A new idea is delicate. It can be killed by a sneer or a yawn; it can be stabbed to death by a joke or worried to death by a frown on the right person's brow.
-- Charles Brower

Have you ever had just the beginning of an idea, shared it with someone, received a negative reaction, and then abandoned the idea? Too often, we share those initial sparks of creative thought with the wrong people or too early with the right ones. I'm very blessed to have a few friends who help me grow those delicate, seedling ideas. These friends never tell me it won't work; instead they ask me questions that start with, "How will you do that?" They withhold judgment until I have fully realized the concept. Those friends are worth gold (or with today's prices, maybe gasoline) because they can help me filter through all my ideas and examine them until I can determine their potential.

There are other friends I have to avoid when I'm in the creating stage. They are the ones who usually respond with one of the following creativity killers:

• It'll never work.
• You don't have time.
• It will cost too much.
• No one will ever go for it.
• If it worked, wouldn't someone else have already done it?
• You're too old.
• You're too young. (I don't hear this one as much as I used to.)

Don't misunderstand. I love practical people. I love number-crunchers. But there is a time and a place for both types of people - those practical, analytical types (you know who you are) and those of us who live in an alternate reality where anything is possible.

I believe that the best world is one where the creative types and the analytical types allow each their time to present their ideas - but separately, coming together only after each has had a chance to work alone.

No matter which type you are most of the time, give yourself a chance to come up with some creative ideas, before you put them in a spreadsheet.

Last month's puzzle was "What is a two word anagram for the word ASTRONOMERS that means roughly the same thing?" I love answers that make me laugh out loud - STAR MOONERS, for example - but the right answer was MOON STARERS. Dan Scanlon of The DosKas Group wins the March gift certificate to Nicavid's Bakery. Thanks to all of you who entered!

This month, here's one for the number crunchers in the group. Other than wanting a decent sized caffeine jolt, why might a mathematician use the following phrase? "May I have a large container of coffee?" Email your answer to me. I'll draw one winner from the correct responses for a gift certificate at one of my favorite restaurants.

My friend Cheryl Cook has a wonderful newsletter (and if you like this one, you'll like hers, too.) Learn how to get more cash in your pocket, more sales in the door, and reduce the amount of cash leaving your business. To visit her website and sign up for this biweekly ezine, click here.

I've been living my dream for the last year, doing what I enjoy and aligning my activities with the values that are most important to me. Now I want to share this journey with you. Let me help you discover the joy of living a purpose-filled life. Come to my workshop and learn to Live Your Dream!

Friday, April 29, 8:30 A. M. - 12 noon at the Greater San Antonio Chamber's Small Business Resource Center, 1100 NW Loop 410 at Blanco. Also available for private groups. Call or email for details.

For more information, click here.