I continue to be intrigued by the ideas Ed Brenegar and his friends are bringing to the idea- into- reality conversation over at Leading Questions. Ed must be intrigued with this topic as much as I am … from his comment at the Brain Based Business site …”Of course, you can get me to say more. That's not the problem. It's stopping me…” Ed added.
Ed’s amazing insights and recent idea lately in a post called Translating Ideas into Reality and my own 5-step approach to use our brains in new ways as learners… called the MITA Brain Based Approach … shows why our shared conversation is no coincidence.
Thanks Ed for the extension of your chat with Polly and Drew over how Mavericks work…”One of the things Polly, Drew and I were discussing is the process of taking an idea and translating it into action. The limitation of most books is that they are not designed to make that translation. I don't think there is an assumption that it happens, but rather the goal is to articulate some ideas and illustrate them with stories. The hard part is the next step, what to do with it. For the majority of the readers of Bill and Polly's book it will be a rise in confidence that they can do something. They just don't know what. So that initial confidence that comes from an inspiring idea fades, and they have to go read another book of stories. It is a cycle of dependence upon someone else 's story inspiring me, rather than my own.”
My question is … “How could this idea itself be turned into a reality…?
I agree that good examples can also become realities … but often they do not…”Mavericks is a bit different because the ideas that these entrepreneurs acted upon are transferable to any situation. That is why I took the time to write commentaries on each of the sections.
MITA’s second brain based step is to target an improvement … On this topic Ed puts that second step this way … “Begin that process of connecting idea to an action.”
Then Ed added…”Ellen, the last thing to say about this is that when we do translate an idea into action we are engage in a change process, and we are changed by it. When we make that translation and it works, our confidence grows and doesn't go away. We build real confidence that leads to courage and wisdom which are essential for entrepreneurs and change agents.”
I hope that’s not Ed’s last insight on this terrific topic! We have just begun Ed!
Ah …. Good fortune … Ed’s final words tell me he too is still curious and will stay with it awhile… “I'd be very interested in the specific questions your readers have about this process.”
What do you think about the idea that … When people refuse to act on great ideas …it’s a brain thing…. Any insights or ideas at your end…?
Ellen, you ask...
"How could this idea itself be turned into a reality?"
I assume you mean the part about confidence.
I take my approach from Aristotle, the most practical of the ancient philosophers. His approach to learning did not focus on the accumulation of knowledge, but the practice of knowledge. His illustration of this kind of learning is that of a master craftsperson. My son takes blacksmithing classes. He does well because he has some talent for it. But he does really well because his teacher mentors him in the practice of smithing. He doesn't just provide him a theoretical explanation plus some stories. He shows him how to do it, and then he practices what he sees.
I think this is what is missing in the ideas to action translation. In essence, we are alone and without help. Sounds dire, I know.
We gain confidence by learning to do things. And we learn to have confidence because someone has confidence in us. I think is an explanation for the explosion in the numbers of professional coaches. People need help gaining confidence to try new things and to learn new skills.
One of the best things the online world has given us is a simple version of the mentor. We ask a question online and someone who has actually experienced the situation answers. I think this is the missing link in the ideas to action process.
Posted by: Ed Brenegar | October 7, 2006 8:14 PM | Permalink to Comment