Ideas are like the water coming out of a sprinkler. This is what Steve Glynn, the founder of Spreenkler, LLC told a group of business students at Marquette University.
He explained to us that there would always be water that hit the sidewalk and would never be of any use. In the same way, there will always be ideas that don’t go anywhere. It is frustrating to feel that your ideas are being underutilized or even wasted.
However, there is an upside. The water that does not hit the sidewalk will land on the grass ultimately causing the grass to grow. It is the same with ideas. The key is quantity. One drop of water will not make grass grow just as one idea will not foster innovation. With a plethora of ideas comes an abundance of growth.
It is because of this you should never be tentative to throw an idea out there. Even if you know it will not work – your idea may spur an idea in someone else and end up being very productive.
The more ideas that you have, the more likely something will come of them, but you need to be willing to accept the fact that some ideas will land on the sidewalk.
Kyle, great job on the blog! This presentation was definitely one of the best I have seen at MU so far. Keep up the good work!