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New ideas sometimes don’t even make it past the inner critic who
whispers about how weak it is, how others have probably thought of it
already, and how others will laugh, criticise or turn away from you. Like
will-o-the-wisps, they are easily extinguished. Ideas, for the very large
part, need nurturing and pondering if they are ever to see the light of
day or even spark the next level of thinking.
See also
confidence, criticism*, doubt, failure, fear*, resistance, risk,
robustness
Quotes
‘A new idea is delicate. It can be killed by a sneer or a yawn; it can be
stabbed to death by a quip and worried to death by a frown on the right man’s
brow.’
— Charles Brower
‘An idea must not be condemned for being a little shy and incoherent; all new
ideas are shy when introduced first among our old ones. We should have patience
and see whether the incoherency is likely to wear off or to wear on, in which
latter case the sooner we get rid of them the better.’
— Samuel Butler
‘Yet there is nothing more dangerous than to be premature in exploiting a
change in perception.’
— Peter F. Drucker
‘A good idea is like a lighted match, easily blown out by the cold winds of
rigid management.’
— Richard Kinder
‘Creativity is so delicate a flower that praise tends to make it
bloom, while discouragement often nips it in the bud. Any of us put out more and
better ideas if our efforts are truly appreciated.’
— Alex Osborn
‘Who were the fools who spread the story that brute force cannot kill ideas?
Nothing is easier. And once they are dead they are no more than corpses.’
— Simone Weil
‘Ideas won’t keep. Something must be done about them. When the idea is new
its custodians have fervour, live for it, and, if need be, die for it.’
— Alfred North Whitehead
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