An Explosion of Ideas

In The Medici Effect, Frans Johansson talks about how important it is to “ignite an explosion of ideas.”

Why?

Most innovators, disrupters, and entrepreneurs aren’t one-hit wonders. 

Rather, they have persistence in the volume of ideas they both create and are willing to put out to the universe.

As Johansson points out “many of the world’s celebrated writers have also produced horrible books, innovative movie directors have made truly uncreative duds, megasuccessful entrepreneurs have disappointed investors, and pioneering scientists have published papers with no impact whatsoever on their colleagues.”

These individuals share a common thread of a willingness to fail and perseverance to keep going again and again…even if that meant a less than desired outcome and, perhaps, disappointment or ridicule from others. 

Perhaps success is less attributed to one's “genius” and more attributed to one’s willingness to put themselves out there. 

So, creators, keep creating…build a machine to generate and share ideas. Be patient.

And for those leading others, create a culture that encourages the development and sharing of ideas.