Let’s say you have an idea. And why not? I have so many of them myself. So, you’ll also definitely have some. In fact, you might have many ideas. But let’s talk about one of them. Anyone.

How do you express it? Do you categorize the elements that form this idea? Or if it’s a complex one, you create a hierarchy out of it?

Do you think ideas are so flat that you can put its elements in flat categories? Do you think you can organize your ideas in a hierarchy?

Before we try to find an answer for these questions, we need to look at the anatomy of an idea.

Is an idea an island i.e. does it hold by itself. Can an idea be so complete by itself that expressing it does not require expressing, mentioning, referencing any other idea? No. When you look at an idea closely, you’ll see that it uses so many ideas as foundation, so many as pillars and so many as roof. It is strongly linked to some ideas and weakly linked to some other. A close look at the expression of an idea reveals that it is an expression of a primary idea that has been built on top of and with support of multiple secondary ideas. And when you look closely at a secondary idea, the secondary becomes primary.

In other words, the ideas are linked to each other in a web like fashion. They link to each other and are linked from each other. Our mind traverses from one idea to the other through these links.

In fact, more than forming a web, ideas form an ecosystem. Why I say ecosystem? Because ideas need each other’s support for their expression (which is as good as their existence). In fact, they are so dependent on each other that more often than not, an idea A cannot be even conceived without conceiving ideas B, C and D. Ideas are like living beings. An idea takes birth amid and out of other ideas, it evolves with some contemporary, some old and some new ideas. And eventually is superseded by newer ideas.

And I have really started liking blogosphere. It provides an extraordinary platform for ideas ecosystem. Blogosphere is not about expression. It is not even about publishing. It is a giant leap in the direction of getting ideas together so that they evolve and reach adulthood much faster.