Home > Work > Making Ideas Happen: Overcoming the Obstacles Between Vision and Reality
1 " Most ideas are born and lost in isolation. "
― , Making Ideas Happen: Overcoming the Obstacles Between Vision and Reality
2 " Whether it means prizing the value of lessons learned, building games into your creative process, or getting gifts upon certain milestones of achievement, self-derived rewards make a big difference…You cannot ignore or completely escape the deeply ingrained short-term reward system within you. But you can become aware of what really motivates you and then tweak your incentives to sustain your long-term pursuits. "
3 " You can't rely on others—especially your managers and clients—to engage your strengths. In an ideal world, managers would constantly be thinking about how to best utilize their people—and clients would always unearth your greatest potential. Unfortunately, the reality is that bosses and clients are as worried about their own careers as you are about your own. You must take the task of marketing your strengths into your own hands. "
4 " An idea can only become a reality once it is broken down into organized, actionable elements. "
5 " Today never feels like it will be history, but it will. And more likely than not, you will look back and realize that you should have known. "
6 " Self-leadership is about awareness, tolerance , and not letting your own natural tendencies limit your potential. "
7 " Everything in life should be approached as a project. Every project can be broken down into just three things: Action Steps, Backburner Items, and References. "
8 " Constant motion is the key to execution. "
9 " The rewards system of the traditional workplace keeps us on track, in line with deadlines from the higher-ups. If we adhere to it, the deeply embedded rewards system of our adult lives is likely to keep s employed and secure within the status quo. . . However, these tendencies become destructive as soon as we begin to pursue long-term goals or attempt something extraordinary "
10 " We will ultimately live in a perpetual data-driven talent edition. Everything you create will be measured and tracked by others through comments, share, and likes. Your work will come up on the radar of potential employers and clients, and the data will tell them if you are worth talking to or hiring. "
11 " All great inventions emerge from a long sequence of small sparks; the first idea often isn’t all that good, but thanks to collaboration it later sparks another idea, or it’s reinterpreted in an unexpected way. Collaboration brings small sparks together to generate breakthrough innovation. "
12 " Our ability to extinguish new ideas is critical to productivity and to our capacity to scale existing projects. In a team setting, the skeptics—the ones who always question ideas first rather than falling in love with them—are the white blood cells. "
13 " elevate true productivity over the appearance of hard work. "
14 " Brainstorming should start with a question and the goal of capturing something specific, relevant, and actionable. "
15 " IDEAS DON’T HAPPEN "
16 " In other words, the aesthetics of the tools you use to make ideas happen matter. "
17 " an idea executed for an audience of one is an awful waste of potential inspiration and value for the greater good. "
18 " When we don’t want to take action, we find reasons to wait. We use “waiting” nicknames like “awaiting approval,” “following procedures,” “further research,” or “consensus building. "
19 " We can access our e-mail and schedule from anywhere in the world. In theory, we can always be reached. "
20 " Diversity of opinions and circumstances increases the likelihood of ‘happy accidents.’ Serendipity comes from differences. "
