Good ideas come from many inspirational sources, but usually result from
confronting a problem from all angles to find a solution. To capture a good
idea the answer is to share it with somebody else whose judgment and
integrity you trust. If the idea is really good, he or she will not let you get
away with not seeing it through.
Zoe van Zwanenberg of the Scottish Leadership Foundation says:My best ideas often come out of a conversation. Someone triggers something
off. Or it’s from watching. I remember observing the Royal Ballet on tour
in China. While I was watching their principals go through their daily
class with all the junior dancers watching, I suddenly saw how this could
be translated into the organizations I knew.
Joyce Taylor told me:I generally get my best ideas when there is space, at home or on a walk or
at night.
For Neil Chambers, director of London’s Natural History Museum,
it is travel “to get ideas, often sifting through them on journeys and
then kicking them around with key colleagues on my return.” Sir
Bob Reid has his best ideas “after a period of minimal activity or
when I am taking part in physical activity.” And most of Jayne-Anne
Gadhia’s best ideas come when she is running or in the shower.
Hilary Cropper says:I have ideas in all kinds of places. I suddenly see an opportunity. But I
don’t do it on my own. Invariably it involves teams of people. I describe a
problem to someone else and this helps me to organize my thoughts.
A different place and a different pace seem to be key elements of
effective idea creation. Whatever the method adopted, it is clear
that many people’s working environment does little to stimulate
their creativity. See page 159 for ideas on how you can do this.
As ever, we need to be careful about making generalizations,
but it would be safe to say that for many people, finding ways ofHarnessing Your Creativity 151