WEBVTT - The best idea you never pursued

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to ask people about the best idea

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<v Speaker 1>they never pursued, and to ask yourself that question too.

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<v Speaker 1>You'll hear great ideas and learn a lot about people,

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<v Speaker 1>including yourself as you do. Today's tip is inspired by

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<v Speaker 1>an episode of the podcast No Stupid Questions with Angela

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<v Speaker 1>Duckworth and Stephen Dubner. Duckworth recounted how the investor for

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<v Speaker 1>oz Dwan met KIP Charter School's co founder Dave Levin

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<v Speaker 1>at a party. He asked him, what's the best idea

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<v Speaker 1>you've never executed? Levin said that using behavioral science to

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<v Speaker 1>help kids improve their lives was that idea. From that

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<v Speaker 1>conversation grew the nonprofit Character Lab, with Doan as board chair,

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<v Speaker 1>an admission to advance scientific insights that help kids thrive.

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<v Speaker 1>Now that is certainly a much bigger impact then you

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<v Speaker 1>get out of most cocktail party chit chat. I love

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<v Speaker 1>that question, what's the best idea you've never executed? Now?

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<v Speaker 1>My guess is that Dean knew a little bit about

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<v Speaker 1>Levin and when he asked that question, perhaps he already

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<v Speaker 1>had a hunch that his good ideas would be worth supporting.

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<v Speaker 1>But even if you are not planning to start a

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<v Speaker 1>new nonprofit or business based on someone else's ideas, it

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<v Speaker 1>can still be fruitful to ask about them. For starters,

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<v Speaker 1>asking about the best idea the other person has never

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<v Speaker 1>pursued invites more meaningful conversation than the usual what's keeping

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<v Speaker 1>you busy? Or what do you do? Asking about the

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<v Speaker 1>best idea they haven't pursued also honors them by communicating

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<v Speaker 1>that you believe they have even more good ideas than

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<v Speaker 1>they've acted on. The conversation builds relationships by letting you

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<v Speaker 1>know what the person is curious about, and who knows,

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<v Speaker 1>maybe you will encounter an idea that gets you excited.

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<v Speaker 1>I could see a similar question being asked in job interviews,

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<v Speaker 1>what's the best idea you've never pursued. If you ask

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<v Speaker 1>a job applicant that question, the response may give you

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<v Speaker 1>insight into the range of ways that they could support

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<v Speaker 1>your organization. The kinds of ideas they've considered probably hint

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<v Speaker 1>at the range of work they could do. Plus you'll

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<v Speaker 1>learn about their interests and ideas beyond the scope of

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<v Speaker 1>your work, what makes them who they are, what captures

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<v Speaker 1>their curiosity A job applicants response may also reveal what

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<v Speaker 1>they see as barriers to acting on their ideas, so

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<v Speaker 1>you can anticipate what they might see as barriers at

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<v Speaker 1>work and how you might potentially help them navigate these.

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<v Speaker 1>You can ask yourself this question too, what great ideas

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<v Speaker 1>have you had that you haven't followed up on? Are

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<v Speaker 1>there any ideas you've been excited about in the past

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<v Speaker 1>that you'd like to revisit and act on now, either

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<v Speaker 1>in a professional or entrepreneurial way, or maybe just for fun.

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<v Speaker 1>Part of the joy of writing and podcasting is that

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<v Speaker 1>I get to try out lots of ideas and topics.

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<v Speaker 1>But even so, there are plenty I haven't fully executed on.

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<v Speaker 1>I want to write more about big family logistics and

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<v Speaker 1>tricks of the trade. I have a particular fascination by

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<v Speaker 1>type two errors. I also like writing about incredibly prolific

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<v Speaker 1>people and sonnets. Maybe someday, when we ask others and

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<v Speaker 1>ourselves about the best ideas we've never acted on, we

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<v Speaker 1>dream big and give attention to possibilities, we can have

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<v Speaker 1>better conversations. We may also decide to give some of

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<v Speaker 1>those ideas a world. If you've had a great idea

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<v Speaker 1>that you are considering acting on but haven't yet, I'd

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<v Speaker 1>love to hear about it. You can tell me about

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<v Speaker 1>it at Laura at Laura Vanderkamp dot com. In the meantime,

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<v Speaker 1>this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making

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<v Speaker 1>the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to

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<v Speaker 1>hear from it. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod. That's b E the

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<v Speaker 1>number four, then Breakfast p o D. You can also

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<v Speaker 1>shoot me an email at Before Breakfast podcast at iHeartMedia

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<v Speaker 1>dot com. That Before Breakfast is spelled out with all

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<v Speaker 1>the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward to staying

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<v Speaker 1>in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of I Heart Radio.

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