Page 39 - THE DO-IT-YOURSELF LOBOTOMY Open Your Mind to Greater Creative Thinking

30 THE REWARDS OF A GREAT IDEA

make a career—Steve Jobs, Herb Kelleher, Sam Walton. Of course,
some careers spawn companies and industries. (Or is it the other
way around?)
Wow! All because of an idea? A computer that’s easy to use. An air-
line that’s inexpensive. A store that sells virtually the same things
everyone else sells, but is defined by customer service.
Of course, not all great ideas live forever. Actually, a good many of
them enjoy an even greater afterlife when they finally do die. An after-
life in the form of subsequent generations of ideas that would not have
been born if not for the “genetic coding” of the original idea. For exam-
ple, an idea like rockabilly is totally overshadowed by its offspring,
rock ’n’ roll.
There’s also the afterlife where an idea lives on not because it is still
viable, but because it is recognized as having made a big impact in its
time—an idea like the great pyramids of Egypt. Although in some
cases the idea is long since deceased, its spirit may live on and inspire
others to come up with equally grand ideas totally unrelated to this
now dead but revered concept.
Even the lasting ideas are not all huge, industry-breeding, direc-
tion-changing concepts. One idea that comes to mind from a project I
was involved with early on in my marketing career is the universal
orthotic insert we see in so many shoes these days. This idea emerged
from the mind of a very creative podiatrist, Dr. Rob Roy McGregor,
who designed the first running shoe developed under the Etonic brand
during the 1970s running boom. Initially called the “single-unit heel
and arch support,” this device adapted the concept of the orthotic, an
individually prescribed rigid device worn in shoes to correct pronation
and foster proper heel plant, and turned it into a universal performance
mechanism that is in virtually all quality athletic footwear today, as
well as in many nonathletic shoes. A big idea that changed things, pos-
sibly forever, if only in a narrow, underappreciated area, Dr. McGreg-
or’s concept proved to be immortal.
Even if immortality is not your goal, you must be mindful that an idea
has a life and an afterlife. A great idea can continue to deliver value for
years beyond its initial inception. Whether or not you personally reap all
of the rewards of this idea, you must know that you have created a living
thing that will have an impact, help others, maybe generate income and
livelihoods for generations to come. That is a great reward. And a great
responsibility. Which leads us to the other side of this coin, which isn’t
always as bright and shiny.