I’m swimming The English Channel.
Well okay, not literally, but quantitively. My gym has launched ‘Channel Challenge’ where we sign up and keep tally of our lengths between now and the end of August, aiming to rack up 21 miles in total.
When I first saw it advertised, the idea was intriguing. I asked a lifeguard for more details and he said his team were about to have a meeting to formulate a plan. It turned out to involve tally cards, celebratory drinks at key milestones, conversion tables to calculate mileage in the indoor versus outdoor pool, plus a giant chart representing how far each of us has travelled.
There are some bonuses they hadn’t necessarily planned for. There’s been a buzz by the pools with the lifeguards excited and engaged, suddenly enjoying a role other than merely saving us from drowning. My own fitness is increasing and my partner has started accompanying me, inspired by the personal target setting. I’ve got to know a fellow swimmer: a 62-year old grandmother of eight with some amazing life stories which she shares with me in the jacuzzi, after having put me to shame with her stamina. People are breaking their own personal bests, challenging family members, enjoying the outdoors, losing excess weight.
All this because someone had an idea.
We all have ideas, often a lot of them. Many of them stay merely as ideas without accompanying plans. Sometimes this can be a relief: we get to enjoy the fantasy. Other times this gulf between what’s in our heads and what’s in reality can be overwhelmingly frustrating.
With an idea that could benefit others, whether it’s bringing laughter or insights, sanctuary or motivation, ease or excitement, this idea is not just for us. We receive it, with no input on our part, into our consciousness and it is our choice whether we delve deeper. Whether we share it with others. Whether we take it from idea to clearer idea. To compelling idea. To plan. To action. To reality.
Had any ideas lately?
The World Needs Your Passion, So….
1) Action: Make a list of all those ideas you have that just will not go away.
2) Inquiry: What do your personal idea-full, plan-less places feel like? Are you quite comfortable there with no action required, or do they feel frustrating?
3) Found this blog helpful? Irritating? Inspiring? Challenging? Let us know by leaving a comment below….
© Corrina Gordon-Barnes, 2009
* A Place To Go With The Idea That Won’t Go Away *
If it’s time to take the first step towards turning it into reality, the Kickstart Your Venture workshop has been designed for you. Click here for more information. Pre-booking essential. Date: Sat 10th October 2009 (Cambridge)
Fantastic blog Corrina!
I LOVE ideas. I also love putting them into action. I think it is so good to nurture your ideas, in a creative, imaginative and exciting way so they can become a reality…
I’m going to get scribing tonight my favourtie ideas I want to act on!
Thanks for the inspiration!
Rosanna
Great post Corrina as always.
I’ve had 2 ideas in my head for months and I’ve recently kicked them into action. One is a coaching cafe for women to come together and discuss a topic and see what they learn from each other, with some coaching thrown in for added learning. I launch my first one as a pilot on 17th Jul.
My second idea which is still developing is to get old people out of their homes, come together as a community, share their wisdom and release their joy. I’m not sure yet how I do this and I do know it is desperately needed.
So yes, it’s important that ideas turn into actions. I sat on these for months and they have only grown in importance. The biggest thing is knowing how to execute the idea and getting people to help me shape it. The more I ask people for help though, the more they are willing to help me turn them into real actions.
I like how the swimming idea turned into something bigger than the original idea because of the collaborative effort by everyone involved. I really think we achieve more when we work together.
Hi Corrina
I’ve just read your ‘Swim the Channel’ blog and since you’ve asked for feedback (and you said you always liked my comments) here’s mine:
In answer to your question I found your blog all of the mentioned adjectives – helpful, Irritating, Inspiring, and Challenging.
Helpful because it made me stop and think that my ideas and dreams would only become a reality if I kick my backside into action.
Irritating as it reminded me that my terrible procrastion and fear of failure and success once again rears its ugly head.
Inspiring because you just radiate it – a shining example of how I too want to take the courage to follow my passion
and
Challenging as with anything new, the unknown is a scary, yet exciting place that stimulates the grey matter to another dimension.
Needless to say you can see why I’m joining you for your Kickstart your Venture workshop. So be warned, you’ll have you\\\\\\\’re work cut out for you transforming my dream venture into a reality.
Till then, as Nemo say’s ………’just keep swimming, just keep swimming’
See you in October
Sunshine and smiles to you
Rachel x
@Rosanna – I just love that word ‘nurture’…. What does it mean to you and how do YOU nurture ideas?
@Jude – Yes interesting how we can think that ‘sitting on’ ideas means they disappear but actually maybe sometimes they have a life on their own and ‘sitting on’ can be a kind of gestation! I’m not at all surprised that people want to help you – you are emerging as a true leader and your project ideas are inspirational. Do feel free to post details of your work here with the comments – maybe other readers here would like to get involved too…
@Rachel – Ah yes, that backside-kicking-into-action need
Love that you’ve thrown in the Nemo quote because often with great inspirational ideas, they can feel so HUGE that we think we can’t start but actually one step (or stroke!) after one step and we find we’re getting there. I am very much looking forward to seeing you at the workshop in October!
On this topic, I would highly recommend Be The Change, a book by Trenna Cormack which features 28 people who turned their inspirational ideas into action. I’ll have a few copies available at the Kickstart Your Venture community workshop (Oct 10th 09) or you can find it online.
I love this post. It’s a brilliant expose on how great ideas are born.
Isn’t it funny, how all ideas are just tiny little sparks until they get encouraged, and fanned into action? And from there, they sometimes catch on like wildfires.
My situation—and I doubt I’m alone in this—is that I generate oodles and oodles of ideas all the time! Taking action on each of them would mean I’d be constantly swamped. A big part of my journey has been to not discount ideas as they come, but to write them down, and tend them like a garden. Some will obviously die off, because they sounded great in the moment, but have no staying power. And others will continue to grow, get added to, and develop into full-fledged ventures (such as my current business, Bright Coconut!).
Oh, and how where do I keep all these ideas? Evernote! (I will convert you on this one, at some point, C!)
Again, great post.
Adam Kayce´s last blog ..Fast, Good, and Cheap: Can You Have All Three?
@Adam – I TOTALLY recognise that idea fountain. It’s a blessing to have the constant flow of inspiration AND it can be frustrating and exhausting until there’s an efficient system for capturing and managing ideas. Yeah yeah I’ll get to Evernote one day, just like I have with everything else you’ve recommended…
Oh – and thanks for your great work on revamping my Comments section here. For others – Adam is the dude who customized this website and does magical techie tasks for me – promptly, professionally and with a gorgeous smile. Which is one way that I reduce my procrastination time (you know, the “Ah… I’ll just learn how to use this and that software” which roughly translates as “Excellent, another ‘worthy’ reason not to write my book”.) See the following blog post, Life Is Too Short To Procrastinate, for more on how important it is for us to shine a light on such cunning strategies.
Corrina´s last blog ..Life Is Too Short To Procrastinate
I Lovee It When People Go Out And Follow There Dreams.. It Puts A Smile On My Face..
Im 13 Yeras OLD And Will be Swimming The English Channle.. Literly.
Next Year In July..!
Im Very Scared But Its A Life Ambition.. x
@Abby – Woo hoo! Good for you! What kind of training do you have to do for that? I was away a lot this summer and slacked off my swimming at the gym so I doubt I’ll do my 21 miles in time but it’s given me a good sense of having a goal to aim for and sticking with it. Let us know when you’ve completed the swim – and if you’re doing it to raise money for a charity/organisation, you could always post details here as some people who read this may want to sponsor you. Thanks for leaving a comment!
Corrina´s last blog ..Planes, Trains And Hard Decisions