Introspection: The power of ideas

Everything begins with an idea, said Earl Nightingale. Ideas rule the world. They can transform the lives of people and change the course of history. There are many such examples where simple-looking ideas have made big remarks on our lives. But many cool ideas, despite their quality and innovation, fail in the market. This may happen due to various factors like being ahead of time or being too difficult to implement, or not being useful. It may also be a combination of various commercial and social factors. Take the example of Google Class launched in 2013. Do you see them in the market? Many people also do not know whether they ever existed. It was a wearable device that enabled users to view digital information in real time. However, due to various issues including concerns about privacy, high prices and being not that useful at that time, the idea didn't work.Another example is of Ford Edsel car which was produced in 1957 but had to be withdrawn within 3 years of its launch. There were many complications in the idea and implementation. Segway, a two-wheeled, self-balancing type personal scooter was advertised as a landmark to revolutionise urban transport but it was relegated to tourism and security markets only. What is important is that the idea, in addition to being innovative and useful, has to be simple as well. Unless it is simple and easy to implement, there are difficulties in its utilisation which leads to failure. Charles Peguy wrote, "It is the essence of genius to make use of the simplest ideas." The Virtual Boy, a first step in virtual reality launched by Nintendo in 1995 failed to attract appreciators because of its monochrome display and non-comfortable interface. Lack of simplicity in see led it to discontinuation rather quickly. When you develop an idea, test it from the angle of simplicity, utility and adaptability. Unless they are effective enough from all these perspectives, there is a high chance they might fail. Remember, being innovative is not enough for an idea to be successful. Thomas Alva Edition, inventor of electricity aptly remarks, "The value of an idea lies in the using of it." Anytime you are mesmerised by your own idea or innovative thought, give it some time and examine it based on these parameters before implementing it. This is not to discourage any brave ideas but to make them more pragmatic and potentially successful. (Expressed opinions are personal.)