No such thing as a bad idea

Have you ever joined a "brainstorming session" and heard the facilitator say, "Come on, guys, there is no such thing as a bad idea?"

- FRANCIS J. KONG

This has long been hailed as a guiding principle. However, let's face it—bad ideas do exist. They come in various forms: terrible, destructive and often irresponsible. We've all had our fair share of them, although we may not always admit it. It can feel disingenuous when someone brushes off a bad idea with this cliché in a meeting. We all know when an idea just doesn't cut it.

Just look at the behavior of people in the room. When a not-so-good idea is presented (especially by the boss or a relative of the owner), all eyes in the room simultaneously look downward, study their hands or the table and look away.

Yet, amidst the sea of bad ideas, there lies a hidden truth. These seemingly 'bad' ideas, often dismissed, can hold fragments of value. They can act as precursors to better ideas waiting to emerge. The key is distinguishing between truly irrelevant ideas that waste time and those that don't fully solve the problem. These partial solutions can serve as building blocks for refining and reshaping ideas into something more impactful, sparking hope and optimism in the idea generation process.