Page 69 - Free the Idea Monkey

I mentioned earlier that the Idea Monkey can become a destruc-
tive distraction. This is particularly true when the Monkey is a
leader in the organization. Without Roy, Walt would have admit-
tedly been just another dreamer. But Walt recognized his weakness
as well as his strengths. He had Roy to help him focus on the best
ideas and, more importantly, take care of the incredibly hard work of
implementing them. The same is true for Roy. Without Walt, he was
an operational expert. With Walt, he was able to help make millions
of children smile—and shareholders rich.

This pattern is consistently seen with famous Idea Monkeys even
if you are not aware of the sometimes quiet partnership. The ideator
and the activator:

• Rodgers and Hammerstein
• Jobs and Wosniak
• Orville and Wilbur
• MJ and Phil Jackson
• Elvis and the Colonel . . . ok, you get the idea.
Because this idea is so important, I am going to give it its own
chapter, Chapter 12 “Discovering a Yin to Your Yang or Are You a
Walt Disney or a Roy Disney?” But for now, let me finish the thought
with this.
I love Marcus Buckingham’s language in
his book Now, Discover Your Strengths. His
premise is, first find out what “makes you
feel strong” and then align all your activities
against these strengths. So, you need to begin
by asking what makes you feel strong? Looking
at the three components of our innovation
formula is a great place to start. Are you about
ideas, insights or connecting the two with
inspired communication?

54 CHANNELING THE MONKEY