The Idea Hunter: How to Find the Best Ideas and Make them Happen

By Andy Boynton, Bill Fischer and William Bole

A different way of discovering and developing the best business ideas

Jack Welch once said, "Someone, somewhere has a better idea." In this myth-busting book, the authors reveal that great business ideas do not spring from innate creativity, or necessarily from the brilliant minds of people. Rather, great ideas come to those who are in the habit of looking for great ideas all around them, all the time. Too often, people fall into the trap of thinking that the only worthwhile idea is a thoroughly original one. Idea Hunters know better. They understand that valuable ideas are already out there, waiting to be found - and not just in the usual places.

• Shows how to expand your capacity to find and develop winning business ideas
• Explains why ideas are a critical asset for every manager and professional, not just for those who do "creative"
• Reveals how to seek out and select the ideas that best serve your purposes and goals and define who you are, as a professional
• Offers practical tips on how to master the everyday habits of an Idea Hunter, which include cultivating great conversations

The book is filled with illustrative accounts of successful Idea Hunters and stories from thriving "idea" companies. Warren Buffet, Walt Disney, Thomas Edison, Mary Kay Ash, Twitter, and Pixar Animation Studios are among the many profiled.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wiley
• Release date: Apr 4, 2011
• ISBN: 9781118038840

Reviews for The Idea Hunter

[sassybrit · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Idea Hunter, as the title suggests, looks for new and innovative ideas that make a difference in any industry or company. To assist your hunt, authors By: Andy Boynton, Bill Fischer and William Bole explain the four I-D-E-A principles:

*Interesting - an incredible idea, which excites you
*Diverse - different, seemingly unrelated, but potentially valuable thoughts
*Exercised - daily, focused purpose driven brainstorming training
*Agility - an awareness the ideas, which come to you, are forever moving, changing and combining and are hardly ever straightforward

They teach you to know your gig and look for ideas everywhere, all of the time. Each principle is explained and given a practical strategy name d "idea work" and one is taught to constantly think where and how to get ideas, by nurturing the habit of hunt as a daily exercise routine. Here's a small favourite passage of mine:

"The goal of the hunt is not to get a great idea instantly, but to set it in motion, letting it stretch, ripen, morph, or otherwise develop in collision and combination with other ideas. That's how an idea becomes great."

This book excited me when I read it, as I am the sort of person who loves getting creative and what more could I ask for than a book, which assists me in discovering new ways to nurture my creative streak and find even more ideas when I am buzzing with them already? In all honesty, I cannot see this being everyone's cup of tea though. Or should that be everyone's idea of a good idea? I feel it takes a certain sort of person to want this sort of book to work. Much of it is common sense, but it's the `awareness' of it all that really works for me. The Idea Hu nter is a very cool idea in itself and I am glad we crossed paths and found each other.