Skip to main content

the leading edge of applying complexity science to business organisation

24 ways to kill an idea

more ideas »

 

wilted flowers
  1. ignore it
  2. see it coming and dodge
  3. scorn it
  4. laugh it off
  5. praise it to death
  6. mention that it has never been tried
  7. prove that it isn’t new
  8. observe that it doesn’t fit with organisational policy
  9. mention what it will cost
  10. "oh, we’ve tried that before"
  11. cast the right aspersion
  12. find a competitive idea
  13. produce twenty good reasons why it won’t work
  14. modify it out of existence
  15. encourage doubt about ownership
  16. damn it by association of ideas
  17. try to chip bits off it
  18. make a personal attack on the originator
  19. score a technical knock-out
  20. postpone it
  21. let a committee sit on the idea
  22. offer to take lead responsibility for developing the idea
  23. generalise
  24. encourage the author to look for a better idea
  25. ...

more ideas »