Don’t be a Leader with So Many Ideas
Ideas are like rabbits. Multiplication leads to disease.
The only thing worse than a leader with no ideas is one with too many.
Doers have fewer ideas than dreamers. Doers think about execution. (Read: How Dreamers Drive Doers Crazy) “What abouts” are distractions when you’re thinking about getting things done. Suggestions are irritating unless they speed execution. A bright-eyed leader is annoying.
If you love ideas:
The thing that separates vision from dreams is sweat. Everyone wishes you would finish something before you explore three more brilliant suggestions.
Get real about innovation. Mark Twain said, “There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them a turn and they make new and curious combinations.” In 2015 I wrote The Journey is the Answer. I thought it was brilliant. But it’s such a cliché that I saw it yesterday on the back of a Jeep.
Disciplined leaders focus on energizing people to get things done, not burdening them with frivolous suggestions. “Serious people have few ideas. People with ideas are never serious.” Paul Valéry – 1942, “Bad Thoughts and Others.” (QI)
“Ideas are a dime a dozen. People who implement them are priceless.” Mary Kay Ash
Timing:
Innovation is most valuable in the development stage. During execution, your wonderful insights are burdens, unless they make things easier.
Seek improvements in efficiency from people with their hands in the pot.
Leaders ask questions. How could this be better? Simpler? Smoother? You could ask, where do you feel like you’re wasting energy? Time? If you aren’t directly involved in execution, keep your ideas to yourself.
Over-helpful leaders frustrate people who are getting stuff done.
When is excitement with the innovation of the day a heavy weight to people getting stuff done?
When is new and exciting useful?
Great post and a valuable reminder that focus and prioritization are key to effective leadership.
Thanks, Dan.
Thanks for stopping in Joe. Hope you are well.
Great insights. I love the idea of being brave enough to destroy my idea and to only add it after a direction is set when they make implementation smoother. Also, adding those closest to the process in the idea generation makes such good sense, but is often absent….good things to ponder. Thank you.
Thanks, Robin. I’m in love with my ideas and skeptical of yours. It should be the opposite for leaders.
Some folks forget that brainstorming is two-step process. First, you generate as many potential ideas as you can. Second, you review those ideas to determine which one or two to actually implement. They stop after the first step, and try to implement everything.
Thanks, Jennifer. I’m glad you shared your thoughts today. Killing a good idea is painful, especially for the one who came up with it.
So excellent and timely. I am going to need to read and re-read this one, multiple times, so it sinks in.
There is a saying – “at some point in a project you need to shoo… (remove) the engineer”. I think this is what that is getting at. As an engineer we are always thinking up new ways to tackle a problem – but at some point you need to pick a path and move.
Great illustration, Shannon. “Pick a path and move.” All us tweakers need to do more path picking.
“Innovation is most valuable in the development stage. During execution, your wonderful insights are burdens, unless they make things easier.”
I found this helpful as I like exploring ideas to get people talking and collaborating. As you state, to progress a team must move into solutioning together. There is a mid-part also, and it is essential to align on which ideas to go with. It is critical at this mid-stage to ensure everyone understands we are moving past the [initial] ideation stage and it’s time to start doing.
Thanks, Ryan. Great idea. Jus announce that we are in the honing stage or the execution stage. We still need creativity during those stages.