Asking people to repeat my idea back to me always gives me a sense of what’s actually resonating.

“Do the work before you share with the outside world. You need to be the most passionate advocate. You need to be inspired before you inspire anyone else.” In other words, be willing to do the work necessary to convince yourself first.

One of the key underpinnings of Kahneman’s contribution is what scientists call “loss aversion,” which suggests that, psychologically, the pain of losing is twice as powerful as the pleasure of gaining. Kahneman points out that most people will “reject a gamble in which they might lose $20, unless they are offered more than $40 if they win.”5

“What is the shift in the world that is making your idea matter?”

turn outsiders into insiders so that when your idea reaches the execution stage you arrive together.

with a quick exercise. I’ll say, “Stand up if you have a creative idea. Anything new—it can be simple or groundbreaking. It can be an idea for a new product, a new process…anything you think might make a meaningful difference.” Within a few moments, almost everyone is standing. Then I’ll ask people to remain standing “if you have not shared that

while each “backable circle” is different, there are four specific types of people (the four Cs) I like to have in mine. The first is your collaborator. This is someone who’s going to help you expand your idea and improve your delivery.

“The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems.”

When a friend asks what you’re working on, instead of giving them the thirty-second summary, ask, “Do you have fifteen minutes for me to practice my pitch?”