Never Share An Idea With Your Mechanic

A few months ago I was in to see my mechanic.  You see, the Jeep's potential inability to keep up with the hour long commute had me a bit worried about a very public breakdown.  

My mechanic is a really good guy.  Honest and straightforward.  Perhaps the best I've had in my adult car owning lifetime.

The only problem?

He didn't react to my idea the way I wanted him to . . . he didn't get it.

Now, if you are like me, you tend to fall in love with your ideas.  Despite hearing information telling you that you are being a bit naive.  But I tend to believe that if you are passionate about it, you should keep going.  On the theory that if it matters to you, you will not give up when times get tough . . .

So, back to the mechanic.

It all started when he asked me about the Jeep's license plate.  See above. You see, the last time I was in there, I had the old plates on there and he could not find the new ones in his computer system.

Here's how the conversation went:

Mechanic:  License plate?

Me:  Q-X-O-T-I-N-G

Mechanic:  Q-X-T . . .

Me:  Q-X-O-T-I-N-G

Mechanic:  Uh, OK.  Does that mean something?

Me:  Well, I write a blog about ideas.

Mechanic:  A what?

Me:  A blog.  An online journal.

Mechanic:  Like a diary?

Me:  Kind of.  I share my ideas and try to inspire others to do the same.

Mechanic:  You lost me.  What's the plate mean?

Me:  Oh, it stands for "Quixoting" which is based on the life of Don Quixote.

Mechanic:  I don't know who that is.

Me:  The book about tilting at windmills?  Written by Cervantes?

Mechanic:  (blank stare)

Now, before I say anything more, know that my mechanic is a pretty smart guy. So I really thought he would know who Don Quixote was and perhaps understand the connection.  Nope.

So, after I left the car with him, I started thinking about his reaction.  Had I completely screwed up in choosing Don Quixote as my namesake?  Am I as delusional as the Don himself?  What if this were my plan for income down the road?  Was I being selfish and pig-headed?  Don't answer that.

It is an interesting question.  Some small business consultants I'm sure would say: absolutely DO take all your ideas to your mechanic.  If he doesn't get it, toss it out the window!

I'm curious if any of you have experience here?  If an idea doesn't pass the mechanic test, should we drop it? Maybe change it?

Again, in my situation, Quixoting is not something I'm creating as a money maker. So, the pressure is off.  

But, is it really?

Comments

[ZoomerzMom]

Your mechanic is not in your target market.

[Tim Tyrell-Smith]

ZoomerzMom - Yes! That's true. But the point I was trying to make is that some will tell you that your idea has to make sense to a wide variety of people. That is has to be simple and easy to understand. This post was written to help me think through that idea.

I was also talking a bit about the psychology of launching an idea. How to react when your mechanic doesn't get it.

Thanks for your comment!