💩 Idea Diarrhea - Why Today’s Crap Will Be Tomorrow's Gold

© 2025 by Olaf Kretzschmar    

Ideas need the right time. Today's crap will be tomorrow's gold

Let’s face it: if you’re the kind of person who wakes up with five business ideas before breakfast, starts a dozen Notion docs that never get finished, and always feels like you're one idea away from your big break… you might be suffering from a creative condition affectionately known as Idea Diarrhea. It's not a medical diagnosis (thankfully), but it is a real problem. And ironically, it often strikes the most ambitious, inventive people — founders, creatives, consultants, innovators. People like you.

So how do you deal with the flood? And more importantly, how do you mine gold from the mess?

Let’s unpack it.

What is Idea Diarrhea?

"Idea Diarrhea" is what happens when your brain won't stop generating ideas — most of them half-baked, many of them competing, and few of them ever actually executed.

It feels productive. But it’s often just noise.

You might recognise the symptoms:

• 14 open tabs and 6 new project folders by lunch

• Half-built Canva designs for businesses you haven’t registered

• A whiteboard that looks like a crime scene from CSI: Startup Edition

• A growing anxiety that you’re not finishing anything

It’s that relentless buzz of creativity without the structure to channel it.

Why It's a Problem

In startup and creative culture, idea generation is often glamorized. We love “ideators,” “visionaries,” “disruptors.” But unchecked, this habit of constantly jumping to the next exciting thing without shipping the last one kills momentum and undermines trust — in yourself, and in your brand.

Here’s why Idea Diarrhea sucks:

• Paralysis by over-analysis – You start everything. You finish nothing.

• Energy burnout – Your mental energy is used up chasing sparks, not building fires.

• Decision fatigue – You’re too distracted to double down on what actually works.

• Credibility loss – Clients, investors, and even friends stop taking your ideas seriously.

What’s worse? You begin to feel like maybe you’re the problem. You're not. But you do need a strategy.

Idea Diarrhea vs. Innovation Flow

Let’s be clear: ideas aren't bad. Innovation is built on fresh thinking. But successful innovation doesn’t come from a constant stream of unfiltered thoughts. It comes from focus, follow-through, and feedback loops.

The real difference between the founder who builds a seven-figure business and the one with a graveyard of half-built products? Execution.

The best ideas aren’t necessarily the newest — they’re the ones that get refined, tested, packaged, and shipped.

How to Manage the Mess

Here’s how to turn idea chaos into creative fuel:

1. Create an Idea Parking Lot

Not every idea is for now. Make a Notion page, Google doc, or even a literal notebook where you dump your raw ideas. This is your “Idea Compost Bin” — because some of the best things grow from well-aged crap.

2. Practice Idea Triage

Sort your ideas into 3 categories:

• Do it now – Strategic, urgent, aligned

• Revisit later – Needs refinement or resources

• Let it go – Fun, but not worth the energy

This is not about killing creativity. It’s about respecting your time.

3. The 1-3-5 Rule

To stay out of scatterbrain mode:

• Pick 1 major goal

• Pick 3 medium tasks

• Pick 5 small, achievable actionsDo this daily or weekly. It gives you structure without killing momentum.

4. Accountability Changes Everything

Before you tell someone, get them to sign a Confidentiality Agreement/ Non-Disclosure Agreement

Set a launch date. When your ideas live in public — or even just outside your head — they become real. You’ll instinctively start prioritising what matters.

5. Build a Framework, Not Just a Feeling

If an idea keeps coming back, build a prototype. Sketch it. Map a funnel. Define a minimum viable version. Because the sooner you make it real, the sooner you’ll know whether it’s gold or glittery garbage.

Reframe the Crap

Here’s the good news: today’s crap might be tomorrow’s gold. That "bad" idea from last year? Maybe the market wasn’t ready. That half-baked brand name? It could become the perfect sub-brand down the line. That failed landing page? Maybe it holds the seed for a lead magnet that finally converts. The truth is: your creative “waste” isn’t waste at all. It’s raw material.

Ideas don’t expire. They mature. Sometimes what feels like garbage now is just ahead of its time, or waiting for the right context to shine. Think of your ideas like compost: smelly and chaotic at first, but full of potential to feed future growth.

From Diarrhea to Deal Flow

Instead of seeing your messy mind as a weakness, see it as a goldmine with the wrong extraction method.

The real game is about turning inspiration into assets:

• Convert that scribbled brand name into a registered trademark

• Turn that shower-thought into a digital product or eBook

• Build an IP strategy around your recurring industry insights

Execution is where the value compounds. One filtered idea — well packaged — can outperform a hundred scattered ones.

The Takeaway

If you’re drowning in your own creativity, here’s your permission slip to slow down, filter hard, and focus on finishing. Because that mess in your head? It’s not meaningless. It just needs processing.

Your best idea might already exist — it’s just buried under six months of brainstorms and self-doubt.

So next time you feel that flood of thoughts coming on, don’t panic. Park them. Prioritise them. Protect your time.

And remember:

Today’s crap is tomorrow’s gold — if you give it the time to rot and the space to shine.