Big Ideas Start With a "Why Not?"
September 24, 2026
Where do ideas come from...and what do you do once you have one? For Faraz Forghan-Parast, a poet, educator and doctoral researcher in the UVic Faculty of Education, the answer involves a healthy respect for the ideas that don't make it. Ahead of his upcoming talk at TEDxVictoria 2026: Uncharted, at UVic on October 7, we asked him to walk us through his own creative process, from that first flicker of "what if?" to the moment an idea is ready to meet the world.
Where do ideas first begin?
Many begin with a what if?, a why?, or perhaps most dangerously, a why not? They often involve hitting pause and stepping back a little from the scenery we've gotten used to. One can then start reading things through one another and wait to see what bends: a problem through a metaphor, the present through an old myth, one discipline through another that appears entirely unrelated. Metaphors and myths are excellent smugglers, and poetry is a repeat offender.
How do you know if an idea is worth exploring?
Sometimes you simply know; sometimes you think you don’t, but the idea keeps floating around your brain, knocking against other thoughts, dislodging a few and sticking to others. Symptoms may include absent-mindedness, persistent intellectual chafing, scrawling and muttering, and looking intently in directions nobody else is looking—which can be dangerous while crossing the street. Short-term relief may be sought by applying a pen to the nearest scrap of paper for verbal or visual braindumps.
How do ideas evolve over time?
Usually by being slowly turned and twisted in different angles and lights, and rarely in a hurry. Some become clearer, some reveal an unsuspected second face, and some turn out to have been pebbles rather than diamonds. They improve when they are given enough time to surprise the person who had them.
How do you ensure that ideas help communities?
I suppose you have to let them out of the laboratory. An idea meant for people has to be able to survive contact with reality, which means releasing your grip on it and allowing it to be corrected, answered, or even dismantled by the community it was attempting to serve.
An idea meant for people has to be able to survive contact with reality, which means releasing your grip on it and allowing it to be corrected, answered, or even dismantled by the community it was attempting to serve.
Is there such a thing as a 'bad idea'?
Yes; ideas that are actively harmful certainly exist. But a lot of seemingly "bad" ideas exist primarily to become compost for the growth of the good ones. Whether you choose to call it compost or fertilizer probably just depends on your relationship with failure... and possibly with gardening.
What keeps you up at night?
One idea that keeps me up is that we may be producing more language than ever while delighting less and less in it. I am constantly baffled that an extensive vocabulary—once considered a life skill—can now so readily result in misunderstanding, suspicious looks, or the gentle recommendation that one use a simpler word. By three in the morning, I am usually several etymologies deep and somehow less tired than when I began.
Ever been stuck coming up with ideas? If so, what helps shake them loose?
Of course! When intellectual gridlock sets in, I walk away from the blank page and give my attention to music—listening to it, playing it, getting lost inside its architecture. Music is incredibly good at washing away a block, probably because it operates on a completely different logic than words do, giving the idea a chance to approach in disguise.
Who helps you shape or strengthen ideas?
I am actually quite solitary with them at first. When an idea consumes me, I can become garrulous, wordy, and bursty—and very few people have the patience to stand in that blast radius. So, I usually clam up until someone organically asks me a question. That is when the explosion happens, and the idea finally meets the air. Beyond that, I rely heavily on writers and thinkers from other times and places; they can't answer back, but they have infinite patience for my enthusiasm.
Learn more
At TEDxVictoria at UVic on October 7, live speakers and performers will come together to spark discussion and connection, organized locally under general guidance from TED. Expect a day of bold ideas, new perspectives and conversations that turn curiosity into action. Get tickets.