I had just spent an entire evening at my job polishing a presentation of an idea I had, with the care and love of a true brain parent, when my coworker bounded up to my desk.
"I've got a great idea!" he said and proceeded to describe it with bubbling enthusiasm. Within a few words I realized that it was nearly identical to my own. I quickly minimized the window bearing my presentation and paused for an imperceptible moment to work out the fresh dilemma in my head.
Should I tell him that his idea was one I had had weeks ago and was now sitting patiently inside my PowerPoint file? Or should I reward his willingness to get involved and bring ideas to the table by giving him the credit?
If I say I had already thought of it, it could be a kick in the gut of his enthusiasm. But if he takes credit my organization doesn't see my own initiative. So what matters more?
"That's a great idea," I said, and he beamed. We proceeded to flesh out his idea, just as I had done with my identical one, only now it was even stronger and more vivid. This was now our idea, and it was even better.
When it came time to present we had that lovely embarrassing exchange of "he thought of it," "no, no she thought of it," and everyone was happy.
P.S. The image in this post does NOT look like me or my coworker.
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