I don’t work 8 to 5. My typical day starts earlier than that and goes later. That’s the advantage of both working from home and being permanently connected via smart devices of all sorts. The best parts of my day are the times when I go off-script – when I pick up the phone and have a conversation with someone about the random things happening or when some new article hits the net that sparks new thoughts.
Ideas are weird because they don’t necessarily have any physical representation. I love the pure energy that is generated from the excitement of new ideas. The worst thing that you can do to me is to throw cold water on an idea that is just starting to form. It’s the equivalent of throwing the emergency brake on a car in the midst of a quick acceleration. There is nothing better than watching that spark of idea fan into a full blown new product or improvement to something already in existence.
There is no ownership over ideas or the direction they ultimately go. Ideas are easy but execution is hard. The best way I’ve found to make things happen is to have an amazing team. I would argue that the thing you should look for in a job is the team that you will be working with. Nothing is more fulfilling than working with a bunch of superstars that are all working together and in the same direction. There’s not much that can be better than that. The experience you get from simply working with other superstars is invaluable. They are the best way to go from idea to execution.