A Marketplace of Ideas

My father had a great sense of humor, so it’s something I’ve always valued and to which I aspire. When I sit in meetings, I’m often the guy throwing out funny, silly or sometimes stupid quips. This is my way of introducing play into my work. It keeps me engaged in the conversation. Mostly, it keeps the meetings light; on a few occasions, I imagine it may annoy some.

A funny thing happened once I began facilitating teams through planning and innovation workshops. I noticed several people around the table who would throw out ideas that made everyone laugh. It added energy to the session and a certain competitiveness for the next laugh. Ideas came quicker. The session became fun, not work. And one more big surprise: there was almost always a good idea amidst the laughter—if someone stopped to think about it.

For example, a team was trying to come up with ways to pay for a new initiative it had developed. Ideas came rapid fire:  cut other parts of the budget…shop for low-cost providers…increase prices to cover the costs…hold an event to raise the funds. Then someone said, “Get someone else to pay for it.” Well, the room erupted in laughter. Then someone said, “What if we went to our partners, who want to get in front of the same people we reach, and told them we could market their company even beyond the value of what they pay us?” You can imagine where the conversation went from there.

Blair Miller, a Chicago creativity guru, once told me that it’s easier to tame a wild idea than to give energy to a boring one. He’s right. Ideas that evoke emotion are ones that move people. Laughter signals an idea that has that energy. Stop to mine the ideas that make you laugh for the gold contained within.

Anyone with a similar story?