Something that really irks me is a well established idiom I hear from a lot of people in advertising - I call it the "Verbal Safety Net". The Verbal Safety Net comes in many forms but most common is: "I'm just thinking out loud here but..." Said statement usually precedes an idea or suggestion the person would like to share with the group while ensuring he has a soft landing should everyone find the idea crap. In my experience, that idea usually is crap because if you had a good thought to begin with, then why worry about setting up your verbal safety net at all? Actually, similar with trapeze artists and high wire acts with safety nets, the fun is actually in seeing them fall.
Monday, November 28, 2005
I'm just thinking out loud here but...
Something that really irks me is a well established idiom I hear from a lot of people in advertising - I call it the "Verbal Safety Net". The Verbal Safety Net comes in many forms but most common is: "I'm just thinking out loud here but..." Said statement usually precedes an idea or suggestion the person would like to share with the group while ensuring he has a soft landing should everyone find the idea crap. In my experience, that idea usually is crap because if you had a good thought to begin with, then why worry about setting up your verbal safety net at all? Actually, similar with trapeze artists and high wire acts with safety nets, the fun is actually in seeing them fall.
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Sorry to reply to such an old post (i was just browsing) but I think that saying things out loud is valuable, even if they are crap, because it may spark some idea off in other peoples heads. you take a leap, then build the bridge afterwards. It's something Edward deBono promotes in his books on lateral thinking, and 'blurting' is something Luke Sullivan promotes too. It's not about making logical steps when creativity is involved, or if you're looking to tackle a problem in an unconventional way. But I'm just thinking out loud here...
I'm in total agreement with you Thomas. I was merely referring to how when some people do blurt out ideas, they qualify it with 'i'm just thinking out loud here'. It's obvious you're thinking out loud, so why say it? :)
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