#15: Crazy Idea List

The following piece from Sasha moved me for two reasons:

1. I put far too much emphasis on checking tasks off my To Do List. The list makes me rather anxious...perhaps a little crazy. And by a little, I mean extremely.

2. I think, and then overthink, then overthink some more, and occasionally I notice that the little outlandish notions and ideas that bounce around in my head all day hold some meaning and value! Therefore, after reading this piece I have a greater desire to dissect the seemingly small thoughts and clear a space for them to grow to see what they could be worth.

- Amanda

PIP NOTE: First, we added Ruk in Hong Kong to the Community For Change communication flow (I so don’t like the more “industrial” “scaled” way we all say “distribution list” so I am searching desperately for something and for now its “communication flow” as more human. Ruk will be a sensational contributor and I suspect our writers will be hearing much from Ruk as he so deeply is geared to internalize what he hears in the world and with great positive energy.

On Sasha’s note below: Matthias Hollwich put 30 of us through a swift process at the Crosby Retreat we each created a list of 10 “crazy ideas” for our own business in just 3 minutes and then worked for a mere 15 minutes with partners to turn two of those “crazy ideas” into full fledged bonafide possibilities — It was amazing and valuable and showed how close a “crazy idea” might be to an extraordinary idea… pip

Crazy Idea List

It’s so tempting to strive for that empty To Do list, to dream of those moments when you’ll have only a few items left on the list and then tick them off.

But those moments only come if you’ve got a certain kind of To Do list, one with concrete, discrete, easily quantifiable and achievable tasks, all of which you’re sure you will start and finish.

That kind of list is fine, but what do you do with the thoughts that have a different character altogether: the thoughts that grab you in a quiet moment, on a walk or in the shower or groggily in the middle of the night; the thoughts that arrive funky and murky and blurry, the ones that need time to gestate and evolve before you can even see them clearly enough to know if they’re worth time and energy?

These thoughts need a home too, because if you don’t capture them somewhere – while they’re still just a glimpse of what could be – then you won’t get to hold onto them while they develop.

And then you’ll be sitting there, looking around and wondering, “where does everyone else get those great, breakthrough ideas” without remembering that you have them too, you’ve just never gotten into the habit of capturing and cultivating them.

Sasha Dichter:       sdichter@acumen.org 

As Acumen’s Chief Innovation Officer, I oversee Acumen’s three fastest-growing verticals: Lean Data, which brings customer voice into impact measurement; the Acumen Fellows Programs, with more than 400 Fellows globally; and +Acumen, the World’s School for Social change. I’ve also been blogging since 2008 and have written more than 1,000 blog posts on generosity, philanthropy and social change. I was the instigator behind Generosity Day and, frustrated with how nonprofits approach fundraising, I wrote the Manifesto for Nonprofit CEOs, a free resource that has been shared with thousands of nonprofit CEOs and Boards who care about making a difference.      I find I get the most joy from my work when I see someone around me change and grow.

Sasha Dichter

Chief Innovation Officer, Acumen