How to Deal with Shiny Objects and New Ideas

Posted by Amir Lehrer on June 30, 2010

We all love shiny objects.  They are the newest thing in town that everybody is talking about.  The new toys, games, videos, business ideas, social platforms and more.  Who can forget (or maybe remember) Chia Pets, Virtual pets, yo-yos, hula hoops, hula hoops that count how many times they go around and so on.  Each had its place but slowly faded away leaving nothing but a slightly faded memory that brings a smile to our faces when we reminisce.  It won’t be long before we reminisce about the dorks on Twitter promising 2 million pointless followers within a week.  Since I’m the entrepreneurial type that’s always on the lookout for new things, I pass by more shiny objects than anyone can handle.  The question is, How do I handle them?

I like to stay informed of the latest industry news and thought leader’s ideas so I read a lot and listen to podcasts whenever I get the chance including my regular workouts, walks and long drives.  When you absorb that much information, ideas are bound to hit you about how to use new platforms, technology or tools.  Showering works just as well for generating ideas.  So many ideas lead to either wasting a lot of time on things that will never pan out or a whole bunch of decision paralysis.

The Simplest System

I created a very simple system that seems to work for me so I’ll share it with you hoping it will work for you too.  I make a list.  I have one document with a numbered list of ideas.  Every time I have an idea, I add it to the list.  It doesn’t matter if it’s my own idea or someone else’s, a business idea or a way to use a new tool.  I just keep adding them all to the list.  Now the secret to the success of this little system is time.  I keep adding ideas to the list but when I am done, I save the list and leave it alone for a little while.  Once a month or so, I open it up and skim through the list.  Some of the ideas are ridiculous, some are brilliant but will never work, some are decent and can be used in some situations.  If an idea still looks as good to you a month or a few months later as it did when you jotted it down, go for it.  If it doesn’t, you know what to do with it.

It is amazing to read your own thoughts and ideas as if they were somebody else’s.  That is one of the reasons that I love to blog.  I often look back at my archives, read my old advice and am blown away that it was me that wrote it.  You should try this with your own blog and if you don’t blog, try reading a paper you wrote in college.

Another Use of the “Time System”

You can also use this “Time System” to proofread your own work.  The only drawback is that it takes “time” which you don’t always have when working on a deadline.  When working on a project and you are completely immersed in it, you will make mistakes, typos and little errors that you will completely miss when proofreading.  If you wait a few months between writing and proofreading, you’ll catch all the mistakes and do a better job than most editors.

Have you used the “Time System” or something similar?  Let me know in the comments.

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Why the Hell is a Bird in the Hand Worth Two in the Bush?

Posted by Amir Lehrer on June 1, 2010

Thanks http://www.flickr.com/photos/nosha/ for the pic.

Everybody has heard the saying that “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” or something similar.  The traditional way of understanding the saying is that when you are holding a prize in your hand, you shouldn’t throw it away to find out what’s behind door number two.   Our subconscious minds take the saying a little differently though.  They say, “A bird in my hand is worth more than the same bird in your hand”.  When you own something, it takes on a completely new level of value.  You form mental and emotional attachments to your property incomprehensible to everyone else.

I’ve been keeping my eyes open lately for a potential house to purchase.  An ongoing theme that I’ve seen so far is that people feel that their homes are worth more than they really are.  As a buyer, I look at the home as a piece of land, a structure and a whole bunch of living space.  The sellers look at it as a home with memories.  A place where they grew up or raised their children.  The place where they held parties and had great times.  You can’t put a dollar amount on memories but then again, you can’t sell them either so they are worthless to the buyer.  When selling your house, you have to be realistic about how much the actual house is really worth and not what it is worth to you.

On a smaller scale, we as human beings are just as bad.  There are many things that we would never buy (or never buy again), but if we already own them, we cannot get ourselves to get rid of them.  Think about your old comic book collection or clothes that you haven’t worn in years.  I thought about this recently when looking at my collection of domain names that I own.  There are some domains that I continue to pay $8.99/year for that I would never even think of buying if I didn’t already own them.  There are many domains that I own because of an idea I had that I never pursued or because of an old project that is not in existence anymore.

To see the extent of the value gap between owners and potential buyers, watch this video by Dan Ariely, where he speaks about what Duke basketball season ticket holders are willing to sell their tickets for and what non ticket holders are willing to buy them for.

Lucky people get passed the inexplicable emotional attachment to the bird in their hand and think realistically.  Unlucky people think that they may make some money off of all the old “stuff” they hoarded for all of these years and continue to pack everything away.  The amount that you will make off of the sales and the frustration you go through to sell it are not worth the money you are spending on storing and maintaining your possessions.

Looks like I am going to do some spring cleaning.  What are you going to do about those birds in your hand?  Let me know in the comments.

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