The overnight test for ideas

I get a lot of ideas at 11pm. Almost all of them feel like the best idea I've ever had. Almost none of them are.

The filter I trust now is time, not judgment. I write the idea down and go to sleep. If I still care about it on the morning walk, if it's pulling me instead of me pushing it, that's signal. If I have to remind myself why it was exciting, that's the answer too.

This costs nothing and saves weeks. The ideas that don't survive the night were usually just my ego looking for something to do.