How to make ideas happen.
Once you have an idea, what do you do next?
The number one question I’m asked as a creative professional is “What do I do with my ideas?”
Anyone who has ever had an idea for a business, or a book, or a work of art, or an iPhone application, has experienced this dilemma. It’s not uncommon. What is uncommon is those people who do the right thing, which is the same answer I give any time I’m asked by someone who is unsure about what to do next.
The answer? Do anything.
Ideas are cheap and abundant, generally. It’s ideas that are acted on immediately, and further developed over time, that are worth anything. The ideas that are taken from outside of your brain and onto paper or canvas or into a conversation are the ones that will grow.
It’s not difficult to do something with your ideas, either. At least, it doesn’t have to be.
The next time you have an idea, don’t let it sit around as an intangible element in your brain. Instead, draw it out (you don’t have to be Picasso to do so), write it down (no need to make a novel out of the idea, just write it down however you envision it), tell a trusted friend (someone who you look up to and who inspires you), or do something with it apart from thinking about it.
Then do even more with it. Draw details of how it might unfold, write about the ideal outcome, then make a short list of next steps. If you need help, seek out help.
You don’t have to make your ideas into a solidified reality right away, you just have to make sure you do enough to keep the idea alive, interesting, and physically tangible.
When it comes to making ideas happen, all you need to do is something. That’s a start.
Photo by Peter Jackson.
