The Anatomy of a Big Idea

When my son was 8 he had a Big Idea. “I’m gonna be a Back Street Boy”, he said confidentially. “I’m gonna be a famous rapper.”
“Great!” I said. “Let’s get started. What do you think you need to do to be a famous rapper?”
“Nothing”, he said. “It will just happen.”
Even having a world-famous Idea Implementation expert as a mom, my son has at 20, the same ideas about achieving his Big Ideas as he did when he was 8. Wishing will make it so. The idea of taking action puts him into a panic and the fears and doubts come up and overwhelm whatever is motivating this Big Dream in the first place. It’s much easier and more fun to imagine fame and fortune than to risk rejection by actually taking steps to achieve it.
I’ve compared getting a Big Idea to falling in love. You can’t force yourself to fall in love. What we think of as love usually just happens, often at first sight, or at first conversation. That giddy feeling, the excitement, the drama, the lovely experience of “all is wonderful, all is good, all is possible”.
Then the first argument, the first disappointment or the first failed expectation, and the questions begin. “What was I thinking?” “Could I really live with this person?” “He/she is not what I thought he/she was, I’m ought -a-here”.
When the true work of building the relationship starts, our true motivations and inner challenges are uncovered. And unless we have learned to take responsibility for those motivations and have made the commitment to do the work relationships will ALWAYS require, we will move from first love to first love and never experience the richness that a mature relationship - real, lasting love - can offer.
It’s the same thing with your Idea.
Getting the idea is easy. It comes without any effort, often in your sleep or while you are running or taking a shower. You feel giddy, excited, and full of hope, possibility and enthusiasm.
But now what? What actions do you need to take to move that Idea from the ether of your imagination to the physical world. Are you aware of, prepared for and willing to take the concrete action steps that will be required? But more importantly, are you aware of, prepared for and willing to deal with the psychological, emotional and even spiritual challenges that will also be required for your Idea to become a reality?

Here’s a model for thinking of your Idea that you might find helpful.
An Idea starts the way love does…mysteriously. Einstein famously wrote about inspiration and time. He believed that his ideas originated in a level of consciousness beyond the normal mental level we live in.
Let’s assume for the moment he was right. Let’s name that level of thought ‘Imagination’. You didn’t ask for the Idea, it just came. But you kind of like it. You feel excited, energized and enthusiastic. Then what happens? The Idea comes into the imaginative brain where all is possible. Then it starts to travel downward. First it hits the ego brain. And the thoughts kick in:
“How will this happen?”
“This will be a lot of work.”
“Better just forget it.”
If you are able to get past the ego brain, you’ll hit the speaking level. Maybe you start talking about your idea, or maybe you just think of telling people. At this point, more thoughts will come up, either from your own ego mind, or from the ego minds of your inner circle:
“Remember the last time you said this? You never followed through.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea?”
“Where will you get the money or time?”
“Better just forget it.”
If you get past this level, and you are actually able to tell people about your idea, you’ve increased your chances of implementing from less than 10% to 25%. Great!
Now the Idea travels down to the heart level. This is where your motivation and willingness to pursue the idea, to stay persistent, to do what it takes is challenged. The heart has thoughts like:
“Maybe I’m not good…smart…competent enough for this.”
“I’m on my own, who will help me?”
“I don’t really know what I want.”
Moving past this level requires linking your Idea to your deeply held values, gifts and talents. And when you learn to do that, you increase your chances of implementing to 50%.
Now we get busy. The Idea has moved into the action level, where things get practical. The action level thoughts are things like:
“How will I find the time?”
“Where will I get the money?”
“Which path will I choose?”
“How can I stop procrastinating?”
Moving through the action level is the easiest, because all you have to do is take one step after another. When you’ve gotten to the action level of the idea, you can raise your chance of implementing all the way to 100%.