Idea Storming
Don't just create. Engage. The resulting idea storm will ignite your creative efforts.
“Create something people want to share.” — John Jantsch
Engagement is the flip side of content creation.
One needs the other.
One feeds the other.
Creating something is the essence of value. This essay is of great value to me personally. How did it come into being? I sat down, focused and wrote. But writing it would not have been possible without...
Engaging with people
Engaging with their creations
Capturing the ideas engagement generates
The act of creation itself uncovers and shakes loose ideas. And those ideas, in turn, lead to more creation. But sharing and engaging with others takes idea generation to another level.
When people share what they value about your creations, you receive value in return: new perspectives, new insights and new ideas. This process of jamming with other creators is idea storming. It is the network effect applied to idea generation with shared content as the muse.
The value of your creations is no longer measured in likes, comments or views. It is measured in terms of ideas generated from engagement:
Share one creation and derive 3 new ideas of interest.
Share another creation and derive 8 new ideas of interest.
Both are valuable in their own right, but the second creation has the higher value. And when you create something people want to share, the idea storm becomes even more intense with each share and the engagement it brings.
The act of creation...
Increases skill
Brings deep understanding
Generates new ideas and possibilities
Sharing creations...
Highlights different perspectives
Challenges previously held mental models
Spawns even more ideas than the original work
So don’t just create. Engage with your creations. The resulting idea storm will sweep you away in a flurry of flow-induced creative acts.
🤔 Food for Thought:
Are you sharing what you create?
Are you capturing the ideas engagement spawns?
What are you doing with those ideas?
⚙️ One Small Step:
Take a close look at comments made on two of your creations posted on social media. Which one is more valuable in terms of ideas generated? How does that compare with the number of likes, comments and views?
You can do a similar comparison between two posts from someone you respect or admire.