If you are like me you get lots of ideas! Ideas about a lot of different things – how things can be improved, made more efficient, add more depth to life – lots of them. I have to admit though, not all those ideas have been good ideas! I have my fair share of bad ideas but at the time I conceive them – well quite frankly, they are brilliant, the most obvious solution to the problem at hand! Not!
The old adage, fools rush in where angels fear to tread is a good piece of wisdom in this situation – not that we shouldn’t take educated and calculated risks, but these risks need to be thought through What may seem a great idea, course of action may in fact not be so good. This is why it is a good idea to sit on your ideas for a day or too before sharing them or launching out in them.
I am not talking about decision making – decision making a a bit different skill and is often a good test for the
validity of our idea. When making a decision, in general, we go through a process where we stop, think, evaluate, decide, select and implement.
This process can take some time with new ideas, especially when we have to gather information to help us evaluate it.
Holding an idea in prayer is also helpful. God is there for us, God cares about us, the decisions we make and God is the source of wisdom. Scripture tells us that we can ask God for wisdom and we can expect that He’ll provide that wisdom. Ask for grace to recognize the voice of wisdom as you consider your idea. I have found praying about my ideas helps me to become aware of personal drives that maybe clouding my judgement. Also, a posture of prayer also helps us to see our idea from another perspective which may often reveal some aspects we haven’t considered.
Take the time to examine your idea, identify how it affects all involved, ask questions, find answers, organize the information and then evaluate it. I have found as I let an idea percolate for a day or two, the hype around my great idea settles and I am in a better place to evaluate whether it is indeed a good idea or not! I have found in the light of this different perspective I can see more clearly the merits or the weakness of an idea.
We all get excited when we get a brilliant idea and it is human nature to share our brilliant idea with others. Let’s face it, we like to share things we are excited about and like to share them even more if it is something great we have done! It’s natural, but by holding onto your brilliant ideas a while longer to consider them in the light of a new perspective may save you the embarrassment of hyping up your good idea to the world (boss, co-workers, share holders, etc.) only to discover it is not a good idea at all!
Take Away
- Hold on to your good ideas for a day or two.
- Stop, think, evaluate, decide, select and then implement (share).
- Pray – ask God for wisdom.
- Let the hype settle. Sleep on it.
- Turns out it’s not a good idea? Let it go – knowing you have learned something.
- A good idea? Share it humbly and deliberately.
- Recognized as a good idea? Enjoy the ‘pat on the back’ for offering an intelligent, good idea!