David Ogilvy's Five Questions

Advertising giant David Ogilvy knew that inventing big ideas was critical for success in creating ads; that's true in other endeavors as well.

But, how do you know if what you've cooked up is really a big idea?

Ogilvy put the idea to the test by posing the following five questions. If you can't enthusiastically answer "yes" to each of these, chances are the ideas not big enough.

1. Did it make me gasp when I first saw it?
2. Do I wish I had thought of it myself?
3. Is it unique?
4. Does it fit the strategy to perfection?
5. Could it be used for 30 years?

I like all of these questions but the last is particularly powerful. Nowadays, who asks if anything will still be relevant in 30 years?