Eye-ing the Prize

After decades of authorship practice, I still strive to embrace this fundamental of writing: creating and revising should not be done at the same time.?

And that non-negotiable of writing also applies to the processes of brainstorming, planning, and execution of any project.?

Sometimes I write a sentence and immediately notice how to improve it. However, I mostly let ideas flow, without fixing as I go.

?

The possibilities inherent in any Big Idea are a prize to be eyed carefully and appreciated, before fixing the fiddly bits. Successful leaders allow the story to be fully written before refining punctuation and grammar.

As I write, my “profound” insights may make no sense to anyone else. If I am wise, I let such worries go as I let creation flow. First, thoughts, feelings, and images run like a babbling brook from mind and heart, through my fingertips, onto the screen. Then, I edit. And edit. And edit again.

"I'm writing a first draft and reminding myself that I'm simply shoveling sand into a box so that later I can build castles". ~Shannon Hale

Success rises as a leader learns to resist attacking the rough form before it’s fully fleshed out. Acting as editor too soon can silence the creator. And it is also true that revising while writing can give the false illusion of completion. No…that is still a first draft.

With this authorship metaphor for leadership in mind, I invite a look at your usual, most common, pattern in response to that spark of innovation. Which of these possibilities sound most like you (or best describe your responses to associates’ intuitive leaps):

(Check all that apply.)

A leader with her eye on the potential prizes in each new intuitive leap maintains focus on the initial creative flow just long enough. She trusts a new Big Idea as it begins to take shape. And she also knows when to pull the editor’s pen from her desk drawer.