Shiny Object Syndrome

“The biggest enemy of a good idea is another good idea” -Unknown

Shiny Object Syndrome, it actually has its own Wikipedia page. The name describes the malady: people are quickly distracted by the new shiny thing and they quickly forget the last trend they were on. And it turns out, it’s a full-blown pandemic. I don’t have the data for this, but anecdotally, self-diagnosed ADHD continues on an exponential trend up and to the right. We all seem to be distracted.

So, is it something in the water? Are our tech overlords so powerful that they have short-circuited our brains to 60-second clips?

Maybe.

Or maybe it’s just easier to jump from one good idea to the next and never follow through on anything. It would be nice to say we were dragged against our will, but that’s not true. Following through is difficult;

execution of an idea can be slow, painful, and there’s no promise of a reward. Another good idea is an excuse to kick the can down the road.

Put down the shiny object and see yesterday’s plan through.