Plan for Spontaneity

(I'll be the first to admit I've been guilty of the very thing I'm going to write about. However, if awareness is the first step in effecting change, consider my journey underway.)

Have you ever been in a meeting (or Zoom session as of late), and after agenda items have been covered and things are drawing to a close, a participant chimes in with:  Have you considered [this idea]? Inevitably what follows is a spell of impromptu ideation combined with a slew of new action items.

The scenarios where I've seen this play out most often are in nonprofit board meetings and event-planning sessions. Well-meaning board or committee members spouting creative proposals without expounding on how to implement anything....we've all been there. 

Spontaneous brainstorms aren't bad in and of themselves. The part I take issue with is:  Who's responsible for fleshing out these suggestions? Where does accountability lie with respect to next steps?

New ideas can be useful and inspiring, and ought to be encouraged, but to maximize their utility, they require cultivation. All too often, when I've been in situations as described above, the suggestions are blurted out, then left dangling in the air, with no plan in place to further develop them.

My recommendation:  Expect that at some point in your meeting, discussion will veer into left field. Rather than allow potentially helpful proposals to die on the vine, be proactive and include an agenda item specifically for ad hoc sharing. To optimize the free flow of ideas, pre-assign someone to record any suggestions that surface. Post-meeting, follow up with the idea originator, and enlist their help in fleshing out their vision.

In closing, may these words from Victor Hugo inspire you to create a culture where ideas are welcomed:

There is one thing stronger than all the armies in the world and that is an Idea whose time has come.