Round Two of my post-Idea Camp rodeo (check out part one here)…

As its name implies, The Idea Camp was all about ideas.  However, as Charles Lee says, ideas are a dime a dozen; it’s the execution of the idea that matters. (h/t: @daniwao).  I deeply appreciated that the message throughout the Camp was not about innovation for innovation’s sake but, rather, to take a hard, realistic look at what it means to generate worthy ideas, the hard work of bringing them to life, and then evaluating & reflecting on those ideas.

The Idea Camp provided ordinary people like myself unique access to innovative people & ideas.  It was great to hear some people I had heard of beforehand (including Scott Harrison of charity: water, Eugene Cho, Dave Gibbons, Jeff Shinabarger) as well as many who were previously unknown to me.  The weekend was a great glimpse “behind the curtain” of the creative process.  For me, it was less about cut & pasting someone else’s model of innovation and more about hearing stories and being encouraged to dream and act.

I loved the Idea Competition hosted at the Camp.  To me, WikiChoice (the winner of the competition) embodied the ethos and heart of what The Idea Camp is about.  WikiChoice is a great idea, born out of compassion; essentially, it’s a resource to help consumers make just choices in their purchases).  It leverages technology to promote justice (consumers will be able to find info on products & companies via the web, mobile phones, etc.).  The process of group voting (tech again) and, most importantly, sharing our gifts & talents to bring idea to life captured the spirit of collaborative action.

Even the choice to go green with schedules (the schedule was available via the web, with a few strategically placed paper hard copies at the event) was a great idea put into action.