment, literature, and new businesses that bring meaning to our lives.

If you’re at all a creative-type, like me, you probably live your life with a certain degree of chaos and disorganization. We somehow equate clutter with creativity, but this book slapped me the face to bring order to the chaos.

It’s only when you are organized that you are fully prepared to effectively execute.

Forces of Community

Ideas don’t happen in isolation.

We need one another and must take advantage of the forces of community around us.

At Q last week, Charles Lee challenged us with the idea of what it means to collaborate in community.

There’s a certain element of risk and fear in sharing your ideas with others, but it’s the crucial element that will cause your ideas to gain traction.  Sharing you idea with others will help you see your blind spots, provide accountability, and ultimately free you to make your idea happen.

If you’re in church communications, the Church Marketing Lab can provide an excellent way for you to get input and advice from other church communications people. Or, Behance offers the Behance Network, same idea, just a broader audience.

Leadership Capability

The quality and scalability of your creative endeavors rely on your capacity to lead. Your ideas will thrive only if you manage them as a leader rather than an independent creative visionary. Leadership capacity is what makes the pursuit of an idea sustainable, scalable, and ultimately successful.

In the book, Scott Belsky offers practical tips on how to effectively lead teams and insight on how to manage the most challenging person to manage… yourself. Whether you’re working with a large team or working for yourself, the ability to lead is an indispensable commodity in the creative world. And, one of the the more challenging areas is the practice of self-leadership. Some of the greatest hindrances we face on the road to making our ideas happen lie within us.

Bottom Line: Your Ideas Matter

“It is not naïve or a cliché to say that the creative mind holds the answers to all of the world’s problems. It is merely a fact. And so, you should balance your desire to use your creativity with a sense of responsibility. Please take yourself and your creative pursuits seriously. Your ideas must be treated with respect because their importance truly does extend beyond your own interests. Every living person benefits from a world that is enriched with ideas made whole – ideas that are made to happen through your passion, commitment, self-awareness, and informed pursuit.”

– Scott Belsky

Who This Book is For

YOU.

I love this book and think it’s an essential read for any creative, church communications director, or anyone that has many ideas but is unsure of where to start. It addresses obstacles that stand between vision and reality and will challenge you to action.

[Sidenote: It does serve as an informercial for Behance’s Action Method, but the content is useful regardless of the sales pitch.]

I’m Making My Idea Happen

I read Making Ideas Happen two weeks ago and decided it was time to make an idea I’ve had that will change the way we communicate at Park happen. I’ve written out the action steps to make it happen, assembled a team, and we are in the process of making the idea happen. It’s going to launch in early June…I can’t wait to share it with you!

Make Your Idea Happen

Liking what you’re hearing? Download an excerpt here, pick your copy on Amazon or be one of the lucky ones to get a free copy from me!

I’ll be giving a copy of Making Ideas Happen away on Friday… here’s how to enter:

1. Tweet This: I just entered to win a copy of “Making Ideas Happen” by @scottbelsky.  Comment here and RT to enter – http://bit.ly/apZ8De
2. Comment Below: With your Twitter handle [so I can verify you did step 1] and share the biggest obstacle that stands in the way of making your idea happen.
3. Check back Friday at Noon CST: I’ll randomly choose one person to win!