“We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.” -Buddha
Thoughts. We all have them…some more than others. They can be good or bad, planned or spontaneous, happy or sad, etc. They can be anything you imagine because they are literally what you imagine. They are the foundation of everything. Some are fleeting while others are persistent. Positive thoughts are so powerful they can change a person’s entire reality and those around them for the better. Unfortunately, negative thoughts can do the same, but will usually make things worse. If you ever saw the movie Inception, you know how a single thought can chance a person and becomes what defines them. We are constantly thinking, either consciously or unconsciously. Your brain is thinking things like breathe or pump blood, but this is subconscious. When we sleep we think, we call it dreaming. If you really want to wonder and observe the power of the mind, realize you are dreaming while it is happening and you can do literally anything you think. I have always had a fascination with the mind and the powers it holds through thoughts. This blog will discuss a type of thought, the idea.
Now I know your probably thinking they are the same but they are not exactly one and the same. A thought can be anything. If you look at the sky and think, the sky is beautiful, that is a thought about the sky. However, an idea is a thought that forms a plan or strategy. You may think the sky is beautiful, then have the idea to take a picture. Some thoughts are observational, but the idea is operational. How do I solve this? What should I do? Where should I go? These questions lead to ideas. You may have a thought of an ideal situation, but an idea is a plan to make that situation reality. I’ll give another example, a personal one. Years ago in high school or early college I was laying on the couch feeling under the weather. Because of my fever I was feeling very cold, which would switch to very hot at times. As I’m watching TV, I have to let my arm up from under the covers to use the remote, which lets cold air into my warm comfort zone. So to remedy this, I thought wouldn’t it be cool if they made blankets with sleeves. Now I know what you are thinking, and yes, I thought of the Snuggie. Lol. However, on the road to making that thought an idea, I hit a road bump, another thought. I thought to myself, why would anyone buy a blanket with sleeves when they could theoretically just use a long rob and wear it backwards (this is before I understood the power of advertising). Needless to say, the people who actually turned that thought into an idea made a tangible product that went on to make over $100 million in a few years all while starting during the Recession. There are other very simple inventions that went on to make millions despite seeming like a bad idea like the pet rock ($15 million profit in just the first 6 months), yellow smiley faces that say have a nice day (about half a BILLION for the original emoticon), slinky (based off a tension spring), and last but not least, Beanie Babies (literally bean bags with faces.) Needless to say, these ideas proved to be very valuable for the thinker.
Me personally, I’m still looking for the idea or ideas that will propel me into the desired reality. I have ideas about businesses to start and recently I am looking into social entrepreneurship. The problem with ideas is that it can be hard to come up with a great one, and even then you usually don’t know if they will work until you try them. As humans, we can think anything, and have the power to manifest, to create. Even speaking is a remarkable thing when you think about the fact that I can have a thought, say a word or series of words, and it puts the thought I had into your brain like it teleported (like I did with this blog). Or we can have an idea, and make it reality, like a sculptor or painter makes the image in their head an actual physical image. We have this power, to create, and it doesn’t just apply to art or business. We can create whatever we think. I often have thoughts of a better Detroit, which spur ideas. I think now is the time to create.
Thought become ideas. Ideas become creation.
P.S. Lions win the Superbowl!!! (just wanted to put that thought in ur head. Inception!)
