Page 29 - Free the Idea Monkey

They Leverage New Media (to start a revolution). While some
fear change, the Monkey embraces it because it is new territory
to explore. Today, the new frontier includes social media. This is
particularly fascinating to the Idea Monkey because it plays to so
many of his skills. As we will see, new media magnifies the Monkey’s
ability to start revolutions.

They Believe (that they can change the world). We’ve never met
a pessimistic Idea Monkey. The ability to believe that great things
are juuuuuuuuuuuuust about to happen is fundamental to most of
the Monkey’s superpowers.

They Find a Yin For Their Yang. We’ll let you in on a little-
known secret. Idea Monkeys are usually impotent (insert “yang” joke
here) on their own. They need a partner to leverage their superpowers
and eliminate their blind spots. The best Idea Monkeys figure this
out early and look to create a dynamic duo or find or create an
organization that works to leverage their skills.

They Act Like David. The biggest industries will be defeated
by Idea Monkeys who are more nimble, less tied to tradition and
definitely more willing to take risks (in order to gain a substan-
tial reward). If you or your company have Goliath-like tendencies,
Chapter 13 will explain what has to change (and why).

They Can Be Ruthless. By now you probably think that Idea
Monkeys are the sweetest people on earth. Quite the opposite is true.
The best Idea Monkeys operate with a Darwinian mindset when it
comes to ideas and opportunities. They know that companies have
only a limited amount of resources, and people have a finite amount
of energy. That’s why they only let the strongest ideas survive. They
want to put their efforts behind the concepts that have the greatest
chance of success.

... and behind each one of these talents
should be a committed (Ring)leader
ensuring laser focus and that only the
best ideas survive.

14 F R E E T H E I D E A M O N K E Y