For the vast majority of my life I lived about an 90 minutes due west of New York City. Consequently, I spent a great deal of time in business, management training and consulting. It is very easy to become desensitized to the vertical summits of the city when you are there so much. However, I have always noted with detached amusement the newcomers to the city who stand at the verge of the sidewalk on their tiptoes looking up trying to see the very top of the skyscrapers.

Once, during a very lengthy traffic jam, and observing many of the tourists in the city, it occurred to me that their wide-eyed wonder at the cityscape was caused by the building that they were looking at, but, at one point, those buildings were nothing more than a thought!

Everything is created three times

70 or 80 years ago someone had an idea. That idea was to take an empty lot in downtown Manhattan and turn it into a building using current architectural techniques and to create a skyscraper. The notion of the skyscraper existed mentally and that was all.

Apparently, this real estate entrepreneur secured financing and the construction of the project could begin. During that time, I am sure that the entrepreneur spent much time at the site being emotionally involved as well as logically invested in every decision. Finally, the building was complete and ready for occupancy which created cash flow, allowing the banks and investors to be repaid, and a profit to be earned.

Below is how you create your masterpiece starting with an idea then going to an emotion followed by making it a reality:

1. Starts with an Idea

Everything that has ever existed physically, existed mentally prior. This is your imagination! All of us have ideas. The question is whether we act on them and bring them to physical reality, or simply say to ourselves that that was an interesting thought and do nothing about it.

Let me repeat, anything that exists physically first began as an idea. That idea must propel us into action! Imagination is the starting point.

“When you’re curious, you find lots of interesting things to do.” – Walt Disney

2. Then comes emotion

Think of that real estate entrepreneur a century ago building the building in New York City. He was at the construction site every day speaking to the general contractor along with reporting back to the bank and the investors on the progress that was made.

This person was emotionally involved in the projection of turning his idea into a physical reality. Each time that any of us take an idea and move it forward, the momentum of that idea to fruition is accelerated by emotion. Emotion is the gas pedal that takes our thoughts and creates them for real.

3. Bring your idea into reality

Now it exists. I would bet that after that building was ready for occupancy that the entrepreneur didn’t simply think that that was a job well done and stop working. He now spent the time marketing, selling space, and filling the building with profitable tenants. Once you have manifested your idea into life, the real work begins.

Please think about that process in your own life. See if you can answer the question of what is the big idea that you would like to move forward. Perhaps it is something physical like a new home or new business. Perhaps it’s something mental like becoming a better executive or salesperson. Perhaps it is something more spiritual. Whatever it is, if your mind can conceive it, you can bring it about.

“There’s a way to do it better—find it.” – Thomas Edison

The very notion of desire means that there is something within you that wants to be created. Use that desire as a way of generating ideas to begin the process of manifestation. Then become emotionally involved in the implementation of your ideas.

Look around you. Everything that you see has existed three times. Once in the form of an idea followed by the emotional involvement of moving that idea into physical reality. Finally, the last step was actually receiving what you asked for and thought of.

Let me end by asking you a question: what big ideas do you have that you want to become emotionally involved with, move to fruition, and engage with for an extended period of time? Got it? Cool! Now, go do it!

Comment on your big ideas below, let other readers assist you with the emotion and implementation!

Image courtesy of Twenty20.com