Last Mile Thinkers

Posted on May 2, 2017. Filed under: Uncategorized |

I have a lot of 80% finished ideas. At any given time maybe i have 10 or so, floating around in my brain. When I stall out on an idea, rather than let it die or evaporate, I like to lob it over the fence into other people’s yards to see what comes back. Often, what comes back is a set of blank stares or even dismissal, but occasionally what comes back is the last 20%. I start tons of conversations with “want to hear an unfinished idea?” There are certain, albeit few, people in the world who are open and receptive to incomplete thinking. Not in a brainstormy “let’s get to the answer together” kind of way… rather in a “drop me in the right zipcode and I’ll navigate the last mile” kind of way. I deeply value the ear of last mile thinkers. They tend to be forgiving of blemishes and opportunistic around kernels of truth. I had a brief conversation today where my 80% idea was met with inaction…where I wanted the recipient to just take the beginning and see it through to the end…and he just couldn’t…and it made me stop for a minute and really appreciate the last mile thinkers I’ve worked with in my life…it’s a rare chemistry when you find people who can finish your thoughts.