Not Every Creative Idea Needs To Be Revolutionary – Ryan Bonaparte

 

Henry Ford, The Wright Brothers, Albert Einstein, Maya Angelou, Steve Jobs, and the list goes on.

These are the names that come to mind when we think of the creative geniuses of our time. These are the people that have made dramatic changes to industries and shaped the world around them. Whether that’s through their inventions, businesses, or words, these are the people we think of being revolutionary creatives, and that’s the level of impact we aim for ourselves. We aim to make a difference in the world.

Except, we get down on ourselves when even our best efforts aren’t “revolutionary”. We think that our ideas aren’t creative enough, and aren’t going to make the kind of waves we expect of ourselves.

However, what we don’t think of is the fact that even the most “revolutionary” ideas are often built upon other “lesser” ideas. That those big changes are really just a small leap forward following months or even years of trial and error and iterations over the past.

For all of the revolutionaries we hear about, there are hundreds of people who shape the world through incremental changes. Leaders the world over are regularly taking their creative ideas and bringing them to fruition, regardless of whether or not they’re massive shifts.

So, when the time comes to flex your creative muscles, don’t be discouraged by seemingly mediocre ideas. These ideas become the basis of your future ideas, and they get your mind thinking in new ways.

When I’m working on a new project, the first couple of ideas are pretty much garbage. 95% of them either won’t work, don’t address the problem at hand, or just aren’t that great. But, the remaining 5% are where I find a little success. Those are the ones I build upon.

The same process goes for new leadership ideas. Take what you have and build on it. Don’t throw away good ideas in search of great ones. Use them and make them great.