Lately I've been doing a lot of think tank stuff. I've had several people ask me for some advice/consulting. I never considered myself worthy of giving anyone advice... business, church, personal, etc. so I'm flattered when they ask.
I have a bad habit though. I don't charge by the hour.
It's common knowledge that I don't sleep. The brain just doesn't want to turn off. In college I thought that was a good thing. Now, it's called "billable hours".
It's fun thinking outside the box. I get to ask people, "Where do you see this thing in 5 years, 10 years?" I also get to ask the "what ifs"...
What if money was no object?
What if there was no competition?
What if you had unlimited resources?
What if the economy didn't stink?
What if you could write your own ticket?
When I get into that environment, I get a little reckless. Thinking outside the box? I'm so far away from the box you can't see it anymore. That's what makes thinking outside the box fun for me. It's risk-free. I'm gambling with someone elses money. Just because the thought is out there doesn't mean its getting executed. And if it bombs, well, I'm just a consultant. You should have realized the idea was stupid.
It's harder for me to think outside the box on my own projects. Instead of focusing on the unknown future, I overanalyze the umpteen years of history that got us to that point. No, this won't work because we tried something similar and it blew up in our face... Besides, things are going so strong right now, we wouldn't want to jeopardize that, right?
For me, coming up with wacky ideas isn't difficult. It's having the wisdom to pick the right ideas at the right time that's difficult. Then it's having the courage to follow your convictions regardless if no one else is doing it.
The greatest thing about thinking outside the box is that if you do it, you're doing things that noone else is doing. That's also the most horrifying thing. I guess, though, that's why no one else is doing it.
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