“There are few minds in a century that can look upon a new idea without terror. Fortunately for the rest of us, there are very few new ideas.”
– W. Somerset Maugham (1874 – 1965), British writer, philosopher
“I can’t understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I’m frightened of the old ones.”
– John Cage (1912 – 1992), American composer and music theorist
Ideas are the currency of Difference Makers.
And new ideas are scarier than heck!
While these two quotes may seem to be in conflict, like Cage’s musical creations, there’s tons of harmony here.
New ideas are few, therefore they’re extraordinarily valuable. New ideas are new, therefore, human nature is to fear them, resist them.
In a compressing market? What got you here won’t keep you viable. In an evolving market? Those who challenge the status quo will evolve more quickly than competitors.
Dealing in the currency of ideas requires two commitments:
- We’d better make it safe to fail.
- We’d better be willing to fail quickly and redirect as needed.
These two commitments require two disciplines:
- When considering new ideas, we can’t limit ourselves to one. The key is to consider multiple concepts and blend, combine or eliminate based on the broader view. We layer too much risk into an already scary space (change), if we fall in love with an idea before we consider alternatives. (More on this tomorrow, by the way…)
- Failing quickly still requires taking time to learn from the errors. If we fail quickly without gleaning knowledge and experience, we’ve wasted the opportunity.
Ideas are the currency of Difference Makers. Entering the scary space where new ideas can take root increases the value of our currency.
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