Give people a reason to listen to you. Life Lesson #14

Do.

Then advocate.

My boss calls me “an idea a minute.” For me, the process of “ideation” is as simple and easy as breathing.

Fix society? Sure, I can give you 12 ways to do that.

Change the way we do church? Yup, know how to do that too.

Marriage solutions? Easy.

Sound familiar? Might that be the person in the mirror? The beauty of youth is not being a know-it-all, but rather in the ideas that might possibly make a difference.

I worked for a young leader once, just 4 years my senior, who was my equal in the ideation department. At one point, I had an epiphany about all these ideas though that we discussed.

In the real world, few people invest in ideas. Those people who get invested in, they have a track record: Of starting a business in high school: Of leading a team, solving a problem, doing it different in their little sphere of influence.

To his credit, my leader turned his ideas into reality. And his influence and respect grew with every idea that he turned into action.

So have the ideas of youth. But at some point, you gotta have something to show for it.

Do. Then tell others how to do it.