The Power of an Idea

The Power of an Idea

Creedy: Die! Die! Why won't you die?... Why won't you die?

V: Beneath this mask there is more than flesh. Beneath this mask there is an idea, Mr. Creedy, and ideas are bulletproof.

The above quote is from the movie “V for Vendetta”, a highly esteemed film that I had the time to watch recently.  If you haven’t had time to watch this idea-challenging film, I would recommend you do to so, stat.

Here is a brief plot summary from the helpful folk at Empire.com:

In the not-too-distant future, Britain has become a fascist, totalitarian state, its population cowed and apathetic. But the nation receives a wake-up call when mysterious masked terrorist "V" blows up the Old Bailey and calls for the citizens to rise up against their oppressors.

V=Villain?

The film has many other challenging and thought-provoking quotes to be certain, yet the above particularly stood out to me for its simplicity. How many times have we wondered before sleep, in an important meeting or during school about one recurring idea stuck in our head? It could have been the lyrics of melody of a song, the harsh censure and criticisms of parents and teachers or the taunting or praise of our peers. Whatever, it was that one idea would stay in our mind no matter how we tried to ignore or distract ourselves from it.

Nevertheless, here is my take on this quote and situation. We are confronted with many ideas during a single day. How many do we reject and discard due to sheer whimsy and pure laziness. Having the time to reflect on the multitudes of discarded ideas I discarded with excuses of school, I’ve realised that I never truly followed through with any of them.

What makes V so successful in his plot to blow up parliament and liberate the people in the film his is own steadfast determination and focus on his idea-freedom and the ability to supplant and instill the self-same idea into his protégé-Evey so to aid him even after his physical death.

In my own life, the two have been sorely lacking. For example, we once had the idea to make rechargeable phone cases via solar power to solve the problem of Smartphone battery drainage. However, this fell through quickly enough as other fripperies of life overwhelmed my friends and me. Why? Because there was this lack of focus, we had not the experience or the hard work put in to bring the idea to life, nor did we actively seek and find ways to solve and counter this. Each member of our group had other priorities and this was nowhere near the top of our list. Our determination waxed and waned depending on deadlines and teacher reminders. With this, it is easy to see the weakness of the idea within us; it couldn’t or didn’t take root, and without that let’s not even think about it being bulletproof and full of life under a mask of schoolwork.

Ideas, raining upon me...how many am I absorbing?

So, what is my point by outlining my entrepreneurial failures? That it takes real focus and determination to unleash the power of an idea.  Like V, the 20 years of waiting, planning led to one final night of action, likewise it is with great effort and determination that leads to great results and great influence.   

May your own Ideas live long and prosper!