What do you do with an idea?

I live near downtown Columbia, Maryland and I walk almost every day, usually well over 10,000 steps. I found myself circumnavigating Columbia Mall the other day and happened to spy a Barnes and Noble. While I prefer used book stores, I like B&N. So I went in and browsed.?

My muse always accompanies me when I am in a bookstore, telling me which aisle to go down and I found myself in the children’s section, looking at a book I had not heard of:

What Do You Do With An Idea? (Kobi Yamata and Mae Besom, 2014).

WOW, what a question to pose to a child!

Hell, what a question to pose to an adult!

I browsed through the book- well, I actually read it, cover to cover, standing there in the aisle- and btw, when did Barnes get rid of reading chairs?

It is a short book, but truly thought provoking. A little boy has an idea and is not sure what to do with it. He shares it, has it made fun of, tries to discard it (it won’t go away), and finally nurtures it and after a seemingly long while, it comes to fruition- a big, beautiful idea.

I have had a few ideas in my life and have occasionally written about ideas.

I almost always have a pen and Moleskin with me in case of an outbreak of the ever-elusive great line or other random thought that occurs at strange times.

I am loathe to let ideas escape unnoticed, unexamined and unused.?

So what do I do with my ideas?

First, I write them down. I prefer writing them down so I can actually look at them later and read them out loud.

I look at them and think about them, starting the nurturing or discarding process. Not all of them are worth keeping.

But if I like it and think it is ready, or if I need validation or other points-of-view, I share the idea before going further. Peer feedback on any idea is always a good…wait for it…idea!

What do you do with your random thoughts?

May I suggest a Moleskin?

Not that I have an opinion.