Act on those ideas when you have them!
How often do we have ideas and then not act on them? How often does the beautiful gem of an idea enter our brains then [squirrel]…poof it’s gone.
Several months ago, I ran into a colleague at an art fair where he was exhibiting his work and began chatting about how long it had been since we connected. It had been at a collaborative walk hosted by his organization and several others. I told him we should gather several of our colleagues and do something like that during the Summer. A seed was planted.
A couple days later I was emailing the co-conspirators I had in mind to see if they might be on board with collaborating on an event that would bring folks together across sectors to slowdown, walk, engage and gather in the park to connect with nature and each other. The hope would be to plant some seeds of partnership and collaboration across those folks to benefit the community members that they might collectively be serving. As luck would have it…they all said yes!
I was not going to let this idea go unacted upon. We gathered the week prior to the event to create a plan for the afternoon knowing we were making a plan, not a promise to our attendees. We wanted to create an opportunity for things to flow, for people to engage and for conversations and nature to take their natural course.
This past week that beautiful gem of an idea came to fruition. Over 30 folks signed up online to attend, 20 folks showed up at the park on a beautiful, albeit quite hot, Colorado day and we strolled together amongst the trees, birds, lake and dirt. We had three facilitators, each willing to share their knowledge and expertise about moving unhurried, connecting with the trees, offering opportunities to plant seeds of collaboration across sectors, inviting conversations around simple prompts, and creating art and stories from our own experiences to share with our new colleagues.
We circled back to our starting point and moved inside to share insights and some final thoughts. It was remarkable how our idea blossomed into reality and had impacts that we hoped for but didn’t quite expect. One attendee shared how she came to an epiphany that she could both be outdoors, move at her own pace, experience the beauty of nature and feel closer to her family who were quick movers in the outdoors. She was moved to tears and I was in awe.
We followed up the event with a networking social (aka healthy happy hour) at a local brewhouse for those who desired to continue conversations and connect could do so. It’s amazing what seeds can be planted over a beverage or two. 😊
Now it’s your turn. Embrace that idea that’s bubbling in your brain and reach out. Maybe your proposed co-conspirators will say yes, if they don’t, find some more. Invite others to help you expand your idea. Feed and nurture it so it can pop out into life like a flower. Your beautiful gem of an idea may be the next wonderful experience that makes an incredible impact on those you serve.
