The Past Couple of Weeks

My mom came up to me and said, "do you realize for the past couple of weeks you've been on the computer from the moment you get up until the time you go to bed." I did not realize that. I've been so focused on what I've been doing, time has flown by. I am enjoying the work I am putting my time and effort into. All I've been doing is trading and hacking. I want to get better in these two disciplines.

I spend time on my trading looking at charts for patterns, support and resistance levels, and direction. I look back at my previous trades to check if I'm following my trading rules. I do research for my trading journal project.

I spend time on my hacking working on my project. I'm teaching myself Ruby on Rails. My Rails web application is for a youth club basketball team. I can add players with an image and their information. I can add leagues with each league having many games. I can add albums with each album containing many photos. I have a calendar that shows the current month that I can add events to which will show up for that day. I can add stats for each player that corresponds to a game. I add basic stats and the model does the calculations for individual and game stats. I am currently working on adding videos to my web application. I've used plugins and gems. I'm also learning and using CSS. When I encounter a problem I search for a solution, which can happen in a day or a month. This is FUN!

I wasn't actually on the computer all day, it just seems that way. I took some time to watch the Blue Angels. I took a couple hours here and there to go watch my nephews play basketball and football. But then I'm back on the computer. So much fun.

The Process of Finding Standout Ideas

How do you know if you have a blockbuster idea? As an example, is my Trading Journal idea a standout idea?

Some people have said to "just get started" on your idea and you'll discover if it's a blockbuster idea. Is that the best move? I read an article The Idea Virtuoso... that touts the process that university professors of research labs use to find the best idea. Having deep knowledge and expert feedback can differentiate between mediocre and great ideas. This reminded me of Dr. Johnson being awarded a grant to research the smart grid. What was his process to settle on that idea to get awarded that grant?

It seems like meeting with a group or team to brainstorm and discuss all ideas are needed to identify the best possible projects before getting started. This commitment to understanding the idea and seeking feedback will help you follow ideas you feel have a strong possibility for success.

It's called the idea-centric approach. You research your ideas to discover if there is an audience out there that sees value in an idea. When the standout idea emerges, the focus of your efforts goes toward implementing that idea. In this approach, you need to learn or know the field and seek expert advice.